UPDATE: RIM has been in touch and would like to clarify that “many of their devices” will come with NFC. Was it a slip of the tongue, or an honest mistake? We’ve asked for clarification on what this means for consumers. Either way, it seems RIM’s backing down from wholehearted support for NFC. Better hope the iPhone 5 and iPad 2 don’t pack it, eh RIM?
The MD of RIM in the UK, Stephen Bates, said today that NFC tech would be in all BlackBerry smartphones. He said NFC would be in “all of our new devices moving forward”, although he didn’t go into details about specific dates, or the first new BlackBerry that would be sporting NFC tech.
RIM seemed to be getting behind NFC in a big way: Bates talked about how we’d soon be using NFC for payment in Starbucks, buying tickets at the O2, and instead of our Oyster cards. He said: “The opportunities are endless…We don’t know how it’s going to pan out, but we’re in the process of building an an ecosystem.”
That means that Android, RIM and Nokia are all on board with NFC, and it’s left to Apple to catch up and join the crowd.
Will we be hearing more about NFC on Wednesday at the Apple event? Shout out in the comments!
