iBeacon is a Bluetooth-based beacon technology, which refers to an identification transmitter that broadcasts a signal to a nearby portable electrical device. Simply, it is Apple’s version of beacon technology that works on Bluetooth low energy devices, which allows you to broadcast and receive data from a short distance.
The technology works in two parts; the first involves a sending device which is a broadcast beacon device and the second, a receiver, a smartphone application. An iBeacon easily allows you to communicate with many devices, which helps you a lot in efficiently communicating with the world around you.
However, this is also the part that makes it very difficult to develop than any other mobile app development. So, today we consider some queries and come up with the challenges and tips for iBeacon app development, every developer should know.
Challenges Faced in Developing iBeacon Apps For Android & iOS Devices.
Here, in this section, Zazz – a well-known iBeacon app development agency, explains challenges faced while creating an iBeacon app for Android and iOS devices. Also, we will discuss the tips to resolve these challenges without any hassle.
Challenge #1
Server Section – The iBeacon application uses a variety of variables which require different business logic scripts as essential for continuous data extraction. Whenever the app reaches within the range of a beacon, it begins accessing the business logic script. After this, it gets a list of users registered with that beacon. Not only does the script provide filtered information but also tries to interpret the meaning of that information.
In specific scenarios such as when the device is out of range of beacons, it will be difficult for the app to extract precise information because updates are not recorded in real-time.
Tip – Developers can solve the problem using time-based heuristics so that they can quickly determine whether a user is still there or not. Apart from that, there are business logic scripts which help in determining current trends, statistical analysis, and concluding.
Challenge #2
Frequency Problems with Hardware and Signal – iBeacons works on Bluetooth low energy technology. So the application must take care of the external signal interaction. This is because the low-energy Bluetooth frequencies and the Wi-Fi interface are in the same spectrum band. It can be a problem for iBeacon to find the user’s device.
Tip – Beacon signal quality can vary taking into account factors such as temperature, device power and more. In other words, we can say the accuracy of the signal among the various iBeacon hardware manufacturers and applications may vary according to the type and variable information received by them.
Challenge #3
Triangulation and Tracking – Since iBeacon offers one-way radio communication, there is no option to develop two-way communication between beacons and applications. For this reason, broadcast beacons cannot recognize the user’s device. However, only enhanced iBeacon permits two-way communication facilities. Also, they can develop a connection with a mobile device and send data back to the server. Moreover, it is not part of the iBeacon specification so that it will drain your device battery significantly.
Tip – So, the best way is to let the app work itself. This will allow you to connect to the backend and update data with registered users and personalize the application accordingly.
Challenge #4
App Store Review Procedure – Navigating the app store is one of the issues that developers face during the development of the iBeacon app. So to solve this problem, it is essential to clearly state the purpose and how the application works in the public description and review notes. Along with that, one should not forget to add a free demo video explaining the app features and battery disclaimer at the end of the description.
Final Verdict
Some of the other challenges faced by iBeacon App Developers are signal bouncing off of physical space, interference caused by Wi-Fi, Uploading Apps to Apple store, etc. However, on the bright side, technology will probably solve this challenge sooner or later as technology like iBeacon can help companies a lot in doing their job.
Apart from that, you could be confused whether the iBeacon is a Bluetooth device. Still, it is NOT! they have many differences in many things like battery consumption, range, good support, security, latency etc. So, while looking forward to developing a Mobile application for your beacon device, you can contact us to hire an expert iBeacon Application development company which will help you know more about the services and benefits of getting your iBeacon application.
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