Sigfox — A cellular network, just for Things by Nick De Cooman

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After growing into a world of beacons and BLE applications, Sigfox may be the next big thing in connecting the things around us. Backed by a 115M investments of Samsung, this French-based company is building a low cost cellular network for linking anything —small or big— to the internet. The network is already available in large parts of Europe, and coverage in Belgium is due for late 2015!

What makes Sigfox ideally for connecting things is that data packages can only be 12 bytes in size, transmitting at only 100 bits per second. Prices are therefore significantly cheaper than traditional cellular data traffic, not to mention the low power consumption. Perfect for many applications!

Even if you have no experience in communication protocols, come learn how Sigfox requires only very small battery and cheap hardware, allowing things like basic alarm systems, asset trackers, and electricity meters to connect to the internet. We’ll see how the network works from a technical point of view (no radio transmission terminology, promised), how to make use of it and how it compares to other communication solutions.