Apple iBeacon compatibility

Kontakt.io Beacons are fully compatible with the Apple iBeacon™ profile.

Apple iBeacon profile's default presets

Apple recommends to set beacons to an Advertising interval of 100ms. 

Differences with the Kontakt.io Beacon default presets

Kontakt.io Beacons default presets have the same TxPower as the Apple iBeacon default, but we set our advertising interval to different values, according to the beacon type. For example, the beacon is configured with interval of 625ms, while the Card beacon uses 1000ms.  

By increasing the interval, we reduce the frequency that advertising packets are transmitted and this extends our beacon’s battery life.

Check out our best practices for Advertising Interval and Transmission Power settings.

Battery life of Apple iBeacon default preset vs Kontakt.io Beacon default presets

Configured to use the Kontakt.io Beacon default preset, your Beacon (two battery) will run for up to 48 months on a single battery.  

The Apple iBeacon profile, will reduce this to around 6 months.

"non-connectable" mode

The Apple iBeacon spec requires iBeacons to be in "non-connectable" mode

When beacons are in "non-connectable" mode, users cannot change any beacon parameters, such as Major or Minor values, beacons are effectively 'advertising only'. 

Beacons in "non-connectable" mode can be reset simply by removing and then replacing the battery. This feature protects the user from permanently locking beacons.

Configuring iBeacon™ compatible mode

From the Kontakt.io Proximity WebPanel, you can select the Apple iBeacon preset and apply it to a single or to multiple beacons.  (Web Panel - Configuring Beacons).

This will set both the TxPower and the Advertising Interval to the Apple standard.

Setting "non-connectable" mode

Applying our profile from the WebPanel, will not put your beacon into "non-connectable" mode.

If you really need to set your beacon to be "non-connectable" you can turn this feature on, setting Service 8, Characteristic 6.  

You'll need to be running at least Firmware version 2.6 to be able to set this property. 

We'll be releasing direct access to this setting in an upcoming version of our software.  For now, it can only be updated via the SDK (you'll need to write your own app to do this).

Ordering beacons configured to the Apple iBeacon™ profile

When you order your Kontakt.io Beacons, you can request them to be preset to the Apple iBeacon™ default presets.