How long can BLE/ZigBee control smart IoT devices under the impact of ultra-low power Wi-Fi?

" The ultra-low power Wi-Fi system chip DA16200 and module and the DA16600 module that combines Wi-Fi/BLE functions are Dialog's new generation of products for battery-powered IoT devices that need to stay online, such as smart door locks, networked cameras, thermostats, wireless sensors, smart watches/bracelets, etc., which have brought breakthrough changes in the convenience of device deployment, networking performance, and battery life.

Author: Shao Lefeng

Chief Analyst of ASPENCORE China

In our daily lives, although Wi-Fi devices are the most common and direct networking is the most convenient, many battery-powered IoT terminals are reluctant to choose Wi-Fi as the main connection method, but prefer Bluetooth and ZigBee. The fundamental reason is that Wi-Fi has lost to its most fatal weakness - power consumption. However, Namsu Choi, product marketing director of the connectivity and audio business unit of Dialog Semiconductor, believes that this situation is expected to be fundamentally changed with the development of ultra-low power Wi-Fi technology.

Namsu Choi, Product Marketing Director, Connectivity and Audio Business Unit, Dialog Semiconductor

The ultra-low power Wi-Fi system chip DA16200 and module and the DA16600 module that combines Wi-Fi/BLE functions are Dialog's new generation of products for battery-powered IoT devices that need to stay online, such as smart door locks, networked cameras, thermostats, wireless sensors, smart watches/bracelets, etc., which have brought breakthrough changes in the convenience of device deployment, networking performance, and battery life.

Test data shows that DA16200 can provide more than one year of battery life in most applications:

• Smart door lock, used 20 times/day, 4 AA batteries can be used for more than 1 year (actual measurement is about 14 months);
  

• Thermostat, used 30 times/day, can achieve more than 3 years of battery life;
  

• Wi-Fi security camera, with 10MB HD video transmission and 5 times per day, the 4000mAh battery can last for more than one year;
  

• Temperature/humidity sensor, 1,440 times/day (collected once every minute), 2 AAA dry batteries, can achieve a battery life of more than 4 years.

The highly integrated DA16200 runs the entire Wi-Fi system, security and network protocol stack autonomously without the need for an external network processor, CPU or microcontroller. It contains an 802.11b/g/n radio (PHY), baseband processor, MAC, on-chip memory, dedicated encryption engine and ARM Cortex-M4F host network application processor, all integrated on a single silicon chip. In order to achieve wider coverage without sacrificing battery life, the DA16200 also integrates a power amplifier (PA) and low noise amplifier (LNA), providing users with industry-leading output power and receiver sensitivity.

In addition to the DA16200 SoC chip, Dialog has also launched two modules based on DA16200, which have passed comprehensive certifications including FCC, IC, CE, Telec, Korea, SRRC and Wi-Fi CERTIFIED. Both modules include 4MB flash memory and all required RF components, including a crystal oscillator, RF lumped filter, an onboard ceramic antenna or a u.FL connector for connecting an external antenna. Security includes the latest generation of hardware encryption engines and certification standards, compliant with WPA/2/3 personal and enterprise-level encryption standards, and with TLS and HTTPs upper layer security.

VirtualZero technology is a powerful tool for DA16200 to achieve ultra-low power consumption. Cui Nanxiu emphasized that if ultra-low power consumption is achieved at the expense of Wi-Fi performance or specifications, it is not true ultra-low power consumption. For example, reducing the transmission signal strength, although this reduces power consumption, the signal coverage range is reduced, making it difficult to meet Wi-Fi specifications. This is a shortcut and is not a true low-power Wi-Fi technology.

DA16200 fully meets Wi-Fi specifications, and even has advantages over ordinary Wi-Fi in terms of RF sensitivity and transmission distance. In terms of cost, the chip is not much different from mainstream Wi-Fi SoCs, and even has advantages compared to cheaper low-power Bluetooth chips, so users do not need to consider the price issue when replacing. Samsung smart door locks previously used BLE solutions, but now all BLE has been replaced with Dialog's Wi-Fi solutions.

"ZigBee and BLE are technologies that emerged due to the weaknesses of Wi-Fi, but they also have their own weaknesses. For example, it takes a long time to transmit large data, and a gateway is required to finally connect to the Internet when connecting to the Internet, while Wi-Fi can connect directly. Considering the comprehensive access cost, ultra-low power Wi-Fi is obviously much cheaper than the BLE plus gateway solution, and will become the mainstream of home Internet of Things in the future." Cui Nanxiu said.

The two-in-one DA16600 module consists of the DA16200 and the SmartBond TINY DA14531 SoC chip. By combining a reliable firmware solution for two complex protocol stacks, the problems usually caused by the coexistence of two 2.4 GHz radios in one design are eliminated. BLE makes Wi-Fi configuration easier, and end users only need to follow a set of simple design guidelines provided by Dialog to integrate the module into embedded IoT products, greatly simplifying Wi-Fi setup.

According to the plan, the next generation of products will transform from a "two-in-one module" to a "two-in-one SoC chip", but he also believes that it is unlikely that new specifications such as Wi-Fi 6 will be widely used in the ultra-low power consumption market within 2-3 years. This is because in order to meet the new specifications, the routers in each household or the connected cloud platform must be modified accordingly, which is very costly.

So, what kind of occasions require both Wi-Fi and BLE? Cui Nanxiu said that for many Wi-Fi products, consumers must first configure the network after purchasing them. For users who are not familiar with Wi-Fi network configuration, they can choose to connect to the mobile phone with BLE and configure the network directly, which is very convenient. For some applications, the two types of chips are put together, so that users can have more choices.

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