Beacons

How is Beacon technology different from Wi-Fi?

1. Effect on device battery: Communication done between mobile and beacon is done via Bluetooth. When both devices communicate using bluetooth, the devices consume approximately 4% less power as compared to the Wi-Fi, thus helps in extended battery life.

1. Consumer Privacy: Beacons technology requires customer to allow location detection through the mobile application and opt-in to receive notifications by turning on their device’s bluetooth. In the case of Wi-Fi, it doesn’t explicitly ask consumer for their permission.
2. Compatibility with devices: According to statistics, 80% of iPhones and 30% of Android devices are compatible with beacons. While 50% of Android phones, 45% of iPhones and 7% of other smart devices are compatible with Wi-Fi.
3. Implementation: Beacon implementation has 3 steps : installation, app development and management. Beacons required a mobile application to communicate. Wi-Fi doesn’t require any app development however the installation and management stage takes more effort and time.
4. Cost to implement: Beacons are cheaper and easy to implement. Wi-Fi routers are expensive and to manage traffic complex configuration is required.
5. Power Consumption: Wi-Fi routers consumes more electricity than beacons.
6. Accuracy: Accuracy refers to the reliability of the signal within a given range. Beacons are typically more accurate indoors than WiFi because the portable nature of the beacon transmitters allow the signal refraction and poor reception zones.