Major retailers all over the world are beginning to take notice of a relatively new technology that enables customers to pay for purchases using little more than their cell phone. This technology is called Near-Field Communication, or NFC for short. NFC enables cell phone manufacturers to embed computer chips, which require no power to operate, in to their devices. These chips can be programmed to perform many tasks, such as contact sharing, payment processing, song sharing, embedding messages in to posters, collaboration, and many more uses are being developed as you are reading this. A practical example of how this technology can be utilized includes, a person who wants to learn more about a painting at a local art museum. The museum visitor can simply waive their phone over an NFC transmitter chip embedded in the corner of an art display and the user is instantly shown a video or commentary from the author. Another example includes the purchase of a cup of coffee and some gas. A person who has an NFC chip in their cell phone can walk in to a gas station, waive their phone over the receiver at the register, pay for their coffee, head outside and waive the same phone at the gas pump and begin pumping their gas. All of this can be accomplished without ever reaching for a wallet or purse.

In Japan, retailers, manufacturers and marketing companies have already leveraged the expanding market of NFC enabled devices. Movie posters, train stations, major tourist attractions and many retailers, have placed kiosks and payment terminals in plain-view so that consumers can engage with content and purchase items using cell phones that have NFC chips installed. In The United States, the New Jersey transit authority, has partnered with Google to enable customers to pay for tickets with NFC enabled devices. According to Senior Analyst David Snow, from Juniper Research: “Based on our analysis and interviews with key industry players our view is that the next 18 months will see launches in up to 20 countries. As a result Juniper is forecasting that North America and Western Europe together will exceed the Far East region in under three years based on transaction value.” The report also breaks out the opportunity for value added retail marketing services through coupons and smart posters.

As with any new technology, there are technological limitations and the potential exists for fraud, especially in regards to contactless payment processing. Major technology firms all around the world are working around-the-clock to meet these challenges head-on and deploy this technology to the masses. Many device manufacturers such as Nokia, Google, HTC, Microsoft and Samsung already have devices either released or announced for this year, with many more coming over the next few months.

Contactless payment solutions are not new, in fact, a similar technology exists called RFID, but RFID has a much larger range (typically a few meters). RFID has been heavily utilized as a solution for inventory tracking and other non-monetary transaction-based uses. Chip manufacturers have actually developed dual-purpose chips that have both RFID and NFC embedded so that consumers can interact with both forms of marketing and payment technologies. For instance, if a store had an RFID scanner at the entrance to their store, a customer could enable their phone to “check-in” automatically on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare. While at the register, the same customer could then pay for their order and take advantage of a loyalty program with the same chip, using the NFC functionality. NFC is ideal because it only works at a range of under 4 centimeters. NFC is new in the sense that the chips will now be embedded in the sole device that most Americans carry with them just about everywhere they go, their cell phone. Corporations are ready to leverage this technology and major manufacturers have all announced plans for new devices in 2012. Apple computers, makers of the top-selling single cell phone device in the world, the iPhone, has applied for new patents which hint that they too, will have some form of NFC or RFID embedded in their next generation devices as well; although no official announcement from Apple has been made to confirm this, the patent applications prove they are at least considering it.

It is my belief that retailers who adapt and make this technology accessible to their customers, will reap the rewards of being early adopters. The millennial generation will expect and even demand corporations to have NFC very soon. The fact that HTC, Microsoft, Samsung, Google, Nokia and others, are making devices at break-neck speeds to catch-up with consumer technology trends, indicates that the market will be demanding this type of functionality.

I waited patiently for the new Palm Pre back in June 0f 2009. I drove my co-workers and family crazy for at least 3 months before the day it finally launched on Sprint (great service in Dover, Delaware). I will never forget the day I finally got my hands on its round shape and all-in-one communication hub goodness. Everyone I knew was jealous; iPhone fans loved it, and I felt like the big man on campus for a few months.

Since 2009, many iPhone and Android devices have been released, including many revisions and updates. I knew there would come a day when I had to give up my Palm Pre. I have spent many hours researching the numerous contenders in the smartphone arena. At the end of each search I did for a new phone, I was left with a final decision to wait (I almost pulled the trigger on the HTC Evo 4G more than once). That did not change yesterday when I watched the live feed from the HP / Palm “Think Big. Think Small. Think Beyond.” event.

It took me the last 20 hours to digest what I saw and heard before I committed to writing this blog post.

At the end of the press conference, I was left wanting more and disappointed. While I appreciate that HP is making improvements (arguable) and they are staying with the All-American tradition of Bigger, Better, Harder, Faster. I feel as if I have been lied too. I was promised flash support for my Palm Pre, and I was told that I would get webOS 2.0 on Sprint “in the coming months”. Those were both lies. I do not understand why HP would leave me hanging. I have been loyal, I have been patient, and I even waited from December until February 9, 2011 for their big announcement.

Sadly, I think “this summer” is too late for me and HP to remain friends. If they had opened orders yesterday on the website for these new devices, I think this would be a completely different blog post, I would have probably jumped on a Pre 3 today but, not this summer. Although, they did not mention anything about an improved battery life or 4G. These manufacturers are not taking in to consideration that we (the consumers) are pretty loyal to our carriers and we (most of us) honor our contracts (typically 2 years). This means we are stuck with a device for 2 years and we expect a manufacturer to release updates and enhancements to stay current with technology trends. Sure, there are a few technology geeks, and hard-nose fans who are tied-in to webOS for the long haul such as the kind folks over at precentral and WebOSRoundup but, I work and I don’t have time for games. Angry birds is not enough to keep me around. The Snapdragon processor and expanded memory are coming to all new devices this summer so, why should I wait for HP?

I like webOS; in fact, I love it. It’s fast, fluid and it just works. The thing that rubs me the wrong way is this. HP is not respecting my time and they think unpredictability is just fine. Blanket statements such as “in the coming months” and “coming this summer” do not allow me to plan properly and it gives Android and iPhone another chance to swoon me with their sexiness. I don’t buy 1 phone at a time, I buy 4. I have a family who expects me to treat them to the same gadget love that I have.

I have spent the last 2 years trying to convince my family of 4 that we have the best phone available. My daughter (16) comes home almost weekly telling me how cool her friends EVO or iPhone is because it does (insert cool thing here). My wife comes home from work telling me that her new office software now has native plug-in’s for Android, iPhone and Blackberry (the IT department laughs at her when she mentions adopting webOS/Palm). My son (18) could care less, he uses his phone as an .MP3 player, facebook hub, and Pandora streaming device (all smartphones do this now).

It all comes down to functionality.

My 16 year-old daughter asked me the other day, “Dad, why do all the commercials say to try our new app for Android, Blackberry or iPhone, and they never mention our phones?”

I don’t see this changing in 2011 or 2012, even with an OS tie-in with Windows. The iPhone and Android are too entrenched now and there is simply no room for HP or Blackberry to compete. Don’t get me started on Blackberry, every time I see a tween with one in their hand, I want to smack their parents. Blackberry’s are for international travelers at best, but I digress.

Sprint has been great to me over the last 4 years, I wish they would give Dover, Delaware 4G but, I understand that takes time. As I mentioned before, I am patient.  As a matter of fact, just last week, one of our Palm Pre’s had a modem error and they shipped us a replacement device in 24 hours, with zero drama. I can’t for the life of me figure out why HP would hold a big press event yesterday and not even tell us what provider is going to carry these new devices! So, not only are they saying “Hey, we have some sexy new stuff coming some day in the future”, they are also saying, “Hey, we don’t know if your provider will even carry it”. So, I have nothing to wait for and no need to wait for it. There are way too many devices out there that are definite, and I will take a sure thing over a gamble all day long.

Android here I come.

iPhone 4 here I come…