# TecTile > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/TecTile > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/TecTile.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TecTile > Source revision: 1320616212 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|NFC application developed by Samsung for use with smartphones}} thumb|TecTiles NFC tags thumb|Galaxy SIII and a pair of TecTile stickers '''TecTiles''' are a [near-field communication](/source/near-field_communication) (NFC) application, developed by [Samsung](/source/Samsung), for use with mobile [smartphone](/source/smartphone) devices.{{Cite web |title=Introducing Samsung TecTiles |url=http://www.samsung.com/us/microsite/tectile/ |date= |author= |publisher=[Samsung](/source/Samsung) }} Each TecTile is a low-cost{{Cite web |title = TecTile Programmable NFC Tags |url = http://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/cell-phones-accessories/EAD-X10SWEGXAR |publisher = [Samsung](/source/Samsung) |quote = $15 / 5 tags |url-status = dead |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20130206050647/http://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/cell-phones-accessories/EAD-X10SWEGXAR |archivedate = 2013-02-06 }} self-adhesive sticker with an embedded [NFC Tag](/source/NFC_Tag).{{Cite web |title=Samsung TecTiles |url=http://lesterchan.net/blog/2013/04/02/samsung-tectiles/ |date=2 April 2013 |author=Lester Chan |publisher= }} They are programmed before use, which can be done simply by the user, using a downloadable [Android app](/source/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](/source/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](/source/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](/source/Samsung_Galaxy_S_III).{{Cite web |title=SAMSUNG Mobile Expands NFC Capabilities with TecTile™ Version 3.0 |url=http://www.samsung.com/us/news/20301 |date=24 October 2012 |publisher=[Samsung](/source/Samsung) }}{{Cite web |title=TecTiles: programmable NFC stickers for select members of Samsung's Galaxy |url=https://www.engadget.com/2012/06/13/tectiles-programmable-nfc-stickers-for-select-members-of-samsun/ |date=13 June 2012 |author=Joseph Volpe |publisher=[engadget](/source/engadget) }} == Applications == 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 could be used to build a system similar to [QRpedia](/source/QRpedia). 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'](/source/Like_(Facebook)) or similar, this is carried out under the phone user's credentials (such as a [Facebook](/source/Facebook) identity), rather than the Tag's identity. Samsung group Tags' functions under four headings:{{Cite web |title=Samsung TecTiles Review: NFC Tap Technology in Sticker Form |url=http://www.brighthand.com/default.asp?newsID=19027&news=Samsung+TecTiles+Review+NFC |date=9 July 2012 |author= Jamison Cush |publisher=Brighthand }} Settings, Phone, Web and Social. A handful of examples: ; Settings * Enter 'quiet' or 'in-car' mode * Set an [alarm clock](/source/alarm_clock) * Launch an app * Join a [WiFi](/source/WiFi) network. This could be used for giving convenient access to coffee shop networks. * Show a message ; Phone * Make a call * Send a [text](/source/Short_Message_Service) * Share a contact [vCard](/source/vCard) ; Web * Open a web page * Show a location on a mapping service, such as [Google Maps](/source/Google_Maps) * Check-in to [Foursquare](/source/Foursquare_City_Guide), or other [location-based service](/source/location-based_service)s. ; Social * Update Facebook status with a location * ['Like' on Facebook](/source/Like_(Facebook)) * Send a [tweet](/source/tweet_(Twitter)) * Follow a [Twitter](/source/Twitter) user 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. == Lifespan == The re-programmability of a Tag is claimed at over 100,000 programming cycles. A Tag placed on a doorway or noticeboard may be re-programmed in situ and could thus have a long life (e.g. many conferences, meetings or events). Tags may be locked after programming, to avoid unauthorized reprogramming. Locked tags may be unlocked only by the same phone that locked them. The duration of a locked Tag's relevance will be the main constraint on Tag lifetime if unlocking is not possible. The lifespan of a Tag is also likely to be limited by physical factors such as the glue adhesion, or the difficulty of peeling them from the glue. == Compatibility == The TecTile app is not installed by default. If a Tag is read before it is installed, the user is directed to the app download site. Using a Samsung TecTile NFC tag requires a device with the [MIFARE](/source/MIFARE) Classic chipset.{{Cite web |title= NFC tags; about Tectiles, SmartTags, Tag+, Mifare and much more |author= Joao Rostli |url= http://www.nfc-phones.org/nfc-tags/ |access-date= 2013-04-14 |archive-date= 2012-08-05 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120805060128/http://www.nfc-phones.org/nfc-tags/ |url-status= dead }} This chipset is based on NXP's NFC controller, which is outside the NFC Forum's standard. Using a TecTile thus requires the NXP chipset. The NXP chipset is found in many [Android](/source/Android_(operating_system)) phones. Recently Android phone manufacturers have chosen to drop TecTile support; notably in Samsung's latest flagship phone the [Galaxy S4](/source/Galaxy_S4) {{Cite web |title=Samsung Chooses Broadcom NFC Chip over NXP; Embedded Strategy Begins to Take Shape |author=Dan Balaban |url=http://nfctimes.com/news/samsung-s-chooses-broadcom-nfc-chip-over-nxp- }} and Google's [Nexus 4](/source/Nexus_4). {{Cite web |title=Google Drops NXP in Favor of Broadcom for NFC Stack, Latest Nexus Devices |author=Dan Balaban |url=http://nfctimes.com/news/google-drops-nxp-favor-broadcom-nfc-stack-latest-nexus-devices }} TecTiles also do ''not'' work with [BlackBerry](/source/BlackBerry) and [Windows](/source/Windows_Phone) NFC phones. The new version of TecTile, called [TecTile 2](/source/TecTile_2), have improved compatibility, {{Cite web |title=TecTile Programmable NFC Tags (5 pack) |author=Samsung |url=http://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/cell-phones-accessories/EAD-X11SWEGXAR-compatible }} but currently the Samsung Galaxy S4 is the only device that comes with native support for TecTile 2. {{Cite web |title=Samsung TecTiles 2 pushed out for Galaxy S 4 |author=Craig Lloyd |date=17 May 2013 |url=http://www.slashgear.com/samsung-tectiles-2-pushed-out-for-galaxy-s-4-17282563/ }} NFC Tags that ''do'' comply with NFC Forum Type 1 or Type 2 compatibility protocols {{Cite web |title=NFC Forum Specifications |author=NFC Forum |url=http://www.nfc-forum.org/specs/ }} are much more widely compatible than the [MIFARE](/source/MIFARE) dependant Samsung TecTile,{{Cite web |title=A Comprehensive List of NFC Enabled Phones |author=Shop4NFC |url=http://www.shop4nfc.com/nfc-compatibility-chart |access-date=2013-07-23 |archive-date=2013-08-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130807001158/http://www.shop4nfc.com/nfc-compatibility-chart |url-status=dead }} and are also widely available. Popular standards compliant NFC Tags are the [NTAG213](/source/NTAG) (137 bytes of usable memory), and the [Topaz 512](/source/Topaz_512) (480 bytes of usable memory). {{Cite web |title=Which NFC Tags |author=RapidNFC |url=http://rapidnfc.com/choosing_which_nfc_tag }} === Tag encoding === The need for the installed app is one of the drawbacks to TecTile and to NFC Tags in general. The basic NFC Tag standards support Tags carrying [URL](/source/URL)s, where the [scheme](/source/URI_scheme) or protocol (e.g. the http:// prefix) may be either http (for web addresses), tel for telephony, or an anonymous [data](/source/Data_URI_scheme) scheme. Although support for the http and tel schemes may be assumed in a basic handset, support for the others will not be available unless an App has been installed and registered to handle them. In general, NFC Tags (in the non-TecTile sense) are only useful for web addresses and telephony. To provide features beyond this, Samsung offers the TecTile App. This ''could'' have used any scheme on a tag, or even invented a whole new scheme. When installed, such an App would register itself to handle these new schemes. However the App is not part of the default install for a handset, even a Samsung. To allow users to install the App automatically, on first encountering a TecTile, all the TecTile's sophisticated and phone-specific features are still provided through the http scheme. The basic URL is that for initially downloading the App, details of the TecTile operation are encoded as URL parameters within the [query string](/source/query_string) in addition to this. When reading a Tag, one of two things happens: * On first reading a Tag, without the App installed, the Tag's http scheme takes the handset user to the App download site. * On reading a Tag with the App installed, the App recognises the download URL and suppresses the handset's usual web browsing behaviour. It then use the query string embedded within the URL to instead activate the TecTile function requested. This convoluted behaviour was chosen to make the App effectively self-installing for naive users. Why the App was not supplied as default is unknown. The downsides of this design choice though are that the URLs required to activate TecTile functions are relatively long, meaning that non-TecTile NFC Tags with limited memory size (137 bytes) cannot generally be used for functions other than web addresses. Additionally, the lack of a non-proprietary approach to these more capable functions limits the development of NFC Tags as a general technique across all such handsets, rather than just Samsung TecTiles. == Similar tag technologies == * [iButton](/source/iButton), an early single-contact based system * [Touchatag](/source/Touchatag), an [RFID](/source/RFID)-based system * [QR code](/source/QR_code), optically-read codes == Notes == {{Reflist|group=note|liststyle=lower-roman}} == References == {{Reflist|colwidth=35em}} Category:Near-field communication Category:Mobile telecommunications Category:Wireless --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [TecTile](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TecTile) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TecTile?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.