nfc

Barnes & Noble to add NFC chips to Nooks

Barnes & Noble has a plan to attract more in-store use of its Nook e-readers, and it involves near-field communication chips.

The technology -- known mostly for allowing consumers to use their phones to make payments -- will soon be embedded in the bookseller's Nook devices, Barnes & Noble CEO William Lynch revealed during an interview with Fortune magazine.

"We can work with the publishers so they would ship a copy of each hardcover with an NFC chip embedded with all the editorial reviews they can get on BN.com," Lynch said in the interview. "And if you had your Nook, you can walk up to any of our pictures, any our aisles, any of our bestseller lists, and just touch the book, and get information on that physical book on your Nook and have some frictionless purchase experience." … Read more

EU to investigate mobile wallet scheme

EU regulators are looking into competition concerns surrounding a joint venture in mobile payments by Everything Everywhere, Vodafone and O2.

The UK's biggest cellular operators said in June that they were creating a clearing house for mobile payments, which would act as an intermediary between advertisers, banks and retailers. However, Three complained to the European Commission that it had been shut out of the deal.

Although the commission did not cite Three's complaint, it did say in its announcement of the investigation late on Friday that there are "potential competition concerns in the nascent markets of mobile … Read more

Intel's Windows 8 tablet: Checklist goes public

Intel is offering more specifics on the features of future Windows 8 tablet at a conference in Beijing. It's a laudable goal, but can Intel make it happen this year?

Underneath the glass will be beat an Atom Z2760 "Clover Trail" chip: dual-core capable with "burst mode" (for quick bursts of performance when needed) and Hyperthreading -- the latter allows a dual-core chip to behave in quad-core-like fashion in some cases. … Read more

Nokia revving up NFC-enabled Lumia 610

Nokia and Microsoft are jointly jumping onto the NFC bandwagon with the next version of the Lumia 610.

Slated to debut in Europe sometime this summer, the new version of the 610 will be the first Windows Phone handset to let users pay for goods on the go via NFC. The phone has already been certified for use with both MasterCard's PayPass and Visa PayWave, according to Nokia.

European carrier Orange will be the first provider to offer the NFC-enabled 610, which will be able to read NFC tags at the point of sale and pair with other NFC … Read more

Pay back your friends with Venmo

Tired of splitting checks when eating out? Venmo greatly simplifies making payments to your friends using your Android or iOS device, for free.

It originally began as a text-message-based payment startup, but Venmo has been gaining steady traction among smartphone users looking for payment utilities without the use of NFC chips and external card readers and sliders. The mobile app allows its users to send money to their contacts without the hassle of dealing with differing indivudal bank or credit card services.

The result is a seamless and universally accessible payment experience that … Read more

Google Wallet co-founding engineer jumps ship to Square

One of Google Wallet's co-founding engineers has left the Web giant for a job at mobile-payments processor Square.

Rob von Behren, who had worked at Google for more than eight years and on the NFC-based Google Wallet since 2009, recently changed his LinkedIn profile to indicate his new employment at Square. In an e-mail statement to NFC Times, which first noticed and reported the move, von Behren said the departure was unexpected.

"When I left the Google Wallet project in January, I fully expected to stop working in payments but to remain at Google," he told NFC … Read more

LG Optimus Elite pics surface for Sprint, Virgin Mobile NFC phone

A pair of newly leaked renders arrived online this week, providing a clear look at the next LG smartphone, aimed for both Sprint and subsidiary Virgin Mobile. Despite its name -- the LG Optimus Elite -- early details suggest that the smartphone is anything but fancy.… Read more

Google Wallet said to be seeking more mobile carriers

Will Google Wallet survive? That's a question that's been looming during the first six months of the the digital wallet program, which has been plagued with issues such as security concerns, minimal consumer use, and few carrier and retail partners willing to support the new technology.

Despite the setbacks, the Web giant isn't planning to close up shop quite yet. Rather, it's looking at different ways to improve its product, including possibly courting AT&T and Verizon mobile carriers and exploring revenue sharing with them, according to Bloomberg.

Google Wallet enthusiastically launched last September and … Read more

HP Envy 14 Spectre review: An ultrabook with a heart of glass

First spotted at CES 2012, the glass-covered HP Envy 14 Spectre is finally here, as both the first 14-inch ultrabook we've reviewed, as well as a unique laptop nearly covered in tough Gorilla Glass.

Almost anyone who sees the HP Envy 14 Spectre immediately compares it to something. For many, it's the Apple MacBook Pro. From the open position, the interior certainly has that look, aside from the transparent raised wrist rest. To others, the glass back looks like a tablet or slate. … Read more

Sony Xperia Sola follows fingers, performs NFC tricks

Sony's new Xperia NXT series of Android smartphones are distinctively styled but haven't exactly bowled me over with cutting-edge components or software. The latest handset to join the company's offerings also lacks quad-core processing and Android Ice Cream Sandwich but does promise a few wild mobile skills not found on other devices. … Read more