US consumers can now order a discounted Uber ride by tapping their NFC smartphone against a bag of Tostitos tortilla chips when they have had too much to drink. The bag detects the presence of alcohol on a person’s breath and shows either a green or red steering wheel to alert the consumer of whether or not they are safe to drive home. More
A newly published patent reveals Apple could be working on a strap design for the Apple Watch that will let wearers add extra functions to their device through modular links that connect together... More
Apple’s next iPhone could include facial or gesture recognition, according to a research note issued to clients by financial services firm Cowen and Company... More
Holidaymakers aboard Carnival Corporation cruise ships will soon be given an NFC and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) enabled wearable device, designed by the man behind Disney’s MagicBand, that will let them access a range of next generation services including boarding without checking in, unlocking rooms, accessing personalised entertainment, ordering food and making payments. More
A survey from data management company Dell EMC has found 60% of resellers expect revenue from Internet of Things (IoT) devices to rise 30% in 2016, Computer Weekly reports... More
The number of connected Internet of Things (IoT) devices and sensors will reach more than 46bn by the year 2021, a 200% increase from 2016, with the global sensors market generating revenues of US$162.36bn on its own by 2019, two research reports from Juniper Research and Frost and Sullivan reveal... More
Amazon employees in the US are testing a physical grocery store format that will use technology developed for self-driving cars to allow consumers with a dedicated mobile app to walk in, pick up the items they want and leave without going through a traditional checkout... More
A miniature, self-sufficient WiFi device which uses virtually no energy has the potential to be the “missing link” for the internet of things, its developers at Stanford University in the US claim... More
Chip giant Intel is developing a virtual reality headset based on ‘merged reality’, with users able to see the real world even while wearing a full headset, The Verge reports... More
Apple has unveiled a new version of its MacBook Pro, including Touch ID to allow owners to make secure payments with Apple Pay from their laptop, as well as unlocking the machine and switching user accounts... More
PARTNER NEWS: Digital security giant Gemalto is to provide connectivity and security to Alibaba’s YunOS internet of things (IoT) operating system which is “widely integrated” into mobile devices, and chips and sensors in connected cars and smart homes, across China... More
NFC World today welcomes global semiconductor company STMicroelectronics as a member of our partner program... More
PARTNER NEWS: Chip maker AMS has sold its NFC and RFID reader product lines to STMicroelectronics. AMS will continue to retain ownership of its NFC/RFID tag business, including the AS3955 NFC interface chip (NFiC) which AMS unveiled in May 2015. More
The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) has formed a specialist consortium to create a UK manufacturing supply chain that will support the widespread adoption of NFC packaging. More
The global biometrics market will reach more than US$30bn by 2021, representing a 118% increase from 2015, according to a new forecast from ABI Research... More
Handset maker Huawei has partnered with bank card association China UnionPay for the roll out of Huawei Pay, an NFC-based mobile payment service that makes use of tokenization technology and is expected to be available on a wide range of Huawei handsets. More
PARTNER NEWS: NXP has put its support behind two new reference platforms that will enable “innovation and rapid development” for smart wearables. The platforms target a range of internet of things (IoT) applications with open-source hardware and software, form-factor flexibility and expandable solutions for designers to adapt to changing market needs. More
PARTNER NEWS: A new reference design for wearables from processor designer ARM includes high-performance NFC technology from AMS that enables small-footprint devices with tiny antennas to couple with NFC readers as easily and reliably as a contactless card... More
iPhone 6 users have been left with broken handsets as a result of Apple’s latest iOS 9 operating system update permanently disabling devices if it detects that Touch ID’s hardware integrity has been compromised — such as by being repaired by a non-Apple technician... More
Consumers across the globe will use their mobile phones to spend a total of US$620bn on all forms of mobile transaction this year, representing a 37.8% year-on-year growth from $450bn in 2015, research from TrendForce reveals. By 2017, total mobile payment revenue will reach $780bn, climbing to $930bn in 2018 and $1.08tn in 2019. More