SONIM ANNOUNCES THE XP1301 CORE NFC,
THE WORLD’S MOST RUGGED NFC PHONE
Targets service delivery quality assurance, business intelligence and worker safety for the security guarding, facilities management, cleaning and home visit healthcare sectors

NFC World Congress, Sophia Antipolis, France – Sep 19, 2011 – Sonim Technologies announces the XP1301 CORE NFC, the world’s first ultra-rugged Near Field Communications (NFC) mobile phone. Designed especially for markets in cleaning, security guarding, facilities management, equipment maintenance and home visit healthcare. The XP1301 CORE NFC enhances services delivery quality assurance, provides real time business intelligence right from the client site and can improve the safety of field staff through indoor location positioning.  Key applications supported by the XP1301 CORE NFC include Guard Tour Verification, Proof of Activity and Real Time Attendance reporting.

At NFC World Congress, Sonim is demonstrating the XP1301 CORE NFC, which is now available across Europe, at its stand 25B, Ground Floor – Agora Einstein.   

At a class-leading range up to 4 centimetres, the XP1301 CORE NFC can read or write information to a contactless tag placed at various key locations at a client site, such as on:

• an access gate that must be verified by a security guard to be locked
• a wall of room that must be cleaned by cleaning service staff
• a wall of an Alzheimer patients home to indicate they were visited by a nurse
• on air conditioner to indicate it was inspected and serviced on a certain date
• the ID badge of a worker to register who was on duty and when they started work

Data collected by the XP1301 CORE NFC is sent over the mobile network to a server that generates reports and alerts that can be used to optimize the efficiency, consistency and quality of service operations.  Data returned to the phone and displayed on the screen can remind the worker of the next action to be taken.  Since the position of the tags is known, the nearest worker or security guard can be mobilized to the location where immediate attention is needed.

“The XP1301 CORE NFC will withstand hard use every day for three years or more, has battery life under heavy use longer than the longest work shift and comes with enterprise level service and support”, said Sanjay Jhawar, VP/GM of Marketing and Applications at Sonim. He continued, “This kind of extreme reliability delivers a total cost of ownership that allows every front-line worker to be included”.

Inside Secure is Sonim’s key technology partner for NFC solutions. Philippe Martineau, EVP, NFC Business Line at Inside Secure said “INSIDE is proud to announce the integration of MicroRead™ and Open NFC™  with the ultra rugged Sonim XP1301 CORE NFC for vertical industry applications”.

Sonim is working with industry leading application partners and system integrators across Europe that specialize in NFC applications for security companies, cleaning and facilities management companies and home visit healthcare providers.

At launch, Sonim’s strategic NFC application partners include:

Avistatime www.avistatime.com in Sweden and Africa

 Reslink www.reslink.fi/sonim in the UK, Nordic Countries, Germany and France

TUOMI www.tuomi-it.com in Western Europe and in the US

CapX www.capx.nl in the Netherlands

Spotmaster www.spotmaster.com in the Netherlands

Over-C www.over-c.com in the UK

Enterprise NFC application developers and system integrators are invited to register at www.sonimdevelopers.com and to contact John Thurgood by email at  j.thurgood at sonimtech.com    

The XP1301 CORE NFC supports the following NFC capabilities

• 13.56MHz NFC Forum tags Type 1 to Type 4 (NXP MiFare/Sony Felica)
• ISO 14443 A/B, ISO 15693 and ISO 18092 
• Tag reader and writer services
• Application environment: Java 2 Mobile Edition (J2ME) using the JSR257 API     
• NFC applications can run in background mode, even when not displayed on the screen – and if certified by Sonim, can be configured to auto-start at phone power-on, eliminating the need for the worker to select the application from a menu. 
• Longest battery life for NFC usage of any mobile phone: up to 5 days of continuous NFC operations with 20 tag reads and server updates per hour.
• Class leading 4cm NFC tag reading range and 99% measured NFC read reliability

Like all Sonim phones, the XP1301 CORE NFC far surpasses the toughest standards for ruggedness and durability. Beyond MIL-SPEC, it can be dropped from 2 metres onto concrete and with its IP68 specification can be submerged in two metres of water for up to 60 minutes. It operates in temperatures from -20 to +55 Celsius and has an impact and puncture proof Corning® Gorilla® Glass screen. 

With NFC off the phone has the longest talk time: 20-24 hours - of any mobile phone and up to 800 hours of standby time.  Designed for usability under duress, the XP1301 CORE NFC features an active noise cancelling microphone, loud audio with a 23mm speaker protected by a waterproof GORE® protective vent and widely-spaced keys for ease of use with gloves.  For more see Sonim’s Rugged Performance Standards at http://www.sonimtech.com/rps.php  

The XP1301 CORE NFC is backed by Sonim’s industry-leading 3-Year Comprehensive Warranty covering not only manufacturer’s defects but also accidental damage.

PRICING AND AVAILABILITY
The XP1301 CORE NFC will be available globally through Sonim’s business partners and system integrators. Manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) if sold unlocked without an network operator contract is 355 euro or 289 pounds (UK) excluding VAT or sales tax.  For pricing in other currencies, please contact your local Sonim representative. 

ABOUT SONIM TECHNOLOGIES
Sonim Technologies (www.sonimtech.com) is the provider of the world’s most rugged, water-submersible mobile phones designed specifically for workers in challenging outdoor and industrial environments. Sonim’s industry-leading three-year comprehensive warranty has redefined customer expectations of rugged technology. Sonim provides a suite of high-performance workforce management applications including push-to-talk and lone worker safety services on cellular networks. The company is headquartered in San Mateo, California and offers its products in over 50 countries.