I am working with iOS 8 and with Nordic beacons. In order to use iOS's Core Location framework I am having to insure that the Nordic beacons are coded to use Apple's Manufacturer ID. Also, I have read the Estimote iBeacons use Apple's Manufacturer ID. So, is that the way it is - no matter who the "real" manufacturer is, an iBeacon must use Apple's ID? Seems odd.
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1 Answers
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One reason beacon formats use a single bluetooth manufacturer code is because a static byte sequence is needed for Bluetooth hardware filters. In order to save battery, both iOS and Android support letting hardware filter for only advertisements with a specific starting byte sequence. This way, the microprocessor does not have to burn cycles parsing packets it does not care about.
If every beacon manufacturer used their own code, these filters would not work and phone batteries would drain faster as a result.
