Near Field Communication

(NFC)
It is a short-range wireless technology that provides
very simple communications at very close proximity
(often by touching the devices or holding them within a
few centimeters). NFC is an emerging technology that
is only beginning to appear in the market place. One of
the first HP products to support NFC is the HP Envy 14
Spectre notebook. The HP ElitePad as well as other HP
recent mobile devices support NFC. Also, the ENVY
All-in-Ones support NFC depending on model. Many
third-party smartphones now support NFC as well. The
uses for NFC communications are varied and more
ideas for usage are being developed all the time.

How it works
NFC communicates by transferring encoded data over a
magnetic RF field between two devices. An electrical
current is generated using magnetic induction between
the two antennas of the devices when they are located
within each other's near field. NFC operates in the
13.56 MHz radio frequency band. NFC supports data
transfer rates of 106, 212, or 424 Kbit/s, with a practical
working distance ranges between 4 to 10 centimeters.

NFC was approved as an ISO / IEC standard on

December 8, 2003 and later as an ECMA standard.
NFC is an open platform technology standardized in
ECMA-340 and ISO/IEC 18092. The standards specify
frame format, coding, transfer speeds and so forth.
NFC Supports 2 Modes which are Passive & Active
Passive mode The initiator device produces the RF field
and the target device responds. The target device draws
its operating power from the initiator's RF field, which
makes the target device a transponder . An example is
reading data from an NFC tag. An NFC tag is a passive
non-powered device, such as a sticker, key FOB, or
card that holds information. A tag does not require
batteries or its own source of power, because the
initiating NFC device generates an RF field that powers
the passive device.
Active mode Both the initiator and target device
alternately generate the RF field. When both devices are
powered, the communication is referred to as peer-to-
peer.
Making a connection
For a device to support NFC communication, it must
have an NFC chip as well as the appropriate antenna(s).
In addition, a software application (such as Google
Wallet) is used to control the hardware, initiate
communication, and process data. Using NFC is
relatively simple and straight-forward. For active mode
communication, the user generally selects the item to
transfer and then follows the device-specific procedure
to send the item to the other device. The transfer occurs
when the two radios are within range, and the receiving
device must usually accept the transmission. With
passive mode communication, simply tap the devices
together or place within a few centimeters of each other.
The communication is initiated, which often
automatically launches any associated software
application required to complete the transaction. A
sound might be heard when the antennas recognize each
other.
NFC Symbol Sticker displayed on a HP EliteBook PC
{"mode":"full","isActive":false}