hardMultiple Choice
220-1201 Practice Question: A technician is troubleshooting a smartphone that…
A technician is troubleshooting a smartphone that cannot establish an NFC connection with a payment terminal. The phone's NFC is enabled, and the screen is unlocked. The payment terminal shows 'No card detected'. Which of the following should the technician check first?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap is overthinking the problem — candidates often jump to app settings or network issues, but NFC failures are overwhelmingly physical (range/alignment), so the exam expects you to check the simplest hardware cause first.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The phone's NFC antenna location and alignment with the terminal
NFC is a very short-range (typically ≤4 cm) inductive coupling technology, so the most common cause of 'No card detected' is that the phone's NFC antenna is not aligned with the terminal's reader coil. Checking antenna location and physical alignment is the fastest, most likely fix before investigating software or network issues.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The phone's battery level
Why it's wrong here
Near Field Communication (NFC) is designed to operate with minimal power consumption. As long as the smartphone has sufficient battery to power on and run its operating system, its NFC chip will typically function correctly. A low battery level might trigger power-saving modes that restrict background app activity or screen brightness, but it does not inherently disable the NFC hardware itself, preventing detection by a terminal. The phone simply needs to be operational.
- ✓
The phone's NFC antenna location and alignment with the terminal
Why this is correct
Near Field Communication (NFC) operates over an extremely short range, typically no more than 4 centimeters (approximately 1.5 inches), relying on inductive coupling between antennas. For a successful transaction, the smartphone's internal NFC antenna must be precisely positioned very close to and correctly aligned with the payment terminal's NFC reader. Even slight misalignment or an insufficient distance can prevent the inductive field from being established, resulting in the terminal failing to detect the phone.
- ✗
The payment terminal's internet connection
Why it's wrong here
The payment terminal's internet connection is primarily used for transmitting transaction data to the payment processor for authorization and settlement. While crucial for completing the financial transaction, the internet connection is not required for the initial Near Field Communication (NFC) handshake between the phone and the terminal. The terminal's NFC reader can detect the phone and establish communication locally, even if its backend network connection is temporarily unavailable.
- ✗
The phone's default payment app settings
Why it's wrong here
The phone's default payment app settings dictate which payment method or card is presented to the terminal once an NFC connection has been successfully established. These settings do not influence the fundamental ability of the terminal's NFC reader to detect the presence of the phone's NFC chip. If the terminal is not detecting the phone at all, it indicates a problem with the physical NFC communication layer, such as antenna issues or alignment, rather than the software configuration of the payment application.
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Key term
NFC
Near Field Communication is a short-range wireless technology that lets two devices exchange data when they are held close together, typically within a few centimeters.
Key term
Near-field Communication
Near-field Communication (NFC) is a short-range wireless technology that allows two devices to exchange data when they are touched or brought within a few centimeters of each other.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
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