Nigel Kendall News Archive

Orange Cityzi NFC hands-on: Pocket-lint's pocket picked

Nigel Kendall — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 11:09:00 +0100

Artful, not dodgy

If you'd asked me a week ago about using a mobile phone to pay for goods and services, I'd have said that the technology was promising, but that persuading people to use it was likely to prove tricky.

That was before I was robbed of all my real cash on a tram in Nice and spent 2 hours in a French police station waiting to report the crime.

Ironically, all of this took place during a demonstration hosted by Orange of the cashless system that it intends to incorporate on the next generation of telephone handsets equipped with NFC (near field communication) technology.

The mobile phone giant has been trialling the technology in Nice, in the south of France, for over a year, and is now gearing up for a wider European launch in Germany, Spain and the good old United Kingdom, “by 2012”.

In Nice, locals carrying mobile handsets fitted with NFC chips can use their phones to buy everything from transport tickets to tobacco, by simply touching their phone against a card reader. The phones can also be used to hire bicycles on the city's cycle hire scheme, or to scan special codes to provide up to the minute information on train timetables, or historic monuments.

NFC technology is similar to that used in London's wildly successful Oyster Card, but it has so far failed to make the leap to mobile devices for two reasons. Firstly, there was no common standard, and secondly, only Samsung was making NFC phones.

Orange claims that both problems will shortly be solved. The big five mobile telecom groups across Europe have now reached agreement on a common standard, under which users' information will be stored on the SIM card, rather than the main memory. NFC services will be provided inside a free app, designed to provide security. In France, this umbrella app is called Cityzi. Brand names for other European countries have yet to be agreed.

The idea is that if, say, Tesco wanted to use NFC, it might provide its Club Card services inside the app. If a user agrees to Tesco storing their data, their phone could not only store loyalty points and pay for the shopping, but could actively remind them what to buy, based on previous shopping trips. Or it could offer special discounts on new brands or products

Theft and fraudulent use of an NFC phone would be covered in the same way as credit card transactions, and because all valuable data is contained on the SIM card, it can easily be replaced by the mobile operator

For Orange and its telecom partners, this is the big push for NFC, and the window of opportunity for them to gain a march on their rivals is a small one, since Google with its Wallet service and Apple with the iPhone 5 and iTunes are both likely to be chasing a similar market.

So, back to Nice, where a small group of British journalists have been invited by Orange to try out Cityzi for themselves. Having purchased tram tickets using our phones (fares are added to the phone bill), we get on for just one stop, rubbing our phones over the onboard scanner to validate the journey.

Somewhere in between getting on and rubbing the phone, I feel a slight touch on my hip. My trouser pocket, home to 150 euros in cash, is now empty. My only suspect is a shifty-looking young woman standing in front of me, but I can hardly accuse her in public on a crowded tram. Then it's time to get off.

I am skint, and at a loss as to how to report stolen money in France. Eventually, someone recommends the commissariat de police, where I wait. And wait. The waiting room is a corridor with chairs on either side. So much sweat has been emitted within this clammy space that the walls themselves have body odour. After 2 hours in a 16-deep queue, I finally make a statement I’m sure my insurance company will ignore. �

As I sit brooding, running through alternative tram behaviour scenarios in my head (Why didn't you grab her? Why didn't you shout? Why didn't you photograph her? Why didn’t you just smash her in the face?) and watching victims traipse in and suspects file out, one thought recurs: if only I'd not brought cash.�

If I'd lost a phone, I'd report it and get it killed. No police. No report. No self-recrimination. It's cash's fault that I'm stuck in this sweaty French cop shop. From now on, money, it’s all over between us.

I think these new phones and I are going to get along very well after all.

Tags: Orange Mobile phones NFC Orange Cityzi

Orange Cityzi NFC hands-on: Pocket-lint's pocket picked originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 26 Sep 2011 11:09:00 +0100

When is a tree not a tree? When it's a Kinect tree

Nigel Kendall — Fri, 13 May 2011 17:41:00 +0100

Art installation meets technology

In less than a year since Microsoft launched Kinect for the Xbox 360, we've seen the motion-control device put to some pretty weird uses. We've heard of other projects in the pipeline. But nothing prepared us for this one. It's a talking tree!

Well, sort of. On show at the 16th annual FutureEverything festival in Manchester, England, is an intriguing project by local digital artist Elliot Woods. Called Lit Tree, it features a tree, two high-definition projectors, and an Xbox 360 Kinect system, which can be used to control where the light from the projectors hits the tree.

Did I say light? Well, sort of. In fact, Woods (no connection) has spent two years developing a program capable of scanning the unpredictable branches of a tree into 3D. Each of the two projectors is actually projecting an image of the tree back on to itself. When you break the light beam that's connected to the Kinect, you direct the parts of the image.

It sounds completely potty. Even the artist agrees. "People really only tend to appreciate this once we describe all the work that's gone into it," he told Pocket-lint.

So what's the big idea? � � � � � � � ��

"Well, there are hundreds of projections taking place at any time all over the world, but we thought it would be nice if you could project on to something natural, like a tree. The problem with trees is that they don't make great screens, but if we map them pixel by pixel, and project an image back on to the tree, something magical happens."

He's right. From a distance, it looks like the tree has been chemically treated, as it seems to shimmer when the projector beam hits it. All you are seeing, however, is the 3D image of the tree being projected on to the exact part of the tree of which it is an image. If you see what I mean. They call 3D pixels voxels. Or so I'm told.�

So it looks nice, but so what? Well, Woods is currently receiving a lot of support for his work in Korea, where the idea of blending nature with technology is pretty cutting edge at the moment. The amount of time Woods spends flitting between the two countries is reflected in the name of his website, kimchiandchips.com, where you can see more of this peculiar, fascinating project.

FutureEverything runs in Manchester until May 14. See futureeverything.org for details.

Tags: Gaming Microsoft Kinect Xbox 360 Microsoft

When is a tree not a tree? When it's a Kinect tree originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 13 May 2011 17:41:00 +0100

Shigeru Miyamoto tells us why Nintendo is still the king of motion control

Nigel Kendall — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 17:14:00 +0000

"I think our rivals need to find what it is they have to offer that�s new"

2011 is going to be a big year for Nintendo.

After years of effortlessly topping Christmas lists worldwide, its DS and Wii consoles have hit a sales plateau. Meanwhile, Apple has muscled in to the handheld gaming market with its touchscreen devices and rivals Sony and Microsoft have cheekily embraced motion-control with their technically superior consoles.

Nintendo has a lot to worry about.

So why is Shigeru Miyamoto looking so cheerful?

The Nintendo linchpin, whose business card describes him as “Senior Managing Director, Member of the Board, General Manager, Entertainment Analysist and Development Division”, is currently waving his arms at a TV screen, demonstrating his next project for the Wii, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, due for release in 2011.

At the age of 58, but the looks of a man in his late thirties, Miyamoto clearly still loves to play. With ear-length dark hair surrounding a round face that seems to be designed for smiling, he shows off the improved attack and defence controls for Skyward Sword grinning with boyish enthusiasm at the screen. His movements are as fluid and expert as you'd expect, but it's the joy with which he plays that is remarkable.The man who gave the world Mario, Zelda, Pikmin, Nintendogs and Starfox has clearly lost none of his love for his work. But where exactly is his company going, now that even Microsoft is talking about catering for “Wii graduates”?

“I don't think the Wii is something that people need to graduate from”, he says through his translator.

“Of course, I am happy that motion is fashionable now. But when we make games, we are not trying to produce trendy products. It needs to be an experience that's meaningful, and the motion control needs to add something. So our new Zelda game takes motion control and adds something to the game to make you feel like you're part of the adventure.

“I think our rivals need to find what it is they have to offer that’s new”.

Like the entire stable of classic games that Miyamoto has produced, the latest Zelda title will be a Nintendo exclusive, a game that exerts a commercial pull so powerful that people will buy consoles especially to play it.

At the time of our meeting, the game is “over half complete”.

“What we are focused on is creating gameplay mechanics so the gameplay experience feels very dense. In fact, the overall experience is going to feel more dense. We hope that people will want to go back and replay the game once they finish it”.

This absolute belief in the power of content over technology is what distinguishes Nintendo from its rivals. The Wii and DS are feeble machines in comparison with competitors, but part of the reason for the decline in sales is simply market saturation: worldwide, the Wii (75.9m as of September) has sold over 30 million more consoles than the Xbox 360 (44.5m), its closest rival, which launched a full year earlier.

“On the software side we are seeing stable sales”, Miyamoto says, “and Mario Kart is still selling at a steady pace. There's still a lot of games we can create for it, and our audience is expanding".

“Nintendo doesn't think so much about competition as about creating new video game experiences, trying to do things differently. The other thing we focus on is trying to deliver our interactive entertainment to as broad an audience as possible”.

The next stage for Nintendo is to build on the wild popularity of its existing consoles. In February, a new version of the Nintendo DS will arrive in stores, the first console to offer high-definition 3D images without the need for special glasses.�Predictably, Miyamoto is excited by the development.

“What’s really exciting”, he explains with a gleam in his eye, “is our new ability to have a sense of depth. Once you have the true 3D visual it becomes very clear where all the objects are on that space, so jumping on objects becomes easier”.

Presumably, Mario Kart looks great in 3D.

For the briefest of moments, Miyamoto looks like Pocket-lint has stolen a prized biscuit from his private cookie jar, since no announcement of Mario Kart in 3D has been made. Then he smiles.

“You’re right. We’ve found that pulling the camera far back to observe the car racing works really well".

“But you must remember that we have been experimenting with 3D in one way or another for over 20 years. The 3DS is another opportunity to do even more”.

Intriguingly, Nintendo claims that the 3DS will also be able to play back 3D video content. This could be a boon for parents who don’t want to stump up for a new 3D TV simply so their offspring can watch How to Train your Dragon 3,000 times. It’s a whole new market for Nintendo to conquer, though in the absence of confirmed rights deals, Miyamoto seems keen to downplay it.

“When I was young", he says, “I had a stereoscopic movie viewer thing, and I became fascinated by the images. Maybe you could have short 3D clips you can watch over and over again. It's well suited to a device like the 3DS. It is also technically possible to put a full 2-hour movie on there and watch it too”.

So, after 2010 in which he found time to receive a BAFTA in between designing New Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Galaxy 2 and Skyward Sword, Miyamoto isn’t looking forward to much of a break in 2011. Does he ever allow himself to go on holiday?

“The thing is that I enjoy going to work so much that the only time I take for vacation is for my family’s sake. Making and playing games for a living is such fun”.

Each game he makes, he sees as being for a slightly different audience, with challenges of its own.

“With Super Mario Galaxy 2, for example, we were flexing our gaming muscles. The sense of satisfaction from making a difficult game is amazing. If you finish that game, you'll be able to play almost any game in the world”.

But does he find any common ground between his various games?

“Look, everything I create has a little bit of me in it, and there are some common factors. Mario will never end up in an overly violent game, yet all these years he gets through games by punching and kicking”.

And with that Miyamoto picks up his controllers again and starts punching and kicking. And grinning.