TecTile

TecTiles are a near field communication (NFC) application, developed by Samsung, for use with mobile smartphone devices.

Each TecTile is a low-cost self-adhesive sticker with an embedded NFC Tag. They are programmed before use, which can be done simply by the user, using a downloadable Android app.

When an NFC-capable phone is placed or 'tapped' on a Tag, the programmed action is undertaken. This could cause a website to be displayed, the phone switched to silent mode, or many other possible actions.

NFC Tags are an application of RFID technology. Unlike most RFID, which makes an effort to give a long reading range, NFC deliberately limits this range to only a few inches or almost touching the phone to the Tag. This is done deliberately, so that Tags have no effect on a phone unless there is a clear user action to 'trigger' the Tag. Although phones are usually touched to Tags, this does not require any 'docking' or galvanic contact with the Tag, so they are still considered to be a non-contact technology.

Although NFC Tags can be used with many smartphones, TecTiles gained much prominence in late 2012 with the launch of the Galaxy SIII.

Some applications are intended for customising the behaviour of a user's own phone according to a location, e.g. a quiet mode when placed on a bedside table; others are intended for public use, e.g. publicising web content about a location. This programming is carried out entirely on the Tag. Subject to security settings, any compatible phone would have the same response when tapped on the Tag. When the Tag's response is a Facebook 'Like' or similar, this is carried out under the phone user's credentials (such as a Facebook identity), rather than the Tag's identity.

Samsung group Tags' functions under four headings: Settings, Phone, Web and Social. A handful of examples:

Tags may also be pre-programmed and distributed to users. Such a Tag could be set to take the user to a manufacturer's service support page and sent out stuck to washing machines or other domestic whitegoods. Factory-prepared Tags can also be printed with logos, or moulded into forms apart from stickers, such as key fobs or wristbands.

The re-programmability of a Tag is claimed at over 100,000 programming cycles.

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