What kind of RFID chips are there?

Nowadays there are so many chips on the market that you soon lose track. For this reason, we thought it would be a good idea to list all types of RFID chips. Then we look at the features, capabilities and applications, so you have a clear overview of which RFID chip you need.

Frequencies of the RFID chips

RFID is an all-encompassing term, namely a technology to remotely exchange communications via RFID chips. RFID includes several technologies, such as NFC. The technology is also considered the successor to the bar code. Before purchasing an RFID, you should consider the frequency of the chip. These differ among themselves. For example, there are several frequencies possible, namely:

• Low frequency

These chips feature 125 KHz and have a range of 2 centimeters to 100 centimeters. With memory ranging between 64 bits and 1 kB, this chip can be used to provide access. The EM 4200 cards is an example of a low frequency chip.

• High frequency

These chips feature 13.56 MHz and have a range of 10 centimeters to 1 meter. With up to 2kB of memory, we often see this chip used for registration systems, such as clocking in.

• Ultra high frequency

These chips feature from 860 to 950 MHz and have a range of up to 12 meters. Generally, a UHF chip has a range of several meters. The newest variant is the UHF Gen2. This chip is currently the most widely used of all UHF chips.

The 5 most popular RFID chips

Now that you know what the frequencies mean we are going to cover the different types of chips. The 5 most popular RFID chips are:

• MIFARE Classic 1K

This RFID chip is the most popular of all. This chip has a low frequency (13.56 MHz), so the reading distance is between 2 centimeters and 100 centimeters. This chip has a competitive price. We see that this chip is commonly used at entry gates, such as at gyms and ski elevators. Lockers are also often equipped with this chip.

• MIFARE Ultralight 64 bytes

This variant is the cheapest of all. Since this chip cannot be secured, it often serves as a disposable chip.

• MIFARE DESFire 125MHz

This variant has special 3DES security. Because of this, there are several possibilities regarding the security of the chip. This is why we often see this chip in access control.

• EM4200 125 KHz

Thanks to its high frequency, this chip can cover long distances. In addition, the chip has various security features, making it very suitable for access control and safes.

• UHF RFID (Ultra High Frequency)

High frequency means the reading distance is large. In fact, this chip can span up to 12 meters. This makes the chip very suitable for toll gates and parking garages. Here the communication needs to bridge a longer distance.

NFC chips

NFC chips can also be subsumed under the term RFID The three most commonly used NFC chips are the NTAG213, NTAG215 and NTAG216. The NTAG variants are exactly the same except for the memory.

• NTAG213

This is the cheapest variant and contains 144 bytes of storage.

• NTAG215

This chip is exactly between the NTAG213 and the NTAG215 in terms of storage space. At 444 bytes, this is also known as the mid-range chip.

• NTAG216

This chip has the most number of bytes of the NTAG series. With a whopping 888 bytes, you can be sure that you have enough capacity for whatever purpose.

In the table below, you can see how many bytes you need for certain operations.