Filed under: Hardware, Internet Tools, iPhone
iPhone RFID prototype is very cool
iPhone RFID: object-based media from timo on Vimeo.
Some things are really cool. Object-based RFID media for the the iPhone is one of them. The video above is a prototype demonstration of how this could potentially work. Basically, there's a small "tag" inside a physical object that triggers an iPhone action when it's in range via the attached RFID/NFC reader. In the demonstration it can be seen playing videos, launching podcasts, etc. Our favorite is that the phone begins playing home movies when moved within range of the little house.
This is full of potential. Could other actions be triggered, like send an email or open a web browser? What if, as the developers ask, the iPhone could send actions instead of perform them? Some really fun things could result.
Some bad as well. It seems like a marketer's dream come true, and I have this nightmarish vision of walking through the mall as my iPhone has a freakout. But let's look at the positive: Gaming, playing with toys and sharing media could get a whole lot more fun.
Update: You can get more info on this from the developer's weblog.
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
John said 12:37PM on 4-15-2009
Thanks for the info too bad iphone does not have flash so I could watch the video
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bob said 1:10PM on 4-15-2009
i'd say too bad this is an apple orientated website and an iphone specific article yet quicktime wasn't used, but thats just people not wanting to host their own videos these days - very unprofessional lol
Stephen said 1:06PM on 4-15-2009
This reminds me of a little project I put together. I made phone calls based on RFID tags.
http://hackaday.com/2009/03/14/rfid-controlled-phone-dialing/
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Matt Martz said 1:19PM on 4-15-2009
Stealing RFID credit cards??? ::puts on tinfoil hat::
/joking, but a little serious at the same time
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Monkeyfood said 1:50PM on 4-15-2009
If you like that you might like the desktop equivalent:
http://www.violet.net/_mirror-give-powers-to-your-objects.html
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Jack Chance said 1:45PM on 4-15-2009
The best use for this would be WITHIN app. That is you open an app that looks for RFID cues and then does stuff.
Example... shopping in a store, you could get tech specs on your phone to save and browse later.
Walking around a museum, get info about art pieces. Walk around a city, get info about landmarks......
you get the idea.
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staniks said 1:52PM on 4-15-2009
danger will robinson danger
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VoxMatt said 2:02PM on 4-15-2009
This is kind of cool, but the problem is that the video has to be stored on the phone already; the tag is just a trigger. So, you'd have to already have the corresponded videos, which makes the toys just an elaborate play button. Obviously there is still some cool potential, but without data transfer, you'd need an app built specifically for the objects or at least online access to a database (which seems relatively easy to accomplish).
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Sam said 2:06PM on 4-15-2009
If an iPhone ever has an RFID chip in it I will never upgrade again. GPS is bad enough as is.
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Steve Simitzis said 4:41PM on 4-15-2009
Why exactly would you be worried about RFID in an iPhone? An iPhone is always connected to a cellular network, which can be used to find where you are. By the time someone would be close enough to track your position from an embedded RFID device, they've already found you. In other words, if you're worried about being tracked by a signal with a range of no more than a meter, then the last thing you should own is *any* mobile phone.