It sounds like something out of Star Trek but NFC is just a fancy way of saying “Tap and Pay.”

Tap and Pay is exciting because it just might revolutionize how we pay.

Here’s how it works: Imagine you’re checking out at the grocery store but instead of pulling out your wallet, you grab your phone and just tap it on a special pad and it’s paid.

Starting in 2012, most new smart phones will come with NFC built in and you can bet that quite a few retailers will want to try it out.

It’s too early to tell if this will be the next big thing, but this is one trend we will be closely monitoring.