[Superfly_FR]

NFC payment is getting pretty big in the UK and most of the major credit card companies now give you a 'Contact-less Wave' credit card as standard. All the small businesses I know who have recently got a new card reader, have found that NFC payments functionality is built into the devices (though there is usually a 'ceiling limit' of 30 or 50 for purchases).

NFC Payment tech is growing fast in Germany, Italy and Austria too (though the most implementations I have seen for contactless payment are actually in Istanbul, Turkey).

NFC is also used as a standard in many European countries for things like transport passes (eg the Oyster Card for the London Transport network)

and please add France to the list. Most CC are now NFC enabled and we have NFC pass for transportations in every big cities.

I doubt you are using 802.11b for your Wi-Fi. Most routers these days are b/g/n and really the place/person would have to be using equipment manufactured around the 1999-2002 equipment to not give their users access to a Wi-Fi 'g' signal. That, or be strictly limiting their router to only broadcast that type of Wi-Fi, which makes no sense since Wi-Fi 'b' has a slower theoretical max transfer rate than a ton of consumer broadband internet connections (DSL even... never mind Cable or Fiber).

Really, a bit less exaggeration would be nice.

Maybe in some poor countries people still use this type of very old equipment that they have likely gotten out of a trash bin or imported on the cheap for lack of the ability to get anything better. But any country that is rolling out NFC terminals clearly would not qualify, nor would anyone who's wasting money on "morning coffee" seeing how cheap a decent modern wireless router is...

"Travel the real world" would be my answer there.
Efficiency tools have to work in most situations, including failover situations.
There's zero gain to remove a protocol than can be used to raise you chances to be connected, everywhere, anytime. Even when the only equipment available is oudated or a deprecated redundant one.
BTW: For obvious reliability/security reasons paiment terminals are (should) never (be) connected with wifi, it's a wire or it's a no-go.

P.S: patronizing "poor countries" won't help; have you been there, at least once, to notice how ingenious and technically aware these people are ? I'd bet not, or you won't write that.

[BigAl_BB9900]

and please add France to the list. Most CC are now NFC enabled and we have NFC pass for transportations in every big cities.

Hi Superfly

I should have mentioned France too.... however must point out, though there are lots of contactless payment points in Charles de Gaulle airport and Gare du Nord, I haven't come across many in other cafes and restaurants (maybe a few in big chain coffee shops in central Paris, but that's about it so far). Having said that, I haven't spent a lot of time in France in 2014.... (must book another trip to visit those refreshment producers in and around the Gironde....)

Thanks for pointing this out

A

[RyanGermann]

NFC is also used as a standard in many European countries for things like transport passes (eg the Oyster Card for the London Transport network)

Most stores I shop at including most food service vendors and supermarkets support NFC here in Canada... I guess that's another win for the Canadian banking system: 5 "big banks" with branches coast to coast, and a bit more innovative than some of the US Banks (but the service charges are outrageous here).

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[anon(5818411)]

Most stores I shop at including most food service vendors and supermarkets support NFC here in Canada... I guess that's another win for the Canadian banking system: 5 "big banks" with branches coast to coast, and a bit more innovative than some of the US Banks (but the service charges are outrageous here).

Posted via CB10

Well that is everything in canada, I get charged up the *** with everything here haha. I can't think of 1 thing cheaper in canada then the states

Posted via CB10

[BigAl_BB9900]

Well that is everything in canada, I get charged up the *** with everything here haha. I can't think of 1 thing cheaper in canada then the states

Posted via CB10

I'm surprised by your statement (though I know the US is usually very cheap for products, and staggeringly cheaper than UK/Europe) because when I last drove up to Canada from NY, there was a traffic jam at the customs place (by the bridge) caused by lots of buses full of US people going to Canada to buy their prescriptions

[slagman5]

Good for you, that the NFC is being adopted in real use at your place. Unfortunately that's not the case at my place here (and some others who have also posted at this thread).

I don't assume, dear friend. I throw a question to the CrackBerry nation, where I trust the community here is open minded and with less prejudice on questions such as this one.* The question is very simple: NFC hasn't exactly taken off until now, except in the European countries the adoption rate is still low, especially at the USA and my country (and also at some other places), do you think BlackBerry should skip on the technology or not?

Yes, I use BGR's news (about Apple skipping the NFC) at the initial post, but I never intended to say something like: "Apple doesn't adopt NFC thus the technology is surely dying," or "Apple has picked the right move," or "BlackBerry should copy every Apple moves," or worse "Apple is always right," etc. For me, it's just an intriguing news from once a trusted blog that often defend BlackBerry and had a good record of leaking BlackBerry rumors.

I hope this will clear some of the heavy air that's been lingering around this thread since it's started. And I must say, the opinions surrounding NFC in the BlackBerry is fascinating. Hopefully John Chen listens to everyone's opinions here on the matter.

* Note: I think I'm beginning to understand on the sentiments of some members that think I'm siding with Apple / pro-Apple on this NFC topic, I'm not. No wonder some of the posts feel like somewhat mocks those who think NFC is not exactly useful (for their personal usage). Just to clear this up one more time: I like my BlackBerry, and I'm rooting for the belaguered company to survive and to keep churning out great phones for all of us.

You keep saying "skip" on the technology... THEY ALREADY HAVE IT! So it is less "skipping" over it and more actively removing it. You seriously need to stop looking at requiring justification for how "adding" nfc would benefit and require justification for how REMOVING it would benefit since having it is the status quo and not having it is changing that.

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

[slagman5]

I'm surprised by your statement (though I know the US is usually very cheap for products, and staggeringly cheaper than UK/Europe) because when I last drove up to Canada from NY, there was a traffic jam at the customs place (by the bridge) caused by lots of buses full of US people going to Canada to buy their prescriptions

Well, I think for most of us that isn't really like a normal "every day" thing unless you're older I assume. I'm not young, but I'm not old, but I can tell you the last time I took anything prescription was probably over 5 years ago, and even that was a one-off thing, just one bottle, it was pain killers for a dental procedure, and I literally took one pill, then never took any more... I don't believe in the "medicate for every thing" philosophy some people seem to have adopted. I like to let my body take care of most things and do other natural things like a lot of vitamin C to build on my immune system naturally. And so far so good. I'm almost never sick...

So for me, if I had to pick between paying more for prescription medications and less for everything else versus paying less for prescription medications and more for everything else, I definitely would go with the first option. But that's just me. If you take a lot of prescription meds, then obviously the latter might make more sense.

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

[BigAl_BB9900]

Well, I think for most of us that isn't really like a normal "every day" thing unless you're older I assume. I'm not young, but I'm not old, but I can tell you the last time I took anything prescription was probably over 5 years ago, and even that was a one-off thing, just one bottle, it was pain killers for a dental procedure, and I literally took one pill, then never took any more... I don't believe in the "medicate for every thing" philosophy some people seem to have adopted. I like to let my body take care of most things and do other natural things like a lot of vitamin C to build on my immune system naturally. And so far so good. I'm almost never sick...

So for me, if I had to pick between paying more for prescription medications and less for everything else versus paying less for prescription medications and more for everything else, I definitely would go with the first option. But that's just me. If you take a lot of prescription meds, then obviously the latter might make more sense.

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

Sure - I completely understand your reasoning, and am pleased for you for your continued good health.

I think the average age of those bus passengers (queuing to get into Canada to buy cheaper meds) was about 75 years!

[reeneebob]

Well that is everything in canada, I get charged up the *** with everything here haha. I can't think of 1 thing cheaper in canada then the states

Posted via CB10

Hospital care.

Which is why when I collapsed from my bleeding ulcer last year during a couple hours long trip to the US, I made them get me back across the border to OHIP if they could. My 4 day stay in ICU would have bankrupted me between the scopes and blood transfusions.

Literally, my first words when I came to face down on the floor was 'ohip'. Not 'OW' for the 5 broken ribs, not 'what happened'. OHIP. LOL

Well, you did ask lol. And it's not like I'm old, I was 38 at the time.

[nhanken]

Thank goodness for the Canadian health care services otherwise we'd have to pay an arm and a leg once we get discharged from clinics and hospitals lol

Hospital care.

Which is why when I collapsed from my bleeding ulcer last year during a couple hours long trip to the US, I made them get me back across the border to OHIP if they could. My 4 day stay in ICU would have bankrupted me between the scopes and blood transfusions.

Literally, my first words when I came to face down on the floor was 'ohip'. Not 'OW' for the 5 broken ribs, not 'what happened'. OHIP. LOL

Well, you did ask lol. And it's not like I'm old, I was 38 at the time.

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[Superfly_FR]

Hi Superfly

I should have mentioned France too.... however must point out, though there are lots of contactless payment points in Charles de Gaulle airport and Gare du Nord, I haven't come across many in other cafes and restaurants (maybe a few in big chain coffee shops in central Paris, but that's about it so far). Having said that, I haven't spent a lot of time in France in 2014.... (must book another trip to visit those refreshment producers in and around the Gironde....)

Thanks for pointing this out

A

You're right, mostly CC and transport NFC transponders . NFC on mobile is slowly showing up, but that's a matter of time. Banking payment apps on their way.

PS either around Paris or SW of France, don't forget to "ping" me

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[slagman5]

Hospital care.

Which is why when I collapsed from my bleeding ulcer last year during a couple hours long trip to the US, I made them get me back across the border to OHIP if they could. My 4 day stay in ICU would have bankrupted me between the scopes and blood transfusions.

Literally, my first words when I came to face down on the floor was 'ohip'. Not 'OW' for the 5 broken ribs, not 'what happened'. OHIP. LOL

Well, you did ask lol. And it's not like I'm old, I was 38 at the time.

Well, apparently they all pay it with everything else...

It'll amaze people what the real reason is behind our healthcare costs. And the sad thing is, NONE of the idiots in Washington have any real plans that would help any of it... I'm talking about from either party BTW in case someone was about to jump on me about it...

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

[anon(5818411)]

Well, I think for most of us that isn't really like a normal "every day" thing unless you're older I assume. I'm not young, but I'm not old, but I can tell you the last time I took anything prescription was probably over 5 years ago, and even that was a one-off thing, just one bottle, it was pain killers for a dental procedure, and I literally took one pill, then never took any more... I don't believe in the "medicate for every thing" philosophy some people seem to have adopted. I like to let my body take care of most things and do other natural things like a lot of vitamin C to build on my immune system naturally. And so far so good. I'm almost never sick...

So for me, if I had to pick between paying more for prescription medications and less for everything else versus paying less for prescription medications and more for everything else, I definitely would go with the first option. But that's just me. If you take a lot of prescription meds, then obviously the latter might make more sense.

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

Hospital care.

Which is why when I collapsed from my bleeding ulcer last year during a couple hours long trip to the US, I made them get me back across the border to OHIP if they could. My 4 day stay in ICU would have bankrupted me between the scopes and blood transfusions.

Literally, my first words when I came to face down on the floor was 'ohip'. Not 'OW' for the 5 broken ribs, not 'what happened'. OHIP. LOL

Well, you did ask lol. And it's not like I'm old, I was 38 at the time.

I guess that's 1 thing but then again we pay for it like our alcohol, tobacco and taxes (PST, GST and HST) we just have a better system that way. So that just cancels out. Health care is amazing and it's good Obama sees that even though everyone just thinks it's a money grab.

But then there's stuff little things:
- like a beer pong table or clothes that costs 3 times more.
- Shipping from anywhere in the world is always doubled.
- Gas (doubled even though it comes from here just not refined here)
- Even groceries at walmart is double the price here, maybe it's because our food laws are different.
- We have the highest cell phone rates in the world (only 1 carrier in New Zealand actualyl compares to our rates) .
- Our internet rates are insane.

I can go on forever, but you guys are right with healthcare although we do pay for it just indirectly.

[reeneebob]

Well I don't smoke and rarely drink, especially after the semi perforated stomach lol...so stuff like that doesn't affect me. I'm actually for the high taxes on those things due to the added strain health issues from alcohol and tobacco add to the system.

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[BigAl_BB9900]

Well I don't smoke and rarely drink, especially after the semi perforated stomach lol...so stuff like that doesn't affect me. I'm actually for the high taxes on those things due to the added strain health issues from alcohol and tobacco add to the system.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

I do smoke and drink, but the nice NHS in England gives me Lansoprazole..... (an anti-stomach-ulcer drug, specifically for people taking NSAIDs)

Note: The drinking is usually minimal (last night was an exception) and I know that the smoking is really not great for my health.... I do smoke less when my ex comes round (she's a Dr) but that's because she smokes all my cigarettes.....

[slagman5]

I guess that's 1 thing but then again we pay for it like our alcohol, tobacco and taxes (PST, GST and HST) we just have a better system that way. So that just cancels out. Health care is amazing and it's good Obama sees that even though everyone just thinks it's a money grab.

But then there's stuff little things:
- like a beer pong table or clothes that costs 3 times more.
- Shipping from anywhere in the world is always doubled.
- Gas (doubled even though it comes from here just not refined here)
- Even groceries at walmart is double the price here, maybe it's because our food laws are different.
- We have the highest cell phone rates in the world (only 1 carrier in New Zealand actualyl compares to our rates) .
- Our internet rates are insane.

I can go on forever, but you guys are right with healthcare although we do pay for it just indirectly.

Yah, not to get into a political discussion, but what obama is doing is not helping anything because the core problem with our healthcare system is not addressed. And no, what the GOP is suggesting wouldn't help either. Neither side is doing a single thing to fix the problem. We can't simply change one thing to copy another country's system. There is another huge issue that we have that will prevent that from helping... Again, I would get into it but I don't want to turn this into a political discussion.

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

[xBURK]

Paying cash or using a card at Tim Hortons now would seem like traveling back to Little House on the Prairie. Forget it, I'm a spoiled brat with my Z10 and I love it.

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[anon(5818411)]

Yah, not to get into a political discussion, but what obama is doing is not helping anything because the core problem with our healthcare system is not addressed. And no, what the GOP is suggesting wouldn't help either. Neither side is doing a single thing to fix the problem. We can't simply change one thing to copy another country's system. There is another huge issue that we have that will prevent that from helping... Again, I would get into it but I don't want to turn this into a political discussion.

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

tbh i have no idea, all i know he's trying with it haha

[Joe Clean]

You keep saying "skip" on the technology... THEY ALREADY HAVE IT! So it is less "skipping" over it and more actively removing it. You seriously need to stop looking at requiring justification for how "adding" nfc would benefit and require justification for how REMOVING it would benefit since having it is the status quo and not having it is changing that.

Wow, you're right, I should have used "remove" instead of "skip". Thank you for pointing it out, I've corrected the aforementioned post, hopefully you're satisfied.
You'll have to excuse me if I made mistakes like that, or writing typos, because English is not my main language.*

Not that I kept looking to justify the need to remove the NFC out of the Q20, I'm just curious how others think of the technology in their BlackBerries and how they use it, and what they think of the NFC in the upcoming Q20. There's no need to condescend to almost every comments I made on this topic, I took notice ever since this thread started.

I learn a lot of how CrackBerry community use their NFC (with their BlackBerries) from reading their posts on this thread, how NFC is actually been adopted in various countries (European countries especially), and like I said before; it's fascinating. I also noticed you asked around about Isis mobile-payment in the US at other thread you've started, you my friend love mobile-payment that utilizes NFC; perhaps that's one of many reasons you're talking down to me in this thread.

* Note: unlike you, I need to re-check my posts just in case I made grammar errors.

[Joe Clean]

Paying cash or using a card at Tim Hortons now would seem like traveling back to Little House on the Prairie. Forget it, I'm a spoiled brat with my Z10 and I love it.

LoL, we all are spoiled CrackBerries with BlackBerries in our hands

By the way, I don't see you put your vote in the poll up there?

[Joe Clean]

Thank goodness for the Canadian health care services otherwise we'd have to pay an arm and a leg once we get discharged from clinics and hospitals lol

Which is why when I collapsed from my bleeding ulcer last year during a couple hours long trip to the US, I made them get me back across the border to OHIP if they could. My 4 day stay in ICU would have bankrupted me between the scopes and blood transfusions.

The Canadian health care services are that good there? I envy you guys...

[reeneebob]

The Canadian health care services are that good there? I envy you guys...

4 days in intensive care unit in critical, a total of 8 units of blood transfused, 2 gastric scopes with an OR team and never even saw a bill. Handed them my OHIP card when I got there.

I had a surgery a few years ago with complications and had a 6 day stay and 6 months of home care nursing and never paid a dime for anything including prescriptions.

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[Joe Clean]

4 days in intensive care unit in critical, a total of 8 units of blood transfused, 2 gastric scopes with an OR team and never even saw a bill. Handed them my OHIP card when I got there.

I had a surgery a few years ago with complications and had a 6 day stay and 6 months of home care nursing and never paid a dime for anything including prescriptions.

Wow!
I really envy you, that's awesome!
Oh, I never knew you had that kind of surgery, thank goodness you're okay now, right?

[reeneebob]

I am now, yes. Thanks!

Now I just get really paranoid whenever my stomach is acidic. Lol. That ulcer had been there with no symptoms (I've had ulcers before so know what they feel like) but it finally hit the artery in the stomach wall so I bled out half my blood supply in under 24 hours. Another few hours and I wouldn't have been okay. I just felt like I had the flu.

[Joe Clean]

I am now, yes. Thanks!

Now I just get really paranoid whenever my stomach is acidic. Lol. That ulcer had been there with no symptoms (I've had ulcers before so know what they feel like) but it finally hit the artery in the stomach wall so I bled out half my blood supply in under 24 hours. Another few hours and I wouldn't have been okay. I just felt like I had the flu.

Yikes, that was terrible.
My wife had a serious ulcer too, but not to that extend, even though it's been cured a bit, till today she still has to watch whatever she's about to eat or it'll make her stomach ache. I can understand your paranoia..