Apple reportedly will add Sony’s Felica RFID to iPhone 7 - hansonitch1945

Apple will add support for Sony's Felica RFID communication theory technology to the new iPhone 7 that is expected to be proclaimed on Wed, according to a report in The Nikkei newspaper.

Felica is the defacto standard on which all contactless payment cards and commuter passes in Japan are based. Information technology's a standard feature in most phones on the market and Felica readers are in hundreds of thousands of stores, railway stations, on buses, taxis, and vending machines.

By adding a Felica chip to the iPhone 7, the phone could beryllium used in lieu of holy defrayal and transit cards with the installation of an appropriate app.

0620 suica docomo 01 — A Felica-equipped mobile phone is used to open a railway ticket gate soon after the arrangement went into use in Nihon in 2004.

Adopting Felica also paves the mode for the plunge of Apple Pay up in Japan. Existing terminals often support sixfold payment brands, so adding Apple Pay would not seem technically difficult.

Apple Pay is expected to launch in Japan in 2017 one time the fellowship has worked out deals with retailers and agreed on dealing fees.

The Nikkei report didn't say if the Felica-compatible iPhone 7 would be a Japan-only exemplar or if the chip would be installed in handsets worldwide. Apple has produced regional versions of the iPhone, although differences are typically related to the mobile network frequencies and standards used.

Felica is also used in Hong Kong's Octopus visiting card, and transit and transport cards in Chennai, Indonesia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh.

felica01 — Felica based electronic money card game from Japan and across Asia

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Martyn Roger Williams produces engineering science news and mathematical product reviews in text and video for PC World, Macworld, and TechHive from his home outside Washington D.C.. He antecedently worked for IDG News Service as a letter writer in San Francisco and Tokyo and has reportable on technology news program from across Asia and Europe.