Estimote beacons arrive switched on and there is no power button. The small recessed pit is simply part of the industrial design and doesn’t serve any functional purpose. However, if you want to stop your beacons from actively broadcasting to preserve battery life, you can do that with “conditional broadcasting.” It makes beacons go ‘mute’ if specific conditions, based on sensor readings, are met.
Conditional broadcasting is compatible with all Estimote beacons, although there are some differences with each of them due to the different set of sensors they use. Take a look below.
Stickers
Estimote Stickers can be set to broadcast when in motion only. This is a great way to save battery, especially since they have a limited shelf life of 6 months to one year, and are happiest when used with an asset tracking use case anyhow. With Motion Only turned on, your Stickers will only broadcast data while moving.
Proximity beacons, Location beacons, Location with UWB beacons
All of our beacons let you set their broadcasting depending on motion. With Proximity Beacons and Location beacons, there are several additional conditional broadcasting modes available:
- Flip to Sleep
- Dark to Sleep
- Scheduled Advertising
Flip to Sleep
For the majority of users, the most useful conditional broadcasting mode will be Flip to Sleep. With Flip to Sleep, your beacon will stop advertising when placed upside down (adhesive layer facing toward the ceiling) and not moving. Flip to Sleep is useful for configuring large numbers of beacons, simulating enter/exit region events, and preserving battery life.
To enable Flip to Sleep, connect to a beacon with the Estimote app, scroll down to the Sensors section and tap Beacon in motion. On the motion detection settings screen turn on both the accelerometer and Flip to Sleep. Likewise, you can enable it in the Cloud and connect to the beacon with the app to apply the updated settings.
And you’re done! You can now flip your beacon to mute it. Keep in mind that you will still be able to detect it in the Estimote app. That won't be the case for your app, so remember to turn Flip to sleep off when you’re ready to deploy: especially if you’re going to attach beacons upside down, for example to ceilings or underneath tables.
Dark to Sleep mode
The ambient light sensor makes it possible to mute a beacon, depending on the level of light accessible. By establishing the light level at which a beacon stops broadcasting, you can make sure the battery is not drained when a venue with beacons deployed is closed up for the night. Setting it up is possible with our SDK.
Scheduled Advertising (only available in our Location beacons)
The Real-Time Clock (RTC) allows to schedule advertising for specific times of the day, therefore giving you more control over broadcasting and allowing to save battery life.
With our SDK you can schedule the periods when beacons are transmitting. That way you can set up the start and end point of broadcasting, so you are not exhausting the battery life when no one is around to enjoy it.
So go ahead, give it a try!
P.S: Mirror plugs in to an HDMI port and has no battery included. Therefore, while conditional broadcasting isn’t available for Mirror, it’d be an unnecessary feature since you don’t have to worry about conserving battery life!