Apple has launched its iBeacon tracking technology across 254 US stores, providing users with information depending on their precise location in the shop and acting like a virtual assistant. The technology, part of iOS 7, works with low-power Bluetooth transmitters and the Apple Store app to track a user’s location within a store and provide […]
Apple has launched its iBeacon tracking technology across 254 US stores, providing users with information depending on their precise location in the shop and acting like a virtual assistant.
The technology, part of iOS 7, works with low-power Bluetooth transmitters and the Apple Store app to track a user’s location within a store and provide relevant information to their phone.
Provided they give Apple permission to track you within the App Store app, standing next to an iPhone table could prompt a message asking if they would like to upgrade their iPhone, all while checking their eligibility and whether they can get money for trading in their old phone.
Another example involves a push notification alerting customers when an order is ready to be picked up alongside an order number to show the clerk.
Apple has installed about 20 iBeacon transmitters at this store, some of which are simply iPhones and iPads, and each can be adjusted to specific distances so only relevant stuff comes up.
iBeacon is not limited to Apple devices or Apple retail stores. In fact, smaller scale deployments are already live at Macy’s, J.C. Penney and other stores to present customers with discounts — again, provided they have the companion app and opt-in to the service.
The transmitters inside stores (or beacons) come in a number of different formats, including small coin cell powered devices and USB sticks, and can reportedly pinpoint your location down to within 15 meters.
