Mobile Device Power Saving Proximity Beacons

New research (pdf) introduces a method to reduce battery consumption in mobile devices, particularly small, wearable computing devices like smartwatches, rings, or glasses, by using proximity beacons instead of traditional satellite-based location tracking.

Typically, these devices use GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) such as GPS, which consume significant power due to the effort required to detect and process weak satellite signals. This is especially problematic for small devices with limited battery capacity. The proposed method embeds low-power proximity beacons, such as Bluetooth trackers (e.g., AirTags), into wearable components like watch bands. These beacons emit Bluetooth signals detected by nearby devices, which can then use their own GNSS services to triangulate the location and report it via existing networks like Apple’s Find My or Android’s equivalent.

The system allows dynamic association of the mobile device with new beacons. If a user switches out a watch band, for instance, the device can recognise which beacons are moving with it and prompt the user to reassign the new beacons for location tracking. This flexibility helps maintain tracking without user intervention in most cases.

In scenarios where beacons or networks are unavailable, such as remote locations, the device may still fall back on traditional GNSS. However, in populated areas with ample nearby devices, the reliance on GNSS can be minimised, significantly conserving battery life.

The document also outlines user control features, allowing manual pairing or unpairing of beacons, enabling/disabling location tracking based on time, place, or battery level, and even letting a device query a location network for its own location. This approach not only reduces power consumption but also extends tracking functionality even when the device’s battery is depleted, as the beacons can continue to transmit signals.

The technique provides an efficient and user-friendly alternative to power-intensive GNSS location services, enhancing practicality and longevity for small wearable devices while retaining robust location tracking capabilities.

Do You Have an Estimote Alternative?

Several companies have informed us that Estimote is no longer responding to enquiries about purchasing their beacons. It appears they are now more focused on promoting and selling their UWB (Ultra Wideband) tags instead.

This shift is unfortunate for companies that have integrated their solutions with Estimote’s beacons, SDK, and platform. Estimote’s approach, which involves manufacturing their own custom hardware and restricting their platform to only work with their own beacons, means there is no direct replacement for their older products.

However, if your application doesn’t rely on the Estimote SDK and simply detects iBeacon advertisements using the standard Bluetooth libraries available in iOS and Android, then you are not tied to Estimote’s hardware. In such cases, you are free to use any iBeacon. For more details, please refer to our post regarding beacon compatibility.

Read about the advantages of generic beacons

Small, Long Battery Life, Long Range Beacon

It’s surprising how many enquires we get asking for small beacons that also have a long battery life and long range. Such things don’t exist. Long range and long battery life need more battery power and hence the battery size needs to be larger. This implies a larger beacon.

You need to choose what’s most important for your project. If you need a very small device then the E8 is only 5mm thick but has a small CR2032 battery. If battery life and range are more important then look at the larger battery beacons and long range beacons. If you have the possibility of mains (USB) power then you might consider a USB beacon that can be small.

Browser Support for Web Bluetooth

Web Bluetooth is an API that enables websites to communicate with nearby Bluetooth devices via the Generic Attribute Profile (GATT). Its support varies significantly across browsers and platforms with Apple support particularly non-existent.

Supported Browsers

BrowserSupported Versions/PlatformsNotes
Google Chrome56+ (Desktop, Android, Chrome OS)Fully supported on Chrome for Android; requires Android 6.0+ and Windows 10 1703+.
Microsoft Edge79+Fully supported.
Opera43+ (Desktop, Android)Not working on latest desktop versions; works on Android since version 46.
Android Browser97+Fully supported.
Samsung Internet6.2+Fully supported.
Opera Mobile64+Fully supported.

Not Supported

BrowserNotes
Mozilla FirefoxNo supported on any version, including Firefox for Android.
Apple SafariNo supported on any version, including iOS and macOS.
Internet ExplorerNo supported on any version.

iOS Workarounds

  • Bluefy Web BLE Browser: A third-party app for iOS that enables Web Bluetooth functionality by acting as a browser supporting the API.

Matching Industrial Assets and Their Operators

Recent research looks into a new method for linking industrial assets, like power tools, with their operators using low-power Internet of Things (IoT) devices based on Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). Despite the wide adoption of asset-tracking technologies, there’s still no widely used solution for dynamically identifying which worker is using which tool. This is important for improving safety, maintenance, and asset utilisation, especially in complex and fast-paced environments like construction sites.

The proposed system includes wearable devices for workers and beacons tags attached to tools. These beacons broadcast data about their usage status, which is picked up by the wearables. The system uses signal strength (RSSI) to estimate the proximity between workers and tools. Since RSSI data is noisy and imprecise, an Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) is employed to improve distance estimation accuracy. A cloud-based algorithm then analyses this data to identify the most probable asset-user matches.

The researchers implemented and tested this system using prototypes in both indoor and outdoor construction settings. The system achieved a median distance estimation error of 0.49 metres and up to 98.6% accuracy in matching tools to their users. The devices were optimised for low energy consumption: wearable devices could run for nearly a month on a single charge, and tags could last for years on small batteries.

The study concludes that the proposed system is a viable and scalable solution for enhancing digitalisation in industrial environments, particularly construction.

Filtering Beacons at Bluetooth Gateways

When using Bluetooth gateways, it is usual to reduce the number of Bluetooth devices that are sent to the server. This is because gateways do not just pick up the beacons you intend to monitor. They can also detect smartphones, vehicles, fitness trackers and a range of other Bluetooth devices. Although it is possible to ignore unwanted beacons at the server side, filtering them out at the gateway itself is a much more efficient approach. Doing this helps to reduce network bandwidth usage and places less strain on your server, allowing it to provide greater throughput, from multiple gateways, and just handle the meaningful data.

Another key advantage of filtering at the gateway is that it simplifies debugging and ongoing support. When there are fewer devices being reported, there is less data to sift through, making it quicker and easier to identify and solve any issues that may arise.

Most Bluetooth gateways offer the option to configure a whitelist based on advertising patterns. This allows you to instruct the gateway to block other devices before the data ever reaches your server. The challenging part lies in identifying exactly what a beacon is advertising. To tackle this, we recommend scanning for your Bluetooth beacons using a smartphone app that captures the raw advertising packets. Our blog post goes into greater detail about scanning for beacons and explains some of the nuances.

Once you have captured and analysed the advertising data, you can use the findings to set up an appropriate whitelist pattern on your gateway.

The Affects of USA Tariffs on Bluetooth Beacons

The recent changes to U.S. tariff policy have significantly affected the import of Bluetooth beacons into the USA. One of the major shifts is the removal of the de minimis rule, meaning that even low-value imports from China, under $800, are now subject to tariffs. In addition, a general 10% tariff now applies to most foreign goods, with some electronics facing duties as high as 145%, particularly if they originate from China.

As almost all Bluetooth beacons are produced in China due to its cost-effective and advanced manufacturing ecosystem, the tariffs directly impact this market. Even sourcing these devices through third countries like the UK does not avoid the tariffs, since duties are based on where goods are made, not where they are shipped from. As the U.S. lacks a mature domestic beacon manufacturing industry, to our knowledge, there are no cost-effective local alternatives. Even if there are a few we have missed, they probably won’t provide the range of models/capability needed for different types of project.

This has made larger-scale beacon deployments in the U.S. economically impractical. It is not viable for a company in the USA to begin manufacturing Bluetooth beacons, as the unit cost would be prohibitively high. This is primarily due to significantly higher production costs in the United States compared to China, including labour, components and facility expenses.

On a broader scale, these tariffs are expected to raise prices and create similar problems across a very large number of other goods types. Although many see the tariffs as a political manoeuvre that could be temporary, their current impact on both technology adoption and the wider economy is a concern. Uncertainty creates instability for businesses trying to plan investments, manage supply and remain competitive.

Using Bluetooth Beacons for In-Place Ageing

A new study describes an indoor‑positioning system built around Bluetooth Low Energy. Each room receives a mains‑powered beacon that houses an ESP32 micro‑controller running BLE in advertising mode, together with motion, ultrasonic, light and temperature sensors. Older adults wear a low‑cost tag or smartwatch that periodically transmits its identifier. Beacon modules report the relative signal strength indicator of the tag they detect to a central Raspberry Pi hub via ESP‑NOW, allowing the hub to decide where the wearer is without relying on a floor plan.


Bluetooth was selected because it works reliably at room scale, consumes little power on the wearable, and is already present in commercial tags and watches. Although the latest specification is 5.3, the authors chose the mature 4.0 stack for stability and documentation. Its 30 m nominal range comfortably covers a domestic room while avoiding the battery drain seen with Wi‑Fi.


During installation the wearer simply walks around each room for twenty seconds. The hub records baseline RSSI distributions from at least three nearby beacons, then uses an exponential filter (optimised at a 0.2 weighting) to smooth radio‑frequency noise before applying a calibration‑based lookup and, when needed, trilateration. This self‑calibration lets the system adapt to furniture, walls and other sources of multipath without professional setup.

Static tests at 1, 2.5, 5 and 10 m showed raw RSSI fluctuating by several decibels because of indoor interference; filtering reduced variance to about 1.7 dB at ten metres, making distance bands for different rooms distinct. In two typical UK‑style houses the system identified the correct room in roughly 96 % of more than 600 ground‑truth checks. Median transition recognition between adjacent rooms was under two seconds and remained below eight seconds even when rooms were far apart.

Adding the passive‑infra‑red and ultrasonic sensors improved confidence when RSSI values from neighbouring rooms overlapped, taking overall presence‑detection accuracy to 93 % with motion sensing alone. All BLE and sensor data stay on the hub and, if the resident allows an Internet link, are only mirrored transiently to Firebase for remote monitoring. The authors argue that this low‑cost, plug‑and‑play BLE architecture is particularly suited to large‑scale ageing‑in‑place studies and could equally track clinical equipment in hospitals.

Beacon Waterproofing Insight

Some of the beacons we offer are fully waterproof, which many people tend to associate solely with protection from direct exposure to water, such as rain, splashes, or even full submersion. While these are of course important scenarios to consider, waterproofing can also play a crucial role in situations where exposure to moisture isn’t as obvious or dramatic.

Take vehicle installations, for example. At first glance, the inside of a car, van or lorry may appear completely dry, and it might seem like a waterproof beacon wouldn’t be necessary. However, vehicles can experience long periods of elevated humidity, particularly when temperatures fluctuate or when the vehicle is parked in damp environments. Over time, this persistent humidity can lead to condensation forming inside the beacon housing.

This kind of moisture buildup may not be immediately visible, but it can be highly damaging. Internal condensation can lead to corrosion of metal components, including the battery contacts or internal circuitry. Eventually, this corrosion can cause the beacon to malfunction or stop working entirely. Waterproof beacons are designed not only to prevent ingress from visible water but also to seal out ambient moisture, making them far more resistant to these kinds of subtle, long-term risks.

So, when you’re specifying a beacon for your application, it’s worth thinking beyond direct water exposure. Consider the full environmental conditions it will face over time, including humidity. In some cases, waterproofing isn’t just about protecting against rain, it’s about ensuring long-term reliability in conditions that might not appear problematic at first glance.

BeaconZone Help Desk

We operate a help desk and ticketing system to manage pre and post sales support queries efficiently. This approach allows us to provide a consistent and coordinated service across our team, while also preserving the full history of each conversation. This is particularly helpful when an issue takes longer to resolve or when follow-up is needed weeks or even months later. Please note that our telephone line is intended for administrative queries only and cannot provide technical or in-depth support.

The support system also includes a searchable knowledge base, where you can find answers to frequently asked questions. Each time someone raises a new query that hasn’t been covered, we add it to the system so that others can benefit from the answers in future. As you type into the search bar, the system will suggest possible answers based on your input. If your question isn’t addressed there, you can easily submit a support ticket without registering. We aim to respond within 24 working hours, though in most cases you’ll hear from us much sooner.