RFID Battery Cover for Evo SHift 4G

[jhoove09#IM]

Hey all,

While I was using my Palm Pre, I undertook a little project. My problem at work: forgetting my RFID access card at home and having to call co-workers to let me in and out of the building. After a few times of doing this I decided that I needed a better way to carry that card so, I added the RFID antenna and chip to my Touchstone battery cover. I have never left my phone at home so I never left my access card!

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Once I got my HTC EVO Shift 4G, the first thing I did was check the battery cover and found that it has a small area in the back cover that leaves space for something like this.

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All it took was to move the RFID hardware into the new battery cover and it works right out of the box.

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I've seen no signal loss as of yet but when adding a system like this into the phone, thats always in the back of my mind. I will report back when if I see an negative side effects.

The only hard part about doing this is removing the antenna and RFID chip from their original shell. From what I've seen, there are two types. My originial card was made in two parts. I used a sharp knife to pry apart the front and back halves of the card. Attached to the back half, I found the RFID hardware held in with glue spotted all around it. I gently removed the glue spots one at a time.

The other type of card takes more time and effort. If you have a credit card style RFID card, the antenna and chip are embedded in the plastic of that card and you will have to chemically "melt" it away. A small bowl of Acetone and a few minute bath for your card should do the trick. I haven't done this personally so.... ask a chemist before you try this.... or the internet, he might know.

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I had the tape I was going to use to hold the hardware in place on my phone ready when I completely removed it from the card. When you do move the antenna and chip, it is very important to be careful. The chip is usually only held to the antenna with to very small wires. (I made this mistake twice before I got it right.) Once you get the chip and antenna set on some tape (electrical, scotch, doesn't matter) that should hold it together and hold those two small wires in place without much risk of breaking.

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Once you get the antenna onto the tape to hold it all together, simple install it onto the battery cover. The card we use at my job holds a large antenna and chip so this should work for just about anyone who is willing to try it!!!

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[Muscle Master#AC]

That is very cool.. I probably would do the same thing

Try it with a case yet?

 

[Shay D. Life]

Awesome idea.
With all the extra wiring inside the device now, have you seen a difference in your reception good or bad?

 

[ejz28]

lol, this is one of the greatest ideas i've ever seen. seriously though awesome idea i hate carrying my access card around.

 

[jhoove09#IM]

Awesome idea.
With all the extra wiring inside the device now, have you seen a difference in your reception good or bad?

No change in reception at home or work. I've tried it while on a call and it doesn't seem to affect the phone radios at all.

 

[boo5ted]

That's awesome.

 

[shmengie#AC]

you are, completely, the man!

 

[Mr Z]

Good work! I'm going to try this with my Fascinate. I'm pessimistic of fitting the chip after judging the snugness of the battery cover but we'll see. I guess I could file away a bit of the cover.

My buddy in security gave me a couple blank cards to practice with. To melt the credit card style badges, I've used simple nail polish remover. Let it sit submerged until the card's shape deforms and simply pull the layers apart.

 

[Tre Lawrence]

Slick... I like the concept.

 

[jhoove09#IM]

That is very cool.. I probably would do the same thing

Try it with a case yet?

Not yet. I justbgot e phone a couple of days ago. I don't own any yet but I'll report back when I do.

Good work! I'm going to try this with my Fascinate. I'm pessimistic of fitting the chip after judging the snugness of the battery cover but we'll see. I guess I could file away a bit of the cover.

My buddy in security gave me a couple blank cards to practice with. To melt the credit card style badges, I've used simple nail polish remover. Let it sit submerged until the card's shape deforms and simply pull the layers apart.

I work very closely in the Security Department at my job. They gave me 5 old beat up badges to test this out on when I originally did this to my Pre. I'm really happy it worked. I hate caring around the ID card (I do get yelled at a lot for not having it though).

Thanks for all the comments and feedback! This forum rocks.

 

[cd5love96]

I did this yesterday with my access badge. I was surprised that the chip was tiny. It's about the size of a rice grain cut in half. I had to be very delicate because 2 copper strands went to the chip.

It looks good retrofitted into my HTC Evil.

I had ordered a secondary Chase debit card so I can get bonus Continental miles and I will be hacking that apart and retrofitting it into my phone since it has Blink/Pay Pass built in.

Do you guys think the 2 chips will interfere with each other?

 

[jhoove09#IM]

I did this yesterday with my access badge. I was surprised that the chip was tiny. It's about the size of a rice grain cut in half. I had to be very delicate because 2 copper strands went to the chip.

It looks good retrofitted into my HTC Evil.

I had ordered a secondary Chase debit card so I can get bonus Continental miles and I will be hacking that apart and retrofitting it into my phone since it has Blink/Pay Pass built in.

Do you guys think the 2 chips will interfere with each other?

I don't think so but it is possible. The chips in the cards are dormant until they receive a specific signal from the card reader they are programmer to. Only then will the chip transmit it's signal (card number, acct number, ect) back to the reader. With two cards installed, they should both stay dormant and not interfere with each other (unless they use the same activation signal). The same activation signal is very unlikely. Happy modding.

 

[Deranged Cat]

pretty awesome.. but i gotta say: scotch tape??

 

[prboy1969]

Found this thread last night. Well, guess what happened today? Locked out :'( , had to have security let me in (luck have it knew him). So got home and immediately did this mod . I never forget my phone. Have forgotten my card enough to be on a first name basis with most of security. But not anymore Thanks for coming up with this.

 

[meekrol#AC]

i am definatly going to try this lil trick too/.

 

[jhoove09#IM]

Awesome. Let me know how it goes. Hit the QR code up if you have any questions.

 

[Carmageddon]

Thank you for this amazing share!
I am trying to do the exact same thing, as finding this thread was almost my last attempt to get more information on how to do it.
I came here through No, You Cannot Fit a CharlieCard into a Zune HD

However my problem is much more serious; my RFID chip is about 1mm tiny! look at the picture:

ImageShack.us

As you can see, the chip is very tiny, and this is my second attempt already with Acetone!
On first attempt I did not even find the chip (didn't expect it that small).
Second attempt in the picture, I already caught it although too late as it was torn off the wire.

Next week I will be trying a third card

Meanwhile, any suggestions? How long should I leave it submerged in the Acetone?

As last resort, I am also thinking to simply carefully trim the edges of the card, then peel off layers of plastic (without using any Acetone), until it would fit in the cover of my Samsung Galaxy Note.

However, another idea I am pursuing is the use of NFC - I think this phone has NFC in it, so theoretically it should be able to emulate any RFID card, no?