The A to Z of wireless

N is for Near field communications

Near field communications (NFC) refers to the transfer of information at close range between various information carriers and detection devices.

A major use in the pipeline is for people to use mobile phones to pay for everyday goods. 'Wallet phones' could be linked directly to bank accounts so that cash can be debited by the user or credit could be stored on mobiles to pay for goods.

The list from A to Z

Click on the links below to find out more on each of the entries in the list.

A is for Antivirus
B is for Bluetooth
C is for The Cloud
D is for dotMobi
E is for Email
F is for FMC
G is for GPS
H is for HSDPA
I is for i-mode
J is for Japan Air
K is for Korea
L is for LBS
M is for M2M
N is for NFC
O is for Operating systems
P is for Pubs
Q is for QoS
R is for Roaming
S is for Satellite
T is for TV
U is for UMTS
V is for Virgin
W is for WiMax
X is for XDA
Y is for Yucca
Z is for Zigbee

Major phone companies are interested in this possibility and are working together in as part of the NFC Forum. Sony recently announced a joint venture with NXP, which makes the MiFare chips for London's Oyster cards, to promote this use of NFC.

There are also experiments in using similar RFID tech for event ticketing, to cut down on queuing. Fulham Football Club is already doing this at its Craven Cottage ground.

This kind of tech is being used for urban travel schemes like London's Oyster cards or the Octopus cards used in Hong Kong.

Introduced in 2003, Oyster cards provide a quick, contactless way to pass through the London's transport network. Developed by Transys, Oyster cards use RFID chips to communicate with Underground turnstiles and detectors on buses.

Have a look here to see how the Royal Bank of Scotland is trialling NFC tech to pay for your morning coffee.