What is NFC?
We might not always think about NFC, but it’s incredibly likely you’ve used it in your day-to-day life. This technology is present in most modern handsets and helps power popular features such as contactless pay.
We’re here to take you through the ins and outs of NFC, including the ways you can use it from your smartphone to perform actions quickly and easily.
If you don’t have an NFC-compatible device, or you just want to change up your phone, check out our contract and SIM-free handsets.
What does NFC mean?
NFC, which stands for Near Field Communication, is a short-range wireless technology that is present in most smartphones. It allows users to transfer data and make payments without the need for your physical bank card.
Similar to RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), NFC passes an electrical current through a coil to generate a magnetic field. This magnetic field can then prompt an electrical current in any nearby device that also has NFC, enabling them to wirelessly transmit data.
What is NFC used for?
One of the most common uses of NFC is for digital payments, typically via features such as Google or Apple Pay. Similarly, scanning your train ticket requires NFC to transfer data from your phone to the scanner.
Smartphone features such as Android Beam, which allows two users to touch the backs of their devices together to move data across, also rely on NFC to carry out this capability.
Some gaming companies, such as Nintendo, use NFC for features such as their Amiibo range. An NFC chip inside the physical toy lets gamers connect it to their Switch device, enabling them to unlock new bonus items such as characters.
What is the difference between NFC and Bluetooth?
Unlike other wireless connections such as Bluetooth, NFC has a short range of only a few centimetres, which makes it much more energy efficient. This short range is also important for transferring sensitive data, but it does mean NFC isn’t suitable when connecting devices together over longer ranges.
Another key difference between NFC and Bluetooth is that NFC works without being paired to another device, such as headphones and speakers; Bluetooth is reliant on this connection to function.
NFC is also faster to use and has minimal battery usage; another key reason why it works best for quick interactions such as making payments or sharing data.
Does my phone have NFC?
NFC is increasingly common in smartphones, which means most people are likely to have it without realising. For iPhone users, all handsets created after 2015 (iPhone 6 onwards) have NFC. Whilst many recent Android handsets will have NFC, users can check in the Settings menu under the ‘Connected Devices’ or ‘Network Sharing’ sub-menus.
How to switch on NFC for Android and iPhone
Android
Go to Settings > Connected Devices > Turn on ‘NFC’
iPhone
All iPhones following the iPhone 6 automatically have NFC turned on. You can check this by going to ‘Apple Pay’ within the Settings menu and selecting Apple Pay as your default payment method.
The short range of NFC is what makes it suitable for key smartphone features such as contactless payments; things that have become a staple for most phone users. If you don’t already have Apple or Google Pay on your device, check out our guides to get set up quickly.