Apple’s recent patent activity shows a clear interest in bringing Near Field Communications (NFC) to your iPhone (and any other iPhone OS devices, including iPod touch and iPad).

This patent describes how travelers might use their iPhone to:
* make travel reservations
* purchase tickets
* check-in, including luggage
* prove identity
* pass through security more quickly

It’s fascinating to watch this broad vision being implemented piece by piece. NFC is about to explode onto the world in surprising ways, from controlling your living room entertainment center to buying concert tickets.

And those many scenarios will help to promote the iPhone still further: imagine you’re waiting at the ticket counter in the airport and you see someone walk up, wave their iPhone over a piece of machinery—beep, beep—and walk away, job completed, while you’re still in line. Or you attend a concert and your friend shows you afterwards in the parking lot that she has already downloaded the new music you just heard.

First you’re going to think: How did they do that?
And then: How do I get an iPhone so I can do it too?

Friday, April 23rd, 2010, 9:11 am    Both comments and pings are currently closed.