HoFo Blog

*EDIT* Rogers and CIBC just announced their new mobile payment solution. You'll be able to use your CIBC credit cards to pay for things via the NFC feature on certain Blackberries on Rogers.

Do you all think today's announcement will help or hinder our ability to pay with your phone in Canada? While it's true that we haven't been able to pay for things with our NFC enabled phones today's announcement allows Rogers customers with a Blackberry to pay for things using their CIBC credit card.

You got to start somewhere right? The thing is, what about customers on other TELUS/Bell/etc? What about people with NFC enabled Android devices? And what about Canadians who don't have a CIBC account?

While today's announcement is very exciting, I'm worried that in the future it could mean you need to have a Rogers phone if you want to leave your CIBC credit cards at home. Since Rogers/CIBC choose to work together instead of with a group does this mean you'll need a Bell phone if you want to use TD and a TELUS one if you have Bank of Montreal?

Of course, I can see why Rogers is so quick to jump on this. They don't want a 3rd party stepping in. I mean what's to stop a group from cutting out Rogers entirely and working directly with mobile phone manufacturers or worse yet: what if VISA/MC/AMEX work directly with the phone manufacturers.

Payment processing is a huge pie and I'm sure everyone wants a piece. The problem is; customers will be inconvenienced if they have go jump through hoops for their piece. Let's hope things don't get too complicated.

Credit card alternatives have been floating around for a while: Gas station quick pay chips, transit presto cards, etc. It goes without saying that the dust has not cleared yet.

The only thing for certain, is that today is just a stepping stone to a broader collaboration between the Canadian wireless industry and the Canadian banking industry. ...

Just noticed this over at TheStar. When you pre-pay for airtime cards on prepaid there's always an expiry date. Smaller ...

Are there any apps you've used on other platforms you wish you had on Android?

I want Logos Quiz. There is a version of Logo Quiz for Android but it's not nearly as fun as the one on iOS.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using HowardForums ...

A great app for iOS and Taxi users in the Toronto core is available.
I read this over at Mobilesyrup and wanted to share it with Hofo.
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BGR has posted up that Apple is looking to sever the cord with Google and it's mapping application. Going in house with iOS 6 and will be supposedly cleaner and faster.
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I was reading on Androidandme That the HTC One X, and AT@T's version have achieved 1 click root.
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It’s been quite a year for Nokia fans. A year ago, Nokia’s coolest phones were the X7 and the N8. Meanwhile, Android users had the HTC Sensation, Samsung Galaxy S II and LG Optimus 2x to choose from. We all knew Nokia was working on some Windows Phones but they weren't available yet. Now that Nokia’s Lumia phones are here, fans have a little more choice. However, the competition has gotten much more intense in the past year.

Based on its specs, it’s really hard to say where the Lumia 900 fits in the overall market. On one hand, it’s currently Nokia’s flagship Windows Phone. On the other hand, it’s specs are quite modest compared to what you can get on Android. ...