Years have passed since the NFC tags were invented, today on sale for less than 10 Euros in the form of stickers or key rings. Some may wonder what NFC tags are, others may be surprised that they can actually do something. About the meaning and ways of using NFC on mobile phones we have already written in another article.
In a nutshell, they are small chips on which you can write data and information that can be read by your smartphone by placing it on top of it. You can imagine them as memory cards, which don't need a battery, with a minimum space inside where you can write things like an internet address, a phone number or a command.
For example, I could write the address www.navigaweb.net on an NFC tag so every time I put my smartphone on it, this site opens automatically. A more advanced use is to automate some actions, for example by having the browser open in the car or connect to the wifi automatically when we go to the office. To work you need, in addition to the wipes with the NFC chip, also a smartphone that supports NFC such as the Samsung Galaxy, the Nexus 5 or other Android smartphones HTC and LG (on the iPhone there is no NFC).
To check that your smartphone supports NFC, go to Settings on Android and press on More under Wireless and networks .
I recently bought the NFC Tags on Amazon, a package with 10 round adhesive tags and a key ring (for free shipping you need to get to 19 Euros so you have to combine something else like the wireless charger or a trio of Micro USB cables that are always useful )
Looking for ways to use them I found some ways to take advantage of these NFC tags with my compatible smartphone, the Nexus 5.
Basically, with a phone that supports NFC, just touch these pre-programmed tags to perform a certain type of action such as launching an app, activating wifi etc.
To program NFC with automatic actions you can use an app like Automate or Trigger, which in the free version supports the programming of automatic actions via NFC.
Below are 10 apps and ways to create automatic actions with NFC stickers on an Android smartphone .
1) Deactivate the alarm only by touching the NFC tag attached on the bedside table.
In this way we are forced to take an active action that forces us to think and, therefore, to wake up. The phone alarm will not stop until you get up to touch the phone with the sticker attached to the bedside table.
With the Sleep as Android app, an intelligent alarm app that also works with NFC, you can set an alarm that is activated only by scanning the NFC tag and scanning the NFC tag to turn it off.
2) Automatically connect to your home or office Wifi
If we have a Wi-Fi network at home, we can make sure that we just place the phone on a sticker placed next to the front door or in the living room or in the study to activate the Wifi connection on the phone.
3) Let friends connect to our Wifi without giving them the password
If our friends have an NFC smartphone, they can connect to the internet by placing their phone on our tag. In the NFC tag you program the password to access the network, so there will be no need to let them know. To program this action you need an app like Instawifi .
4) Store private information and protect it
On an NFC tag, perhaps that of the key ring, you can save what you want, even information such as websites, notes, passwords or personal codes.
A handy app for doing this is NFC Tools
With NFC TagWriter you can also password protect NFC tags.
With ReTag NFC, you can instead reuse a write-protected NFC card.
5) To silence the phone
You can put an NFC Tag in your bag or on the office desk to put your smartphone automatically silent when you touch it with the sticker or keychain.
6) Set a timer
By placing the sticker near the oven, stove or washing machine, you can make sure that by touching it with your smartphone, a specific pre-configured timer starts.
7) Auto mode when getting into the car
This is perhaps the best utility for an NFC adhesive attached to the car dashboard.
With the Trigger app we can make sure that by entering the car the Google Maps navigator or bluetooth is activated to connect it to the stereo system of the car handsfree.
If the phone were unlocked with root it would also be possible to activate and deactivate the GPS and the data network via NFC tags, which would be very useful to have when entering the car and launching the GPS navigator.
8) In the gym
When you get to the gym, stick the sticker in our personal locker and touch it with your smartphone to launch the fitness app or the music app.
9) Call a frequently called number
You can have the phone call a certain phone number automatically when placed on the sticker programmed with NFC Tools (see point 4).
10) Start music with bluetooth speakers
With a single tap on the NFC tag, you can have Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and Spotify activated together to listen to music from Bluetooth speakers.
NFC is an extraordinary tool for the automation of an Android smartphone, in addition to the fact that it makes us feel very cool, modern and technological, with a cost of just 10 Euros.
READ ALSO: Best apps to activate automatic actions on Android
