Why do you need an NFC chip in a smartphone

The term NFC (Near Field Communication) stands for "near field communication". The fact is that the range of wireless pairing using an NFC chip does not exceed 10 cm. Two devices connect to each other in a minimum amount of time (0.1 sec.) And without additional approvals using the radio frequency identification method(operating frequency 13.56 MHz). All you need to do is just bring one device close to another.

Before proceeding with the ways to use the NFC chip, we suggest taking a brief digression into history. The starting point in the development of technology is considered to be 2004, when the venerable players in the mobile device market Nokia, Philips and Sony announced the creation of the NFC forum, a non-profit association that set goals to promote and standardize the interaction interface of various devices based on touch. The first device with an NFC module in its arsenal was a “clamshell” Nokia 6131 , released in 2006:

A simple, by today's standards, "clamshell" for the first time among other mobile devices got an NFC chip at its disposal

Technology is rapidly penetrating various areas of life, and there are three key applications for its application.

Quick pairing with devices

Clients with active NFC controllers communicate with each other in just a fraction of a second — you just need to bring the device to another gadget, be it a smartphone or peripherals ( headphones, portable speaker, camera or even TV) with the appropriate chip in the equipment. It should be noted that NFC technology is mainly used to negotiate connection parameters and organize communication between devices, while Bluetooth and Wi-Fi modules take part in data transfer between them. The native data exchange rate of the NFC chip is limited to 424 kbps.

Smartphones must be kept in close proximity to each other while exchanging data.

The transfer of information using the NFC module is possible between devices running the Android OS (starting from the fourth version) with the Android Beam function. For example, you can quickly share an active link from the Google Chrome browser, a link to your favorite video from the YouTube app, transfer a photo from the gallery, share the name and phone number of the subscriber from contacts, and send a route from Google Maps.

There is also a variant of data exchange with passive tags, which are used in a slightly different role, as described in the next paragraph of the story.

NFC tags

Passive NFC tags store special commands for the phone in a small memory buffer. For example, a label on the bedside table switches the smartphone to night mode and activates the morning alarm, at the workplace it turns off the sound in the smartphone, and in the car it launches the navigator with the route to work and at the same time turns on music playback via Bluetooth. There can be a lot of such scenarios — it all depends solely on your imagination and ingenuity.

A small NFC tag attached, for example, to a mirror, will give the command to launch the application with the weather forecast before leaving the house

The NFC tag itself is a miniature antenna with a small chip for recording commands, which works by inducting an active NFC module in a smartphone. Tags come in the form of stickers, key chains and even business cards (you can write information about your email address and contact phone number on this one). To read and configure the tag, you will need to have an application at hand (NFC TagWritter, Wi-Fi Tap, ABA NFC and others like that) — fortunately, there is a large selection of them in virtual stores.

The closest analogue of NFC tags is reading QR codes, but instead of a camera for recognizing encrypted information, in the case of NFC, a chip is used. Already, tags are partially replacing barcodes, they are used in museums to describe exhibits and are actively involved in advertising campaigns.

A new round of development of NFC technology fell on the introduction of contactless payment systems using a smartphone.

Contactless payment for purchases and services

A phone with an NFC chip can pretend to be a payment card or, for example, a public transport pass. To be able to make contactless payments, you just need to link a bank card to your smartphone and follow a couple of simple steps:

• first you need to download to your smartphone the software of one of the payment systems that are supported by your financial institution (Android Pay, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay or banks' own applications);
• directly in the application, the fields with the number of the linked card, its expiration date and the CVV2 code are filled in (in some cases, you can take a picture of the card and provide its recognition to the service), which is confirmed by a password for making payment transactions in SMS;
• in the settings of wireless networks, it is necessary to activate the NFC module (often there is an icon for quick access to managing the chip in the notification curtain);
• then it remains to bring the smartphone with the screen on to the payment terminal at the checkout, the metro turnstile or to the validator in public transport.

The possibility of intercepting information by intruders when making contactless payments is negligible. Firstly, the range of the NFC wireless interface is short, and secondly, the seller receives only digital payment transaction codes without data on the buyer's card number or his name.

Using a smartphone, you can pay for groceries in a supermarket, gatherings in a cafe, buy a ticket for public transport or pay for a taxi

The main advantage of using a smartphone as a means of payment is the fact that a mobile gadget is always at hand. You can simply forget a bank card at home or in the pocket of other jeans, and many of the users do not leave their smartphone even during sleep.

Major players in the field of mobile devices are pursuing a policy of creating their own payment systems for smartphones. The pioneer in this field was Apple, which equipped with the NFC chip not only mobile phones, but also smartwatches Apple Watch. However the Apple Pay system does not work in all regions, so it will not be possible to pay for purchases using the iPhone everywhere.

The NFC chip in "apple" gadgets is found not only on the board of smartphones, but also in the equipment of smartwatches

The Samsung Pay payment system breathes in the back of the Cupertino offspring. At the same time, Android Pay is a much more universal solution for devices controlled by the “green robot”, which is being actively implemented in the banking sector in many countries around the world.

Other proprietary payment systems of brands have not yet become so widespread, but they should not be discounted:

• LG Pay uses a face recognition system to identify the user (the system has been launched in the markets of South Korea and the USA);
• Huawei Pay and Mi Pay Xiaomi are conquering the banking sector in the Middle Kingdom (due to the lack of cooperation between Chinese banks and the international payment systems Visa and Mastercard, their exit outside of China is not expected in the near future);
• Garmin Pay, on the contrary, cooperates fruitfully with Visa and Mastercard, so the issue of paying for purchases through the brand's sports watches is only a matter of time.

The number of smartphones with an NFC chip in equipment is growing inexorably. In the current realities, this wireless module is perceived as a mandatory attribute of an advanced mobile phone, which is accompanied by a quintet of no less useful things — all of them are described in detail in the article "Attributes of a modern smartphone".