Total time: 3 Minutes
By using an NFC tag, many different operating steps on the smartphone can be shortened, using so-called shortcuts. All it takes is a quick contact of the tag with an NFC-enabled iPhone. An example: Use an NFC tag to open the Maps app directly when contacting the iPhone. Such a tag could be installed in a car, making the navigation process much faster and easier. Many other scenarios are conceivable.
In this How2 we want to describe how an app on the iPhone can be opened with an NFC tag without having to select the app manually. For this purpose we will create a shortcut.
Create a shortcut
In order to describe an NFC tag in such a way that when you contact the iPhone, a certain app is opened directly, we first have to create a shortcut that performs exactly this action (open app). To do this, we open the app Shortcuts → My Shortcuts → Create shortcut → + Add action.
Here we tap Scripting → Open App. The entry Open Choose appears. Here, we tap Choose and then select the desired app on our phone from the list (for example, Maps). Finally, we tap Next, enter a name (for example, "Start App") and then tap Done.
Write short command to NFC tag
Now, to teach an NFC tag that the shortcut we just created should be executed on contact, we open the app NFC21 Tools → Tag Types → Shortcuts → Enter the name ("Start App") → Write on NFC tag
Now we hold an empty, writable NFC tag to the upper back of the iPhone to write our shortcut to the NFC tag.
This How2 was about opening an app with the iPhone without really tapping on the app. Many more applications are conceivable. Tags can open the phone book directly (filter contacts directly with an NFC tag), open message apps, or simply the camera app to access them even faster.
It is also possible to program and execute more complex commands.