KPH tech blog

Wireless connections allow us to use our phones like we use our laptops. WiFi, Bluetooth and Mobile data are commonplace in all smartphones, but there are features that aren’t. These include NFC, or Near Field Communications, which works in a similar way to Bluetooth. Even when NFC is present, it’s been implemented in different ways and can sometimes only be used for one task.

That’s true of the recent iPhones that come with Apple Pay. NFC technology is being used, but you can’t use NFC to share files or connect to other devices from your iPhone.

NFC (Near Field Communications)

For many people who benefit from wireless sharing and payment options, like paying for a coffee with your phone, not having an NFC chip would be a deal breaker for a new smartphone. But it wouldn’t be such a big deal for me.

Both my smartphones have NFC – the HTC Desire Eye, as well as the Nokia Lumia 820 before it – but I’ve never used NFC technology, and often have it switched off to preserve battery life. There’s a couple of reasons why I’ve never used it, and why I probably wouldn’t miss it. Infrastructure is the primary reason, and lack of support is another.

While I can see the benefits of NFC, locally there’s no real infrastructure to support the technology. I don’t exactly live out in the sticks, but I’m also not living in a bustling city like London. Local supermarkets have only just introduced Contactless as a payment option. If you’ve got a Debit or Credit Card that can utilise Contactless payments, all you have to do is simply tap the chip on the card reader, instead of having to use the now old-fashioned Chip and PIN.

While we do have Android Pay, Apple Pay and Samsung Pay, not all banks and cards are yet supported, and I’m in the unfortunate position where none of my cards are supported. Therefore, I can’t yet use the NFC chip on my phone for wireless payments, which makes it a null feature.

Also an issue is the lack of support. Only the big retailers have card readers with support for wireless payments, which means there are still many shops in the UK, including independent businesses, where NFC payments just aren’t possible yet.

HTC Connect

HTC Connect works in the same way as Chromecast or AirPlay in that you can share and project media onto a TV or a HiFi system. While I’ve never used it, I can see its advantages. Samsung utilises a similar feature in Quick Connect and SmartView. However, it does require that all your devices are somewhat ‘smart’ in order to make use of this feature – I don’t live in a particularly Smart home, nor are my devices on all the time to benefit from wireless sharing.

The same would have to be said for wearables or mini-versions of tech, such as Google Wear or HTC’s Mini+. I may make use of Google Wear in the future, but it’s not something I would miss feature-wise in my next smartphone if it came to that.

VPN

My Desire Eye also has a settings menu for VPN’s, but you have to set up a profile, and from what I’ve discovered, it’s not all that easy unless you know what you’re doing. You can choose what type it is, from a range of options, but I wouldn’t even know where to start! Then there’s things like the Server Address, which doesn’t seem like it would be that difficult to obtain, but setting up DNS Servers and PPP encryption/MPPE sounds too technical.

I’ve rarely used Virtual Private Networks, and even when I have used them, I’ve often used a service that’s downloadable as an app through the Play Store, like TunnelBear or Norton VPN (by Symantec).

Tethering

This is a feature I have used, but not all the time. It allows me to connect other devices to the internet that can only connect via WiFi, like my tablet or laptop. It’s useful when the internet is down (which rarely happens) or when I’m on the train and would like to utilise the usefulness of a larger screen.

I would probably miss the ability to tether if my phone couldn’t do it, so I shall be taking into consideration devices which can share the mobile data network to other devices. It may be that cheaper devices have features like tethering missing from the core experience, but I guess that would be the compromise you pay for a cheaper all-rounder.

Data Usage

Data Usage monitors my data and minutes usage from the phone, and is incredibly detailed. It’s more useful than the data-tracking app from my network/carrier, and goes into some detail as to how I’m cutting through my monthly data limit, with a bar chart displaying which apps have used the most data. I often find Facebook, YouTube and Instagram are the biggest users, with Android OS also on the list.

There’s also a tab showing Minutes usage, for when I’ve made phone calls that count towards my monthly usage allowance, but as I have Unlimited Calls and Texts, I’ve never actually used it. Still, it’s a nice feature and could become useful if I made more phone calls.

There is also a setting under Data Usage that allows the phone to cut off all sync streams and usage of mobile data connections when you hit your limit. Although I set this up when I first got the phone, as I thought it would come in useful with my 2GB monthly data limit, I actually found it more of an annoyance as it cut me off when I still had 500MB of data left to play with. I had to disable the setting to continue using my device, and haven’t re-enabled it since.

These are just a few of the wireless options, and as I’ve rarely used things like HTC Connect, AirPlay or NFC, not having them wouldn’t be that much of a problem and I’m sure I could live without them.