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RFID Coming To A Cell Phone Near You
Roland Piquepaille writes "In "RFID Goes Mobile", Red Herring reports that Nokia has quietly launched last month the first RFID-enabled cell phone. The Mobile RFID Kit will be available later this year and only for the 5140 model. This accessory allows the user to easily launch services and conveniently access phone functions simply by touching the phone to an RFID tag. The phone accesses the RFID tag data when an RFID reader emits a short-range radio signal that powers a microchip on the tag, allowing the ID information and other stored data to be read. Nokia doesn't intend to sell this kit to ordinary consumers like you and me. Instead, the RFID kit is designed to extend the mobility of workforce already on the move, such as security guards or maintenance people. This overview contains other details and references about the kit."
This would actually be handy for consumers like the bar-code scanner thingy... When you're in the store, just scan the barcode (or RFID chip) and get price comparisons from other stores. Or reviews and user opinions, etc.
Life is the leading cause of death in America.
Finally, an RFID tool that is on our side. If we can't stop the spread of them, at least now we should be able to see what their purpose is. In theory, you could look up any tag you come across, and find out, via some databse some where, why it is installed, and what it wants to learn about you.
For a minute, I thought maybe it was an article about RFID tags in phones, which is just as inevitable.
-Patrick
"They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we."
Probably have to buy the batteries ourselves too.
Uh, I'm not so sure if it's such a great idea. Where would you stick those batteries ?
Ok, some people may like it.
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Roses are #FF0000, Violets are #0000FF, find / -name '*base*' |xargs chown -R us && mv zig greatjustice
This is novel in that it contains a portable "user-level" RFID scanner. (The phone bit is simply an already existant battery box.) So, now the questions are: what can end users do with it, and can we hack it?
One thing to keep in mind is that with the small antenna inherent to a cell phone footprint, this will pretty much be an "almost-contact" scanner with a range of centimeters, not meters.
John
Because it doesn't come as standard with the phone, but as an add on kit to be released later this year as pointed out in the article.
Details here
well, it started...I'm quite possitive that RFIDs on the phones, on the PDAs and every mobile device won't be much of a success, due to the fact that most of the people resent on having someone scanning their phones/devices and tracking them down. OTOH, as i have previously mentioned in an older post, i used to participate in a reasearch at my uni for a major mobile phone company for the implementation of fingerprint recognition on cell phones and other mobile devices (PDAs,notebooks,etc). Personally i preffer the fingerprint sollution rather than the RFID one because the phone's security is up to you and not as "hollow" as RFID can be by the use of reverse engineering. It's simple, if your phone is stolen the perp needs to have your thumb or else the phone is just another piece of garbage. You cannot reverse engineer a fingerprint simply because you cannot have a clue on how the actual fingerpint is shaped, while the scanning software is something very ubiquitous and tough to be "hacked" by someone who hasn't got a clue of the scanning algorithms. Now with RFID, whack it off the phone/device and you have an ordinary device to play with .
Roses are red, violets are blue, most poems rhyme, but this one doesn't...
For the people worried about the privacy problems with RFID tagging everything: Give it to Microsoft. No, really! As soon as they start doing RFID for Windows, someone will have the bright idea of allowing RFID readers to automatically execute any arbitrary code that it finds on an RFID tag. Then we all just have to start wearing viral RFID tags.
One line blog. I hear that they're called Twitters now.
It looks like they're trying to market these to niche businesses: security companies, disabled assistance companies, meter reading companies, etc. I don't think there will be much general call for them. Many of the user scenarios they describe are already pretty silly: "Distress Assistance: Touch a tag on your clothing such as a belt, and the phone initiates an emergency call." Like that's going to catch on.
Perhaps if retail RFID catches on the way WalM*rt hopes, some consumers will be interested enough to want a personally owned device to read their tags. How many WalM*rt shoppers are even literate enough to read their laundry tags, let alone RFID tags, is a different debate. :-)
John
My dog, Sparky, just read your comment and is requesting his microchip be taken out. He says he doesn't want to be scanned like canned corn in the supermarket. Now you've done it, AltGrendel. I shall send you the vet bill :P
Harpo Tunnel Syndrome--my wrist feels funny.
Features like this have lots of potential to cut down on paperwork by enhancing automation of routine tasks. For example, you might now need to fill out forms to signal that you have done a particular task. Instead, with this RFID reader in the phone, touch some tag and the information in the tag will be automatically sent to some remote database over wireless.
This could lead to opening up new ways to improve a company's operational processes, cutting out steps where digital data is ofen has to be retyped into a different system.
Moreover, vendors are now positioning smartphones more and more as "enterprise" productivity solution. Microsoft has also recently come out with a Location Based Services connector for Excahneg server that enables companies to monitor the location of thei service staff and route them efficiently by sending emails or test messages.
Worrying about privacy on a device that already gives away your location and openly bounces your conversations over the radio spectrum.
I came across a similar proposal a few years ago.
Rather than using RFID, the said idea was to inversely uses RF smartcard chips. For example, maintanence staff are required to carry a mobile smartcard reader with a built in database, and the smartcard chips are installed at specific locations on where they are supposed to do their maintanence duties. Whenever they are at their supposed locations, they'd need to use the reader on the chips before going on to their next location.
This adds some security and ensures the maintanence crew to actually go on site.
However no one in the company took the idea to execution; perhaps it was'nt sexy enough..?
I wonder how's this RFID thingie gonna be accepted in the real world.
The RFID tag reading capability provided by the phone will not read the RFID tags that WalMart is requiring for it's top suppliers next year.
The Walmart tags are EPC class 1v2 compliant tags that operate in the 915mhz range. The Nokia phone reads ISO-14443A tags that operate in the 13.56mhz range. The two technologies are very very different.
The EPC tags are relatively inexpensive (and getting cheaper all the time). They have about 128 bits of internal nvram and can be read from about 1-3 meters.
The ISO-14443A tags are expensive. They've got large amounts (multiple KB) of internal NVRAM, some have embedded operating systems and file systems for the NVRAM. You won't see companies using 14443 tags to tag merchandise anytime soon.
Another problem with the 14443 tags is that it is based on a fuzzy ISO standard. The cross vendor compatibility between compliant 14443 tags and compliant 14443 readers is not good at all. For instance, a Philips 14443 reader may not be able to correctly read a STMicro 14443 chip, even though they both are 14443 compliant. Basically, ISO makes vague standards so that many companies can claim compliance, but none have to compete with in an open marketplace.
I think the Nokia phone will be useful for closed loop RFID applications (one where the tag is not required to interoperate across multiple companies).
The company that does security for us (and probably for Nokia - I work about two km from their headquarters) uses little barcode readers. As the guard does her rounds, she swipes a little bar-code in each room. Presumably the security company logs that info and thereby knows exactly when each room in the building was checked.
I bet somebody at Nokia saw their security guards doing the same thing and got a bright idea...
It is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail. - Abraham Maslow
Coming soon to a toy store near you -
.sig. If it was a .sig it would be funny.
RFID Battler - based on the old Barcode Battler, this new version will allow you to battle opponents usinng the latest technological advances.
I really should have patented that idea before broadcasting it...
This is not a
Or ironic at least.
'Don't worry' said the trees when they saw the axe coming, 'The handle is one of us.'
That RFID gets the kind of traction that bluetooth has. It certainly has a similar pre-rollout hype.
Still can't get a f*%#ing bluetooth phone from verizon.
-Peter
When you walk near my RFID tag that I leave at the mall, does it cause your phone to automatically dial my 1-900 number at $20/min?
I Am My Own Worst Enemy
Your post shows that you didn't read the article. They are not putting RFIDs on the phones. The phones are able to act as portable RFID scanners. Also, apparently none of the people who modded you up bothered to read the article either, but then I guess this is /. after all.
Boss: Wear this phone so I can hassle you whenever I want.
Me: Nope
but now
Boss: Wear this access control badge so you can get into the server room.
Me: OK
Boss: Oh ya BTW it is also a phone so I can hassle you whenever I want...
"Don't belong. Never join. Think for yourself. Peace." V.Stone, Microsoft Corporation
Of course, once the planet is littered with RFID tags in everything (after all, isn't 94.6% of everything in the world purchased at a Wal-Mart now?), we geeks will need a way to find out what data each contains.
The big corp monopolies won't be giving up their data, so it'll be up to us to collect, organize, and disseminate the data in these tags. Bu then, you have to wonder if even reading those tags won't be some kind of violation of the DMCA or other IP protection laws. Damn laws.
All without additional hardware. The main advantage of RFID in this case is simply resistance to cloning of the tags. That's why this isn't being marketed as a mass-market feature.
Also, although this is the first READER application, DoCoMo did a pretty widespread trial last year with tags embedded in cell phones for use as train fare debits: Article.
This is more of a consumer application since the infrastructure and user need is already there.