Jeffrey Donenfeld

Tag: ios

  • Barcode vs NFC Payments on iOS6 and iPhone5 – Why Barcodes Are Better

    Barcode vs NFC Payments on iOS6 and iPhone5 – Why Barcodes Are Better

    With Apple’s eminent announcement of iOS 6 today, mobile payments will get yet another major boost. Now my barcode-scan based payment scheme won’t be restricted to only the beloved Starbucks app, but will open up to lots of other applications too. A few thoughts on Barcode Scan Payments vs NFC Payments. Certainly not fully fleshed out, but a few items that were on my mind as I watch the clock tick down to the big announcement.

    Tricky tricky. In support of scanning a simple barcode to make a mobile paymentis first and foremost the reduction of need for new hardware. Virtually every retail outlet has a simple barcode scanner hooked up to the cash register, and every smartphone can display a barcode on its screen. Barcodes can be generated securely and dynamically, allowing a unique code to be generated for each transaction. The hardware is already out there, so why not use it?

    Sure, NFC is a nifty contact-less radio-based technology, but the big detractor is its need for new hardware. Users must purchase new phones with new chips, and retail POS terminals must be equipped with new NFC sensors and radios. The one big advantage NFC has over Barcodes is device range. NFC chips can be built into not only mobile phones, but also into credit cards, key fobs, and all sorts of other form factors. They’re not reliant on the powerful workings of a smartphone (in RFID flavor), and so they can be rolled out into lots of different forms. With barcode payments, the phone must always be there to generate a dynamic barcode. It could be argued that static barcodes, like what’s used in my current Starbucks card app could be use, however I believe the ability to dynamically generate secure barcodes could be a sticking point.

    Another big advantage that barcode-based payments has over NFC based payments is legacy device support. I already use my Starbucks Card app to display a barcode on my iPhone 4 – SO really it’s all about having software to display and manage the codes, and retailers supporting them with their existing (or slightly upgraded) hardware. Apple’s “Mobile Wallet” Passbook will come on the new iPhone5, and can also be a simple upgrade for legacy devices. Instantly, everyone has Passbook, everyone can start making payments – no annoying hardware upgrade necessary for the user.

    But, device sales – is such an easy solution, such a flexible scheme, so backwards compatible really right for Apple? Aren’t they in the business of making money, and doesn’t adding a new chip to their phones and forcing users to buy new phones to get the latest functionality help sell more? Yes, absolutely. But I don’t think NFC is the right technology for make users pay for.I think there will be other enticing upgrades to the iPhone 5 that will still get users to upgrade.

    Related news announcements:

  • Invasion of Omnisocial Geolocation Apps!

    Invasion of Omnisocial Geolocation Apps!

    With SXSW happening this week, the battle for app of the year begins. This year, I think the focus is going to be location aggrigating apps – apps that pull in geolocation data from multiple social networks, and combine them in a common map and feed. Here are a few top apps out there – some new, some old:

    • Highlight “Highlight helps you learn more about the people around you.  If someone standing near you also has Highlight, their profile will show up on your phone. You can see their name, photos of them, mutual friends, and anything else they have chosen to share. When you meet someone, Highlight helps you see what you have in common with them. And when you forget their name at a party a week later, Highlight helps you remember it. As you go about your day, Highlight runs quietly in the background, surfacing information about the people around you. If your friends are nearby, it will notify you. If someone interesting crosses your path, it will tell you more about them.”
    • Glancee “Explore the profiles of people nearby and be notified when somebody has common friends or mutual interests. Text or call, meet up for a coffee, and stay in touch. Create new, meaningful connections with new people just like you.”
    • Banjo “Banjo taps into the most popular social networks: Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Instagram and more, to provide a real time view of what’s happening anyplace, anytime. Our powerful friend alert technology lets you know when friends are nearby – even if they’re not on Banjo.”
    • Sonar “Ever walk into a room and wonder if you have anything in common with anyone there? Sonar shows you how you are connected to the people around you by analyzing your Foursquare, Facebook, and Twitter networks. … Sonar uses publicly available profile information to help you discover the connections you share with people nearby. Sonar lets you take your online identity offline and meet real people in real life.”
    • Blendr “Make new friends nearby with Blendr. Blendr is a location-based social network that uses your mobile device’s location based services (LBS) to help you discover new people around you. Featured in Apple’s Staff Favorites, Great Free Apps and New and Noteworthy, Blendr is the easiest way to connect with the world nearest you.”
    • Find Friends “Find My Friends allows you to easily locate your friends and family from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. Install this free app on your iOS 5 device and sign in with the Apple ID you use with iCloud. Adding a friend is easy – just send a request to see their location. Once your friend accepts using the Find My Friends app, you will then be able to see that friend’s location on a list or on a map. “
    • Snapr “Snapr ?’s iPhoneographers, over-sharers, and all social snaprers :) Use our service to broadcast your favorite moments, track the places you visit, and record the things you see. We bring people’s shots together by place and time and make it easy to keep track of your family and friends. You can link your account to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Foursquare and use Snapr as a social hub for sharing photos and meeting new people.”
    • Instabam “InstaBAM! is a photography application that finds photos that have been taken around your actual location on Instagram. Not only can you discover photos around where you are right now, you can also use the world map and find photos from anywhere on the globe – Hawaii? New York? London? Sydney? Just find your spot and drop the pin!”
  • Running into 2012 with the New York Road Runners

    Running into 2012 with the New York Road Runners

    New years eve always sucks. You always end up getting very excited and concerned over having the “perfect” new years, and being in the best spot right at midnight.. and inevitably, it never happens. At least for me, in many past years, although I’ve been in good places I’m always just short of the absolute best place for new years. So, I’ve grown to not expect a lot out of new years.

    This new years eve was my first one in the city I’m living. Traditionally, I’ve always been traveling over the new year. But this time I was right smack in the middle of NYC.


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  • Apple’s iAd Gallery App

    Apple’s iAd Gallery App

    Interested in Mobile Ads, specificially Apple’s own iAd platform? Apple just released their very own iAd Gallery app for iPhone. The new app allows users to quickly browse all of the custom developed, HTML5 iAd units that have run on iOS. For digital marketers like me, this app is a huge help for demonstrating ad usability, and researching past executions.

    Great ads. On-demand. In your pocket. The iAd Gallery is a celebration of advertising, featuring iAd campaigns from some of the world’s best brands and their advertising agencies. The iAd Gallery gives you easy access to a selection of the fun and informative ads that have run in some of your favorite apps. Use the Browse feature to discover ads you haven’t seen, or to find those you want to see again. Even lets you tag your favorites to a Loved section that’s all your own.

    – iAd Gallery App Download

    On another interesting note, apparently this app, released by Apple, actually breaks the app store guidelines:

    Let us direct your attention to guideline 2.13, “Apps that are primarily marketing materials or advertisements will be rejected.”
    This was probably included to make sure that “marketers” don’t just make iOS apps that serve as virtual brochures, forcing them to also include more features, like games or editorial content.

  • IntoNow iPhone app is like SoundHound for TV

    This week I got to try out the new iOS Application “IntoNow“. Into now listens to what you’re watching on TV, and by fingerprinting and scanning a massive online database of TV show audio samples, manages to figure out what exactly you’re watching. While using it, I found it to be fairly accurate and response. Great Retina Display graphics too.


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