Rumors have been rampant and speculation high as to whether the new iPhone 5 from Apple would bring with it the much-anticipated feature, NFC. Near Field Communication has exploded in recent years and the potential is exciting for transferring information using small objects that you already carry on your person at all times.
The use of Near Field Communication technology has been a point of interest for consumers mainly after Google’s introduction of Google Wallet in 2011. Google Wallet combined credit cards, debit cards, and other forms of payment, into one accessible wallet on your phone using NFC technology.
Recently it was rumored after a parts leak for the iPhone 5 that NFC may be supported, then shortly thereafter Anandtech put the rumor to rest.
So how important is NFC? If the iPhone 5 does not support it, that would put them another year behind many Android phones that currently offer the convenient feature. With Apple currently seeing 250 million of their iPhones around the world, it would be ridiculous to not take advantage of the small commission that they could surely get if NFC were to be seen on the iPhone 5.
If you’re up to date with iOS 6, then you are familiar with Passbook. This new app in iOS 6 seems like the perfect home of NFC transactions. It can already handle coupons, boarding passes, gift cards, so why not credit and debit cards?
If Apple wants to beat Google to replacing the wallet, they better seriously hope that the world will be impressed with their NFC capable iPhone 5 come September 12th, if not, that puts them another year behind on mobile payment, and a year behind on meeting a demand.