NFC Range Gets Bigger—Making Smartwatches and Payment Taps More Reliable

NFC Range Gets Bigger—Making Smartwatches and Payment Taps More Reliable

NFC tap distance just quadrupled—from barely half a centimeter to a full two centimeters. Fewer awkward checkouts, less bumpy phone placements. Apple, Google, and Qualcomm have committed to rolling out this update by late 2025.The real win is how this pairs with ultra-wideband to shut down relay attacks—the kind criminals use to intercept your payment. With 3.9 billion NFC devices in pockets worldwide, we’re watching everyday tech become both smoother and genuinely harder to hack.