Lumi Deco Nail combines near field communications (NFC) with beauty.
Takara Tomy, a Japanese toy company, has designed a new way to use NFC technology by incorporating it into a line of false nails known as Lumi Deco Nail, which light up when the wearer interacts with an NFC-enabled device.
NFC radio waves make the LEDs in the nails light up.
Fake nails are an incredibly popular fashion in Japan and around the world, most notably among women. It has become the trend not to simply have painted false nails, but to have them decorated with gems, stones, and a variety of plastic shapes, etc. The Lumi Deco Nail is available in a number of different designs to suit a variety of tastes.
What makes the Lumi nails stand out from the crowd are the incredibly tiny LEDs that are included in the nails, which are only 0.5mm thick. The LEDs illuminate when NFC radio waves pass close to the nails. This can occur when the wearer comes in contact with devices equipped with NFC technology are activated. For instance, the nails can light up when an NFC-enabled smartphone is used or when a call is made on a mobile phone. They can also light up if the wearer taps their contactless payment or travel card on a near field communication reader.
NFC tech gives smartphones and POS (point of sale) terminals the ability to communicate at a short range when they are tapped together. Information is sent and received through devices via NFC tags and other tiny transmitters. Although not every company supports the technology, it has received strong backing from Visa, MasterCard, Samsung, GSMA and others.
The NFC technology works best with Android smartphones.
The NFC technology deco nails were primarily developed to work with contactless communication radio waves. For the most effective results, Takra Tomy recommends using their nail products with Japanese and Korean brand Android phones like HTC, NEC, LG, Samsung, Fujitsu, Sharp and Sony Xperia. The Lumi Deco Nail is available for purchase in Japan. Each pack contains 16 nail stickers and a nail file. The cost is 1,200 yen ($12).
Proxoma and Smartrac aim to take NFC marketing to the next level
Proxama, a provider of NFC and mobile marketing technology solutions, has announced its partnership with Smartrac, a developer and manufacturer of RFID transponders and inlays. Through this partnership, the two companies aim to showcase the potential of NFC technology in the marketing sector. The technology has long held promise for advertising, but has seen limited use over the years. NFC is most often used in mobile commerce as a way to facilitate mobile payments from smart phones and tablets.
New NFC marketing services coming to brands in 2013
Through this partnership, Proxama aims to work with several popular brands and advertising agencies beginning in 2013. Proxama believes that these brands and agencies could benefit from the use of NFC technology, as it will provide them with a way to engage consumers in an interactive fashion. Smartrac has been experiencing increasing demand for NFC technology solutions from its customers and is eager to begin developing such solutions.
Proxama leverages experience to provide new services
Proxama already has a wealth of experience in using NFC as a mobile marketing tool. The company is expected to leverage this experience to provide brands with powerful solutions that could produce promising engagement opportunities with consumers. Through its partnership with Smartrac, Proxoma aims to provide retailers, advertisers, and media owners with the tools they need to develop dynamic NFC-based marketing campaigns. While such campaigns have been used by major brands in the past, such as 20th Century Fox, NFC-based marketing can often be a hit-or-miss issue.
Lack of NFC-enabled devices may be problematic for some
In order for consumers to interact with NFC marketing campaigns, they must have an NFC-enabled mobile device. These devices are equipped with NFC chips that can decipher the information contained within NFC-based marketing materials. Currently, these phones are somewhat rare, but device manufacturers are working to remedy this issue. With the scarcity of NFC-enabled mobile devices, it is difficult to say for certain whether NFC marketing will be able to provide brands with the reach they need to connect with mobile consumers.
