NFC

One of the most exciting features announced with the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S3 is S Beam, which uses near-field communication (NFC) and Wi-Fi Direct to send files between two phones.

Android 4.0 already has a feature called Android Beam, which works over NFC to transmit information such as contact details and browser pages from one mobile to another. But it doesn't use Wi-Fi Direct, so it's impractical for large files.

By combining NFC and Wi-Fi Direct, S Beam is capable of sending large files between phones, such as images, videos and music tracks. The transfer … Read more

Our big rumor of the week is directly related to Google, so thankfully Karyne made it back in town just in time to witness the Google Glass-wearing skydivers jump from a dirigible into Google I/O. Wait, what? Whoa!

Before the keynote went off on a crazed adventure sports tangent, Google announced a new product: the new Nexus 7 tablet running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and selling for the small sum of $199. What else sells for that? Oh right, the Kindle Fire.

So this leads us to the question: is Amazon now feeling the pressure to update its … Read more

The next iPhone could let users buy products and share files through near field communication.

Code pulled from Pre-EVT (Engineering Verification Testing) iPhone 5,1 and iPhone 5,2 prototypes by 9to5Mac leads the Apple enthusiast site to believe that NFC chips and an antenna will be built into this year's iPhone.

If true, it means Apple would finally jump onto the mobile payments bandwagon, allowing its users to purchase goods and services directly through their smartphones. This latest rumor also comes on top of the company's launch of Passbook, a feature slated for iOS 6 that would … Read more

Today we're putting dots on everything!

Expect to see tons of new domain extensions crop up, like .app or .baby. Hundreds of companies, including Google, Amazon and Apple, have applied to oversee new domains. If there's more than one application for a word (Google and Johnson & Johnson are battling for .baby), then the two companies will have to duke it out or it'll go to an auction. There are also some controversial ones, like .sucks. You can really see how .sucks can, well, suck for brands. Hard to see a useful purpose for that domain aside … Read more

Let's face it: in today's world of electronic mobility, we do things within our phones, not with them.

We can forget them on the bus, drop them, flush them and even hurl them at housekeeping. (Hell, we can even blend them.) But that's the extent of our relationship with the things.

Almost everything we do with the smartphone is contained in that little screen. As objects, we abuse them. We don't really use them.

Samsung wants to use its corporate largesse to change that. The company says it has the most near-field communications-enabled devices in American … Read more

Samsung may present its new TecTiles near-field communications (NFC) stickers-and-app combo as a campaign for consumers to do more with their phones, but in the long run, Samsung hopes for much more.

The electronics-maker told CNET that TecTiles should ultimately help serve Samsung its slice of the mobile payments pie. Its TecTiles app lets you program an NFC sticker to do various things when you tap a compatible phone to it, like turn on or off certain phone settings, or check in to a location on your social networks.

Yet, NFC, a technology that uses short-range communication similar to Bluetooth, … Read more

Nick DiCarlo waved me over to a low table in a hotel meeting room, pointing me to rows of stickers affixed to card stock. Taking in my quizzical expression, Samsung's VP of product planning for mobile urged me to hold the Galaxy S III demo device in front of a sticker, one that happened to be attached to his business card. The phone buzzed, and a moment later, DiCarlo's contact information appeared on the screen, ready for me to save to my address book.

These TecTiles, as Samsung calls them, are no ordinary stickers. A tiny nub of … Read more

Sprint is working on a mobile-payment service that could take on Google Wallet and countless other competitors in the marketplace, according to a new report.

Android Central yesterday posted two images it claims show how Sprint's mobile-payment service will work. Based on the images in the slides, the service will force users to enter a pass code to access their wallet, input information, and make payments. In addition to credit card support, the images seem to indicate that the service, called Touch Wallet, according to Android Central, will support "loyalty cards."

Android Central's report comes just … Read more

Get ready to get your game on. E3 has begun:

The Electronic Entertainment Expo, called E3 for short, has kicked off. It's the big video game conference of the year, and even though the show has just begun, it looks like this is the year of the second screen. Both the Wii U and the Xbox 360 are showing off ways to tie tablet screen interaction with what's on the television, creating a richer game and entertainment experience. You can catch all our continuing coverage of the show at cnet.com/e3.

Nintendo's press conference isn't … Read more