Near-field communication (NFC).
NFC technology is a high-frequency, short-range wireless technology that allows devices to be connected for ultra-fast data exchange. With a low radius of action, it is necessary for the equipment to be close, 10 or 15 centimeters apart for it to work.
When acting, NFC technology creates an electromagnetic field where the exchange of information between the two devices takes place. NFC can work in two ways:
- Active mode: when both devices have the NFC chip, they generate the electromagnetic field to share information.
- Passive mode: only one device is active and the other has no own power source, so it needs the electromagnetic field of the first to exchange data.
What can you do with NFC technology today?
NFC technology is an excellent digital solution. Even if you don’t know it, this technology has been around for more than a decade and is becoming more and more useful. As we said at the beginning, NFC technology is used to pay with the cell phone in physical stores, and also to use it in various activities of daily life such as:
- Digital wallet: With NFC you can use your cell phone, which must be linked to your bank cards to pay. All you have to do is bring your cell phone close to the business’s payment terminal. Of course, the terminal must have a contactless card reader.
- Identification: This technology can replace using a credential or access card to open the office door, for example, or access public transportation.
- Sync with other devices: By simply holding your phone closer, you can instantly pair it with another device, such as headphones or speakers. It’s faster and easier than using Bluetooth.
- Share data: If you’re near another NFC-enabled phone, you can share images, digital business cards, files, or a link to a web page with it.
- Automation of actions: you can program an NFC tag or NFC Tags so that when it is near a cell phone with NFC, it performs certain actions automatically. For example, turning on Do Not Disturb mode or connecting to a WiFi network.
In order to enjoy all the benefits of NFC technology, it is necessary to activate this functionality on phones with Android operating system. On iPhones, NFC is always on.
The practicality of using NFC technology.
But NFC technology can’t just be applied to payment methods. There are many other uses where Mobile NFC can make your life much easier.
An example of this is instant synchronization with other wireless devices, such as speakers or headphones, which is much easier than doing it via Bluetooth since you have to pair them with it first, and then establish the synchronization.
In this field, brands such as Sony or Samsung are doing a great job integrating NFC synchronization systems in many of their portable devices to improve the user experience of their products.
Thanks to NFC, we can share the WiFi password without having to remember or, as happens in many cases, without having to go to the router, turn it over and see what password we have. You can use a label to get it to include that information so that every phone that passes through it has the key to your WiFi.
Another example of convenience is that you can share contact details to digital business cards like Cardee Me in an instant and contactlessly. Without having to download applications and in a very practical way, guaranteeing that your business card will stay in your client’s digital wallet and will not be thrown away, for example.
Business cards with NFC technology.
For some time now, NFC technology has been used to label PVC cards that function as Business cards or digital business cards reusable devices where the professional or entrepreneur transmits their data, bringing the card with the NFC tag close to the mobile device of their potential client or the person with whom they wish to share their data.
This feature is very good because it allows you to reduce the printing of cardboard cards and contribute to the ecology, but what happens if you leave the card with the NFC tag at home?
The only thing I can tell you is that there is something that you will never leave forgotten at home, and if you leave it you will surely come back for it, your Smartphone, right? So, if this functionality were to be transferred to your smartphone, you’ll never run out of business cards.
Today it is possible because there are mobile applications such as Cardee Me that allow you to save your digital business card on your mobile device and transmit it with NFC technology directly and from smartphone to smartphone so that the customer can store it in their digital Wallet. Applications like these are the ones that day by day allow networking and business to be more and more accessible and intelligent.
