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The various types of smartcards

Memory card

Memory cards are the oldest form of smartcard. They have an integrated circuit containing just a memory area with the minimum required logic and in some cases a protection mechanism.
Memory cards allow more data to be stored than a magnetic strip, but have no capacity to process the data, which limits applications. The most well-known form of memory card is the telephone card.

Microprocessor card (or microcontroller)

Microprocessor cards (or microcontrollers) have the intelligence which memory cards lack and have the capacity to process data and provide a higher level of security by associating, for example, a crytoprocessor.
These cards' applications can be customized via an OS (Operating System) supporting a set of specific instructions and a number of files and folders.

Contactless cards

The introduction of radiofrequency communication technologies allowed the creation of a new category of smart card: contactless cards. The principle involves providing power to the card and exchanging data with the reader via an electromagnetic field rather than by physical electrical connections.
The physical connection interface of traditional cards is replaced by an antenna + high-frequency management microcontroller assembly.

In some cases, referred to as "combi" cards, both types of interface are retained.

Cryptographic technologies ensure a certain level of security for the smartcard, either using secret-key or public-key algorithms. The level of security offered by the card is not based solely on the cryptography algorithm, but on all the software associated with the electronic component.

Source: "Dimension économique et industrielle des cartes à puces" - November 2009 - PIPAME (French Interministerial Economic Change, Forward-Planning and Forecasting Unit)

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