We had heard rumbling before that Apple would use Near-Field Communication technology with its iPhone for things like mobile payments and remotes but a new rumor suggests the iPhone 5 will use this tech for strong remote computing.
If you don’t know, NFC is a short-range wireless technology which enables quick and secure transfers of data. NFC has been tapped as the standard of choice for many forms of mobile payment but it appears that Apple could have plans for more than just a mobile wallet.
According to a source at Cult of Mac:
If users wave a NFC-equipped iPhone at a NFC Mac (they need to be in close proximity to interact), the Mac will load all their applications, settings and data. It will be as though they are sitting at their own machine at home or work. When the user leaves, and the NFC-equipped iPhone is out of range, the host machine returns to its previous state.
“The Mac authenticates with the iPhone, which contains a lot of the information the computer needs, such as bookmarks, passwords and other data,” said our source, who asked to remain anonymous. “The system would essentially turn any Apple computer into your own — like you’re actually working on your own computer. Same settings, look, bookmarks, preferences. It would all be invisible. Your iPhone would be all you needed to unlock your Mac.”
We know that the Apple iPhone 5 is already being worked on and is in the testing phases and this sort of NFC integration does seem on point: Apple definitely wants its iPhone 5 users to be on a Mac and offering some additional features for using that type of computer could be the thing to move some PC owners over. Additionally, you can just tell that this would make for some great ads.
What do you guys and gals think of the possible NFC integration with the Apple iPhone 5?
[Via Cult of Mac]