Read yesterday that Malaysia's the leading country globally in terms of e-wallet/cashless transaction adoption with over 63% of Malaysians using them over cash. This does not surprise me honestly since I myself have not used cash (in Malaysia) 99% of the time for years now, and have not used any of my cards (physically) 90% of the time since 2 years ago when #ApplePay was made available here.
Almost everyone around me too are the same, preferring any of the available #NFC payment methods like #GooglePay and #SamsungPay (which have been around for many years longer here than Apple Pay) when available, or fallback to #DuitNow (QR Pay) through any of the available #eWallet apps like #TNGeWallet or just about any of the first-party #bank apps like #MAE for #Maybank users or #CIMBClicks for #CIMB users.
Almost all shops from your local market and roadside stalls to restaurants or any stores in a shopping mall would at least support QR Pay should they not also have a bank card terminal (for NFC payments). Even my local laundromat and roadside car wash place accept QR Pay for a long while now, instead of how it was in the past constantly having to find change or stock some cash up in your wallet. This was my experience not just in KL/Klang Valley (the city), but also in other rural places throughout the peninsular.
Heck, should you need to, you don't even need your bank card to take out money from an ATM - you only need your phone to do that. My wallet's only filled with foreign money, otherwise I'd only have cash in my possession once~twice a year to give Angpow or Duit Raya. Some government/public facilities I've been to don't even accept cash anymore. I think people just hate having to withdraw cash so often or have change lying around. I suspect this thing is no different in most other #SEA countries, seeing the growing number of countries where Malaysia's DuitNow QR Pay is compatible with - its counterparts.
Recap - I want to build an NFC reader expansion card for the FrameWork laptop. So I've bought a couple of components. This is the ACR1251T-E2 - it's a USB pen-drive sized NFC reader with a side-out USB-A plug. Costs about £40. There's a recessed green LED which flashes to let you know that it …
There's a recessed green LED which flashes to let you know that it is working. It doesn't beep or vibrate when it detects an NFC token. It is a little bit tricky finding the antenna as the internal circuitry slides down the plastic housing - as can be seen in these internal photos
There's a lanyard hole at the end, and a plastic clip so you can attach it to things.
Linux support is flawless. Running lsusb shows 072f:224f Advanced Card Systems, Ltd ACR1251 CL Reader PICC
And running pcsc_scan gives the same information: 0: ACS ACR1251 CL Reader [ACR1251 CL Reader PICC] 00 00
It's a solid enough unit. The plastic housing is sturdy and not easily damaged. You can't get in to the shell without a spludger.
The only downsides are that it uses USB-A - we're in the C era now! - and that the sliding mechanism obscures the antenna position. But, if you want to carry a discreet USB stick with you for NFC purposes, there's nothing better.
Recap - I want to build an NFC reader expansion card for the FrameWork laptop. So I've bought a couple of components. This is the ACM1252U-Z2 and Oh! It is a dinky little component! The only sign that it is working is a flashing green LED. There's no buzzer on the board. It really is […]
Does it work with Linux? Oh yes! It has a Micro-USB port, so I got a USB-C OTG cable. I plugged it into my laptop and ran lsusb - which shows it as 072f:223e Advanced Card Systems, Ltd ACR1252 Reader
Running pcsc_scan gives pretty much the same information 0: ACS ACR1252 CL Reader [ACR1252 Reader PICC] 00 00
The antenna seems pretty sensitive. It read my ring from about a centimetre away though a cardboard sleeve. I think the debug port is the "J3 nRF USB" - but I can't find many details about wiring it up.
So, will it fit in the Framework laptop? Perhaps. If I could solder on a USB-C jack, it would still stick out 2.5cm - so a 3D printed protector would still be needed.
Alternatively, as suggested by Stephen Early it might be possible to hook it in to the spare USB 2.0 ports. And, if the size is right, stowing it beside the touchpad.
But, first, I need to wait for my laptop to ship 😂
🆕 blog! “Thoughts on building an NFC reader for the Framework laptop”
The Framework laptop has several little slots which can be used be used to expand the functionality of the laptop. They convert the internal USB-C ports into a different sort of port. For example, Framework sells an official HDMI card and Ethernet card: But the community have bu…
The Framework laptop has several little slots which can be used be used to expand the functionality of the laptop. They convert the internal USB-C ports into a different sort of port.
It is a much more capable reader. It uses micro-USB rather than USB-C, which isn't insurmountable using a flexible male-male cable. What about the dimensions?
Ignoring the USB jack, the board is about 50mm long. That would leave about 2cm sticking out of the side of the laptop. Which isn't too bad. The width is within what we need. There's even an updated version with a slightly different spec.
@sequentialsnep I was pleasantly surprised with the amount of 35+ (my standard filter) during #NFC this year. Didn’t get to meet any, but it us comforting to know that the greymuzzles are coming!
🆕 blog! “Review: An NFC reader/writer with USB-C - ACR1252U-MF”
★★★★⯪
I needed to read and write NFC cards on Linux. I only buy USB-C peripherals now, so I found the brilliantly named "ACR1252U-MF" which appears to be the only USB-C reader on the market. Total cost was about £35 on eBay. It's a cheap and light plastic box with a short USB …
I needed to read and write NFC cards on Linux. I only buy USB-C peripherals now, so I found the brilliantly named "ACR1252U-MF" which appears to be the only USB-C reader on the market. Total cost was about £35 on eBay.
It's a cheap and light plastic box with a short USB cord. When you plug it in, there's a flashing light which can't be disabled. When it is powered up, or it detects and NFC chip, it makes this weird and scratchy beep:
🆕 blog! “Giving the finger to MFA - a review of the Z1 Encrypter Ring from Cybernetic”
★★★★☆
I have mixed feelings about Multi-Factor Authentication. I get why it is necessary to rely on something which isn't a password but - let's be honest here - it is a pain juggling between SMS, TOTP apps, proprietary apps, and mag…
The FIDO specification defines a form of Universal 2nd Factor (U2F) when users log in to a system. Rather than relying on one-time codes sent via SMS, or displayed on a phone screen, these are physical hardware tokens which are used to supplement passwords. When used with websites, this technology is also known as WebAuthn.