Unlock New Possibilities: How Apple's Enhanced iPhone NFC Integration with Third-Party Apps Transforms Your Experience
Unlocking New Possibilities: The Advantages of Expanding iPhone’s NFC Capabilities for Third-Party Developers
iOS 18 on iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Maria Diaz/ZDNET
Apple is broadening the reach of NFC on the iPhone by opening the technology to third-party apps. Starting with iOS 18.1, developers will be able to offer contactless transactions from their own apps separate from Apple Pay and Apple Wallet, the company said today.
Tapping into Apple’s new APIs for NFC and SE (Secure Element), developers will be able to create apps for a variety of tasks and transactions. Among those that Apple singled out are in-store payments, car keys, closed-loop transit fares, corporate badges, student IDs, home keys, hotel keys, merchant loyalty and rewards cards, and event tickets. Down the road, even government IDs will be supported.
Also: How to use Apple Pay in stores and online (and why you should)
With a nod toward privacy and security, the new NFC access will take advantage of the Secure Element, a certified on-device chip designed to store and protect sensitive data. The transactions themselves will use Face ID or Touch ID for authentication and communicate with Apple servers.
On the user end, you’ll be able to initiate the process in a couple of different ways. You can open the NFC-supported app directly and follow the required steps. Or, you could set a specific app as your default contactless option and then simply double-click the side button to kick off the transaction as you do with Apple Pay.
Newsletters
ZDNET Tech Today
ZDNET’s Tech Today newsletter is a daily briefing of the newest, most talked about stories, five days a week.
Subscribe
The NFC and SE APIs will launch for developers in the US, UK, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, and New Zealand in an upcoming developer build for iOS 18.1. Other locations will follow, Apple added. However, developers who want to participate must enter into a commercial agreement with Apple and pay the associated fees.
Apple added NFC to the iPhone 10 years ago, but it has been natively available only for services like Apple Pay. Developers who wanted to use the technology had to jump through several hoops to get their apps to work with it. Creating the necessary APIs will make the process much easier for developers and open the door for more apps that benefit iPhone users.
Also: Every iPhone model that can be updated to Apple’s iOS 18 (and which ones can’t)
In a support page for developers , Apple explains how the NFC and SE APIs will work and how to enable specific use cases, such as car keys, student IDs, and event tickets. The page also describes the steps for requesting access to the NFC & SE platform and integrating it into an app.
Apple’s iOS 18.1 is accessible currently as a developers beta and only for the Phone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max. With iOS 18 expected to roll out in September, the 18.1 update may arrive as soon as October. That means we should start seeing apps that support the new NFC capability before the end of the year.
Apple
iPhone 16 Pro upgrade: If you have a 3 year-old iPhone, here are all the new features you’ll get
My biggest regret with upgrading my iPhone to iOS 18 (and I’m not alone)
We’ve used every iPhone 16 model and here’s our best buying advice for 2024
6 iOS 18 settings I changed immediately - and why you should too
- iPhone 16 Pro upgrade: If you have a 3 year-old iPhone, here are all the new features you’ll get
- My biggest regret with upgrading my iPhone to iOS 18 (and I’m not alone)
- We’ve used every iPhone 16 model and here’s our best buying advice for 2024
- 6 iOS 18 settings I changed immediately - and why you should too
Also read:
- [Updated] In 2024, Deciphering the Coded Language of Concealed YouTube Movies
- [Updated] In 2024, Download YouTube Beats on Android The Ultimate 6-App Guide
- 2024 Approved The Epic Journey Through Memory Lane Advanced Methods for Capturing Your Sims' Digital Adventures
- 3 Effektive Methoden Zum Erstellen Eines Systemwiederherstellungsdatenträgers Unter Windows 11, 8.1, 8 Und 7 – Schritt-Für-Schritt-Anleitung
- Conversational AI: Breath of Life to Virtual Queries
- Expert Tips to Overcome 'GTFO' Programming Crashes Efficiently
- Forgot Locked iPhone XR Password? Learn the Best Methods To Unlock | Dr.fone
- How to Harness Universal GPT Power From Anywhere
- How to Resolve a 9Anime Crash - Tips for Getting the Stream Up and Running Again
- Interactive Intelligence: My AI Vs. Skype's Opponent
- Leveraging ChatGPT for Enhanced DocSpace Workflows
- Overcoming Saturated GPT Window Error
- Public Vs. Private AI: Collaborative Vs. Secure Worlds
- Rootjunky APK To Bypass Google FRP Lock For Oppo Reno 8T
- Securing Web Activity with Proton VPN Extension
- Title: Unlock New Possibilities: How Apple's Enhanced iPhone NFC Integration with Third-Party Apps Transforms Your Experience
- Author: Brian
- Created at : 2024-10-12 22:38:07
- Updated at : 2024-10-15 02:25:58
- Link: https://tech-savvy.techidaily.com/unlock-new-possibilities-how-apples-enhanced-iphone-nfc-integration-with-third-party-apps-transforms-your-experience/
- License: This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.