BC-04P iBeacon

I used these with my Home Assistant setup to remind me to put the garbage cans to the street when I forget. They work great, were easy to set up and have lasted a year so far.

Beacons just transmit a signal. You can use downloadable software on your phone to adjust settings in the beacon. You need an app that will Listen for the beacon. There are some free apps and some paid. I bought this and put it on my motorcycle so when I get on, my map app will start auto tracking my trip. The beacon tells the app to start tracking as soon as my phone is close enough to the beacon to see it. You can set the signal strength of the beacon with the beacon manufacturers free app so it is will just broadcast a few meters up to about a hundred meters. If you purchase a blue charm beacon like I did this seller will help you if you have questions on how to set it up. This behaves like an adjustable apple tag but does not use phone or internet service so you need a beacon enabled app to see it. Typical uses for beacons are geocaching or put it with a trail camera so you can find it again. Beacons are typically larger than an apple tag or android tag. They can be used to trigger an app or as locators. Many commercial places like museums use beacons to trigger an app you can load on your phone to take a self tour. You can set variables like broadcast intervals and strength. When I bought this I did not understand how to use it. I bought it for my map app. It took me a few hours of research and emailing both the beacon seller and the app creator who both helped me to understand how to use it and set it up.

I recently bought the Blue Charm Beacons Water-Resistant MultiBeacon to keep track of my adventurous cat as it roams throughout my house, and I couldn't be more impressed with this product's performance. Easy Integration: Paired with my Bluetooth ESP32 dongles, the setup was incredibly user-friendly. I was able to get the system up and running in a matter of minutes. Accuracy and Range: This beacon offers an outstanding tracking range and pinpoint accuracy. Now, I always know where my cat is, whether it's hiding in the basement or lounging in the sunroom. Water-Resistant Design: The water-resistant feature adds an extra layer of protection, ensuring the beacon's longevity. This is an essential aspect for any pet owner who has a curious and sometimes messy friend. Battery Life: The beacon's battery life has exceeded my expectations, requiring infrequent charging and thereby reducing the hassle.

I had *one* of these running okay, but after getting a second they started to interfere with each other. What used to be 5 second broadcasts turned into the wild west and RSSIs all over the place. I suspect the firmware isn't great. Looking elsewhere.

Added this unit for my Home Assistant configuration allowing automatic garage door opening whenever my vehicle is close by. And of course, to close the garage automatically if the vehicle has left the garage for some amount of time. The installation is easy (double sided tape) to a hidden area on the outside of the vehicle. The remaining work was writing the logic to handle the device and open/close the garage. It works perfectly. Aside from an automotive realm, this device can be used for a lot of other things and I will be buying more in the future.

I was trying to use this as a way to tell if the trash had been taken out or not, and I've got a bluetooth receiver set up in my garage so this shouldn't be that hard, but I'm seeing swings of 150 feet or more with it just sitting still; I can't materially tell the difference between it sitting next to my garage vs sitting 20ft away at the street. Sometimes the signal is stable, but most of the time it's swinging wildly and I can't tell why. Temperature? Humidity? I bought this one so it could live outside because it's supposed to be waterproof, and it's in a shaded spot. If it's that sensitive to the environment then it's too sensitive to be useful outside. I bought two and have tried each of them and both have the same problems.

Works great with Home assistant!

Using 2 of these for trash/recycle can locations. They simply interfere with each other. Separate UUIDs, separate Majors, separate Minors. 1 or the other is always either unavailable or totally erratic with its signal transmission. Tried many things to get these to play together nicely including parameter adjustments and even tried different bluetooth adapters. Both work great separately. They are only 10ft from the bluetooth adapter. Reached out to the company a few times. Although very through and responsive, the response is typically that their beacons are superior, and they have no issues. I am a software programmer, so I would love to fix this issue via variable/parameter adjustment, but just not convinced that is possible anymore.