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Mifare is what’s been used in London’s Oyster cards for 20 years (not the ultralight ones mind), and Hong Kong for even longer. However oyster really is in its way out for most uses. contactless and especially a phone is far more convenient for non season use, and far less wasteful.
Author here for all your NFC chip questions :-)
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I agree in that they are much more convenient for tourists and occasional users […] I would argue that contactless debit/credit card or mobile wallet taps are substantially more convenient for tourists and occasional users – if you are fresh off the boat (or off the plane – for a more modern twist), not much can beat the convenience of turning up at the turnstile, tapping on and getting on with the trip on the loca…
Yeah, that's what I meant, sorry if that wasn't clear – open-loop payment card based systems make more sense for infrequent users and tourists for all the reasons you've mentioned; dedicated card purse-based systems can be better for regular commuters.
I suppose it is a matter of personal or circumstantial preferences so I won't go into that, but through reading this discussion, I have learned that, e.g. the Boston MTBA's CharlieCard, have an expiry date and has to be replaced in person. From the regular commuter's point of view it is a nuisance of epic proportions – to turn up at a bus stop or a station only to find out they are unable to pay because their dedicated card has expired. The commuter is only interested in the act of paying the fare and not in complexities of the local mass transit system's payment network shenanigans.
I also can't help noticing that the wallet (the purse style) making business has taken a hit in recent years due to the rapidly decreasing circulation of cash and the rise of mobile wallets. Many people now leave their homes with their smartphones and keys only. Eventually and inevitably, all cities will embrace either the integration with or adoption of mobile wallets, but that will take a while depending on how well each government funds its local public transport agency.
Mifare is what’s been used in London’s Oyster cards for 20 years (not the ultralight ones mind), and Hong Kong for even longer. However oyster really is in its way out for most uses. contactless and especially a phone is far more convenient for non season use, and far less wasteful.
The only ones that I came across that are not Mifare, and not even readable by Android (but readable by the Flipper Zero), are the paper tickets used in Brussels. Then, of course, there are non-NFC tickets. For example those that use magnetic stripes, like the cute tiny ones in Paris or NYC's MetroCard.
My understanding is that they are one time use?
In New Delhi metro, India, they used to use plastic tokens with these chips, but at the end of the journey, to exit the station you have to give the chip back.
Nowadays, they use a printed QR system, and they have even gone paperless. I can buy the ticket with my mobile app, pay using UPI instant payment, and show the qr code on the phone to the scanner and then travel.
For monthly card holders, rfid chip based cards are issued.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> ... as all tappable objects in my world are made of plastic yup in mine plastic and metal but not paper.
Probably a mix of plastic and metal: Full metal cards don’t actually support contactless interfaces! Two common ways of getting around that is to either sandwich a plastic part containing the antenna to a metal one, or to punch out a circular part in the middle of the metal card and put the antenna in there (and close it all up using more plastic). One card that doesn’t do either is the Apple Card – and as a result,…
Well it's really annoying: the "metal" card (maybe as you say a mix of metal and plastic) is harder to swipe, so I got use to present it face down instead of face up, for I noticed that that way I get a better percentage of success on the first try.
I don't have the problem with my full plastic credit/debit cards.
Author here for all your NFC chip questions :-)
I am apalled at the crazy amount of waste this creates. Millions of tickets with chips inside them? My understanding is that they are one time use? In New Delhi metro, India, they used to use plastic tokens with these chips, but at the end of the journey, to exit the station you have to give the chip back. Nowadays, they use a printed QR system, and they have even gone paperless. I can buy the ticket with my mobile a…
Lifetime of a plastic opus card may even be more wasteful, by mass of plastic and chip, if not used extensively. For example, one time use is often for tourists, where a full chip opus would be very wasteful indeed.
I would like a comprehensive analysis of FeliCa.
Same here! It seems like a fascinating system, especially in the federated way in which it's being used by various Japanese transit agencies and issuers. Compared to MIFARE, it was definitely ahead of its time. Unfortunately, most things I could find are in Japanese, as expected; I suspect that the really interesting parts aren't public, as usual in this industry (there's still a lot of belief in security by obscurit…
The author understands Japanese sources and writes about how the various Felica-based systems operate and evolve.