Pay by pointing your smartphone at someone, it will soon be possible. ING is working on a method to make this possible. The technology is currently being tested and was made in collaboration with NXP Semiconductors, a chip maker from Eindhoven. The technique is almost ready, but there are a number of caveats.
Hands up or I’ll pay!
In a press release, ING announced that it has developed a method together with NXP to make it possible for people to make a payment by pointing a smartphone at someone. ING itself speaks of the ‘NEAR method’. This method works via ultra-wideband technology (UWB). This is a wireless communication technology that allows you to quickly transfer data over a short distance. Think of it as a kind of Bluetooth, but with the big advantage that ultra-wideband is much more accurate. For example, two smartphones using UWB can ‘see’ exactly where the other is.
According to ING, NEAR will eventually work as follows: in the ING mobile banking app, you select the person to whom you want to transfer money. This person must be physically near you. If you have selected this person, he or she will appear in the app. You will then see the receiver in the app, but also the distance between you and the receiver. Once you are connected, you can enter the correct amount you want to transfer and confirm the transaction. You don’t need anyone’s email address, phone number and/or username in this whole process.
Only for Samsung
Apart from the fact that the technology will first be extensively tested by ING before they are launched on the market, there are a number of obstacles. For example, the ultra-wideband technology initially only works on the new generation of Samsung smartphones, where the technology is used as a car key. It concerns the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, the Galaxy S21 Ultra, the Galaxy S21 Plus and the Galaxy S22 Ultra. In addition, both the payer and the recipient must have ‘NEAR’ on their telephones.
NXP says the following in the press release: ”The pilot will use NXP’s Trimension SR100T ultra-wideband chips together with UWB-enabled Samsung smartphones, making it possible for consumers to pay directly via the ING banking app. We are innovating together with ING and Samsung to make this new payment method suitable for worldwide application.”
ING and NXP currently only work with Samsung. They have given ING and NXP access to their phones, among other things, to enable and test the new NEAR technology. Samsung says the following about this: “UWB technology opens up a whole new world of connectivity, a world where all of us can communicate seamlessly with each other in an open ecosystem. By working closely with partners such as ING and NXP, we can give even more consumers access to this groundbreaking technology, creating innovative new experiences that make people’s everyday lives easier.”
When available?
The new NEAR method is currently being tested in the Netherlands by NXP and ING. Once these tests have been completed, NXP and ING will look at the next steps. According to ING, the aim is to also involve the customer in the expansion and further development of NEAR. It is not yet known when NEAR will officially come on the market.
What do you think of the NEAR? And would you use it? Let us know in the comments below this article.
– Thanks for information from Androidworld. Source