Side-by-Side Comparison
Smart Cards & RFID
Calypso vs. HID Prox & iCLASS
Comparing 2 standards across 11 specifications. 11 key differences identified.
Comparing:
Calypso
HID Prox & iCLASS
Calypso is an open international contactless electronic ticketing standard managed by the Calypso Networks Association, operating under ISO/IEC 14443 Type B (and Type A). Developed by European transit operators to prevent proprietary lock-in with NXP MIFARE, it powers major transit networks including the Paris Navigo, Lisbon Viva, and Belgium MoBIB.
HID Prox and iCLASS are proprietary physical access control credentials developed by HID Global. They encompass legacy 125 kHz unencrypted Prox (such as 26-bit Wiegand H10301), 13.56 MHz read/write iCLASS smart cards, and modern Seos microprocessor cards utilizing AES-128 encryption.
Specification Comparison Table
11 Parameters| Parameter / Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Frequency Bands
|
13.56 MHz | — |
|
Framing Standard
|
ISO/IEC 14443 Type B (and Type A in Calypso Prime) | — |
|
Standardization Body
|
Calypso Networks Association (CNA) / EN 1545 / ISO 24014 | — |
|
Cryptographic Engine
|
Triple DES / AES-128 / Elliptic Curve PKI (Calypso Prime) | — |
|
Operating Architecture
|
Multi-application secure microprocessor (Java Card / Native OS) | — |
|
Primary Transit Deployments
|
Paris (Navigo), Brussels/Belgium (MoBIB), Lisbon (Viva), Venice, Tel Aviv (Rav-Kav) | — |
|
Operating Frequencies
|
— | 125 kHz (Prox) / 13.56 MHz (iCLASS / Seos) |
|
Common Bit Formats
|
— | 26-bit H10301, 37-bit H10302/H10304, Corporate 1000 |
|
Standard Compliance (iCLASS)
|
— | ISO/IEC 15693 and ISO/IEC 14443-A/B |
|
Security Cryptography
|
— | None (Prox), 64-bit DES (Legacy iCLASS), AES-128 (iCLASS SE / Seos) |
|
Reader Interface Protocol
|
— | Wiegand / OSDP (Open Supervised Device Protocol) |