Introduction

In the rapidly growing Internet of Things

(IoT), applications from personal electron-
ics to industrial machines and sensors are
getting wirelessly connected to the Inter-
net. Covering a wide variety of use cases,
in various environments and serving diverse
requirements, no single wireless standard
can adequately prevail. With numerous
standards deployed in the market, spread-
ing over multiple frequency bands and using
different communication protocols, choosing
the right wireless connectivity technology
for an IoT application can be quite challeng-
ing. In this paper we review the predomi-
nant wireless connectivity technologies in
the market, discuss their key technical con-
cepts and engineering tradeoffs and provide
guidelines for selection of the right wire-
less technology for different applications.
Wireless connectivity for
the Internet of Things
One size does not t all
Frequency bands and worldwide regulations
Radio transmissions are regulated worldwide by agencies such as the Federal Communica-
tions Commission (FCC) in the United States and the Conference of Postal and Telecom-
munications Administrations (CEPT) in Europe. These organizations allocate frequency bands
for specic use and drive standards and certication plans for radio transmitters. Most of the
usable spectrum in most regions is designated as licensed, i.e., users need to buy a license
from the local regulator to operate a radio transmitter in a designated frequency channel. A
familiar example for licensed frequency bands use is cellular communication. Government
auctions are used worldwide to sell spectrum bands to mobile operators to regulate commer-
cial frequency allocation.
The International Telecommunication Unions Radio communication sector (ITU-R), which
coordinates the shared global use of radio spectrum, has reserved several frequency bands
for Industrial, Scientic and Medical (ISM) applications. ISM bands are unlicensed, and vary
slightly from country to country. Popular ISM bands in recent years are 433 MHz, 868 MHz,
915 MHz and 2.4 GHz, which are used by wireless communication systems such as remote
controls, cordless phones and Wi-Fi

respectively. Figure 1 shows a map of popular ISM

Gil Reiter
IoT strategic marketing manager
Texas Instruments
W H I T E P A P E R
USA
433/868MHz
433/915MHz
433MHz
2.4GHz
Europe
Japan
Asia
Africa
315/433/
470/780MHz
315/426/950MHz 315/433/915MHz
Figure 1. Worldwide unlicensed frequency bands
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
2 Texas Instruments
Communication
protocols
bands allocated worldwide. The 2.4 GHz band became very popular because it is allowed for unlicensed
use in all regions. The ubiquity of the 2.4 GHz band makes development and distribution of 2.4 GHz-based
products across nations easier.
As a general rule, higher frequency bands offer more channels and more bandwidth, hence can serve
larger networks and drive more data throughput. Lower frequency radio waves propagate better than higher
frequency; therefore they can achieve better range, especially inside buildings.
Communication systems utilize a set of rules and standards to format data and control data exchange. The
most common model in data communication systems is the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model,
which breaks the communication into functional layers allowing easier implementation of scalable and
interoperable networks. The OSI model has 7 layers; a 4-layer simplied version of the model is shown in
Figure 2 along with example of the TCP/IP stack.
The Link layer provides conversion of bits to radio signals (and vice versa), takes care of data framing for
reliable wireless communication and manages the access to the radio channel. In the TCP/IP example in
Figure 2, Wi-Fi is shown as the link layer protocol.
The Network layer addresses and routes data through the network. IP (Internet Protocol) is the network
layer protocol of the Internet, providing an IP address to devices and carrying IP packets from one device to
another.
The Transport layer generates communication sessions between applications running on two ends of the
network. It allows multiple applications to run on one device, each using its own communication channel. TCP
(or Transmission Control Protocol) is the predominant transport protocol in the Internet.
The Application layer is responsible for data formatting and it governs the data ow in an optimal
scheme for specic applications. A popular application layer protocol in the TCP/IP stack is HTTP (or Hyper-
text Transfer Protocol) which was created to transfer web content over the Internet.
Link Layer
Network Layer
Transport Layer
Application Layer
The OSI network model The TCP/IP protocol stack
Wi-Fi

IP
TCP
HTTP
Figure 2. Simplied OSI model (left) and an example of a TCP/IP protocol stack (right)
3 Texas Instruments
A layered network implementation introduces complexity and requires more code and memory. It also in-
troduces data overheads because every layer requires additional framing and control messages. On the other
hand, layered networks enable more exibility and scale so much so that most wireless networks today are
designed using a similar scheme to the one in Figure 2. One example of a simple network design, with no or
little layering, is a proprietary application protocol running directly over the physical layer provided by a simple
radio transceiver. A proprietary implementation like this can be very efcient, but it is mainly used in simple,
single-function networks.
The IoT is all about connecting things to the Internet. Devices that are (directly) connected to the Internet
must use the IP suite to be able to exchange data with devices and servers over the Internet. Nevertheless,
devices in a local network can use non-IP protocols to communicate within the local network. Connectivity to
the Internet of non-IP devices can be achieved via an Internet gateway. The gateway communicates with local
devices using a non-IP method on one side, and with other devices on the Internet using IP on the other side.
The gateway in this case is an application layer gateway because it needs to strip down the data coming in
from the local network and restructure it with a TCP/IP stack to enable communication with an Internetservice.
The benet of using the IP in devices is that it allows the gateway to be application agnostic and enables
exibility to modify or add applications to the devices without changing anything on the gateway. The reason
we can install new Internet applications on our laptops without changing anything in our home network is
because our laptop runs a TCP/IP stack, and home routers (using a wired Ethernet or Wi-Fi) are only manipu-
lating data at the Link layer.
In many cases, a local network is formed for one specic application. For example, alarm systems with
wireless sensors form a local network with one function sending sensor activation messages to the alarm
controller. If the alarm controller is relaying messages to your phone over the Internet, then it uses TCP/IP. But
the communication between the sensors and the alarm controller does not have to be based on TCP/IP. In
fact, in most cases today, it is not.
Other, often overlooked, advantages of the TCP/IP stack come from the unprecedented widespread use
of Internet applications. The number of application protocol implementations created for TCP/IP over the last
20 years is overwhelming. Many of them can be used in a local network, even if Internet connectivity is not
required. Reusing existing proven protocol implementations can dramatically shorten development time. Tools
for diagnostics, management and commissioning of IP networks already exist and can help shorten develop-
ment cycles as well.
One of the disadvantages of the TCP/IP stack is that it is fairly complex and large, and therefore requires a
fair amount of processing power and sizeable memory, implying more development time and more expen-
sive devices. The complexity also results in larger data packets, hence consuming more power to send and
receive. For these reasons many simple networks, such as the wireless sensors in the alarm system example,
choose to implement simpler and often times proprietary protocols.
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
To IP or
not to IP
As silicon technology advances, processing power and memory become more available and affordable.
With wireless network processors and wireless microcontrollers (MCUs) available today, TCP/IP communica-
tion becomes more attractive than ever, even for small and simple networks. With integration of a full TCP/IP
stack into products like TIs SimpleLink family, we expect more and more applications to move from propri-
etary protocols to IP-based protocols, enabling exible Internet connectivity and faster development cycles.
As shown in Figure 3, a networks range is typically categorized into four classes: Personal Area Network
(PAN), Local Area Network (LAN), Neighborhood Area Network (NAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN).
PANs are usually wireless and cover a range of about 10 meters. A common wireless PAN is a smartphone
connected over Bluetooth

to handful of accessories such as wireless headset, watch or tness device. Wire-

less PAN devices usually have low radio transmission power and run over small batteries.
LANs are either wired or wireless (or a combination of the two). Wireless LANs (WLANs) usually cover a
range up to 100 meters. A predominant example is a home Wi-Fi network providing Internet access to per-
sonal computers, smartphones, TVs and today even to IoT devices such as thermostats and home appliance.
NANs are usually wireless and can reach more than 25 km. They transmit high power levels, but usually
relay relatively low data trafc. An example of NAN is a smart grid network used to transmit electric meters
readings from homes to the utility company using a proprietary protocol over a 900-MHz radio.
4 Texas Instruments
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
Figure 3. Different ranges and applications for personal, local, neighborhood and wide area networks.
Network
range
5 Texas Instruments
Finally, WANs are spread across a very large area as big as the entire globe. The Internet is considered a
WAN and it is built of a complex mix of wired and wireless connections.
Wireless networks can be also be categorized by their topology the way nodes in the network are arranged
and connected to each other. The rst two fundamental network topologies are star and mesh as depicted
in Figure 4. In a star topology, all the nodes are connected to one central node, which is typically also used as
the gateway to the Internet. A popular example of a star topology is a Wi Fi network, where the center node is
called an access point (AP) and the other nodes are called stations.
In a mesh network, every node can connect to multiple other nodes. One or more nodes in the network
serve as an Internet gateway. In the example of Figure 4 every node in the network is connected to every
other node. In real life mesh topology is simpler. A popular example of a mesh network is a ZigBee

Light
Link network where multiple lights form a mesh network to extend the network reach in large buildings.
One of the ZigBee nodes is called a coordinator, and it usually serves also as an Internet gateway.
However, mesh networks are more complex to design and can exhibit a longer delay routing a message
from a remote node through the mesh, compared to star networks. The benet of a mesh topology is that it
can extend the range of the network through multiple hops, while maintaining low radio transmission power.
They can also achieve better reliability by enabling more than one path to relay a message through the
network.
Network size, or the maximum number of simultaneously connected devices, is also an important consider-
ation in system design. Some technologies like Bluetooth support up to 20 connections; others technologies,
like ZigBee, can support thousands of connections.
One of the biggest challenges in communication systems is interoperability the ability of devices from
different vendors to exchange data. Addressing this challenge is the main goal of many standards organiza-
tions that dene specications and testing procedures designed to assure interoperability between devices.
Recalling the OSI network model from Figure 2 some standards dene one or several network layers, while
others dene the entire end-to-end network specications.
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
Figure 4. Star topology (left) and Mesh topology (right)
Network topology
and size
Standards and
interoperability
6 Texas Instruments
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is a nonprot organization formed in 1963. It has
a considerable focus on communication and radio engineering, and one of its well-known contributions to the
networking technology is the IEEE 802.x family of standards. To name a few members of the 802.x family
802.3 denes the Ethernet specication, which governs most wired computer networks today. 802.11 de-
nes the WLAN specication, which is the baseline of the Wi-Fi standard, 802.15.4 denes the wireless PAN
standard used in ZigBee, 6LoWPAN and WirelessHART. It is important to point out that the 802.x standards
dene only the link layer of the network.
The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is an open standard organization formed in 1986 that is
responsible for development of Internet standards, particularly the TCP/IP suite. IETF specications are estab-
lished through the publication of draft specications under the title request for comments (RFCs). An RFC
is followed by multiple reviews and edits done by IETF members until the specication is approved to a best
current practice status. There are thousands of Internet standards dened by RFCs. A few examples are RFC
791, which describes the IPv4 protocol; RFC 793, which describes the TCP protocol, and RFC 2616, which
denes the HTTP/1.1 protocol.
The IETF, like the IEEE, does not run certication programs. That is, vendors cannot get recognition from
either one of these organizations that their products comply with any of the standards. The IEEE and the IETF
standards set good practices for implementation. Other organizations adopt standards from IEEE and IETF
and use them to create certication programs. These organizations often adopt just a portion of an IEEE or an
IETF standard for various reasons.
Three well-known organizations that manage certication programs today to assure interoperability be-
tween wirelessly connected devices are the Wi-Fi Alliance, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) and the
ZigBee Alliance. All three organizations provide member companies the option to take products through an
interoperability test plan, which grants rights to wear the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or ZigBee logo.
So far we have reviewed some of the key concepts in wireless connectivity and discussed engineering
tradeoffs in wireless connectivity system design. Next we will cover the predominant wireless connectivity
technologies in the industry and their applications in more detail.
Wi-Fi technology, based on the IEEE 802.11 standard, was developed as a wireless replacement for the
popular wired IEEE 802.3 Ethernet standard. As such, it was created from day one for Internet connectivity.
Although Wi-Fi technology primarily denes the link layer of a local network, it is so natively integrated with
the TCP/IP stack, that when people say they are using Wi-Fi they implicitly mean that they are also using a
TCP/IP for Internet connectivity.
Riding on the huge success of smartphones and tablets, Wi-Fi has become so ubiquitous that people often
refer to it as just wireless. Wi-Fi APs are deployed today in most homes, as well as in almost all ofces,
schools, airports, coffee shops and retail stores. The huge success of Wi-Fi is largely due to the remarkable
7 Texas Instruments
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
interoperability programs run by the Wi-Fi Alliance and to the increasing demand in the market for easy and
cost-effective Internet access.
Wi-Fi is integrated already into all new laptops, tablets, smartphones and TVs. Taking advantage of the
existing vast deployed infrastructure in homes and enterprise, Wi-Fis natural next step is to connect the new
age of things to the Internet.
Wi-Fi networks have a star topology, with the AP being the Internet gateway. The output power of Wi-Fi is
high enough to allow full in-home coverage in most cases. In enterprise and in large buildings, more than
one AP is often deployed in different locations inside the building to increase the network coverage. In large
concrete buildings dead spots may be found due to multipath conditions. To overcome dead signal receptions
spots in some cases, various Wi-Fi products include two antennas for diversity.
Most Wi-Fi networks operate in the ISM 2.4-GHz band. Wi-Fi can also operate in the 5-GHz band where
more channels exist and higher data rates are available. However, since the range of 5-GHz radios inside
buildings is shorter compared to 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz is mainly used in enterprise applications along with multiple
APs to ensure good Wi-Fi coverage.
Wi-Fi and TCP/IP software are fairly large and complex. For laptops and smartphones with powerful
microprocessors (MPUs) and large amounts of memory, this imposes no issue. Until recently, adding Wi-Fi
connectivity to devices with little processing power such as thermostats and home appliances was not pos-
sible or not cost effective. Today, silicon devices and modules coming out on the market embed the Wi-Fi
software and the TCP/IP software inside the device. These new devices eliminate most of the overhead from
the MPU and enable wireless Internet connectivity with the smallest microcontroller (MCU). The increasing
level of integration in these Wi-Fi devices also eliminates all required radio design experience and reduces
the barriers of Wi-Fi integration.
To enable high data rates (over 100MBps in some cases) and good indoor coverage, Wi-Fi radios have
fairly large power consumption. For some IoT devices, which run on batteries and cannot be charged
frequently, Wi-Fi can be too power hungry. Although the peak current of Wi-Fi radios cannot be reduced by
much, new silicon devices apply advanced sleep protocols and fast on/off time to reduce the average power
consumption dramatically. Since most IoT products do not need the maximum data rates Wi-Fi offers, clever
power management design can efciently draw bursts of current from the battery for very short intervals and
keep products connected to the Internet for over a year using two AA alkaline batteries. Today you can buy a
Wi-Fi based sports watch that uploads workout data to the Internet.
Most Wi-Fi APs claim support for up to 250 simultaneously connected devices. Enterprise-grade APs can
support even larger number of connections, and some popular consumer APs handle no more than 50.
To summarize, Wi-Fi is the most ubiquitous wireless Internet connectivity technology today. Its high power
and complexity has been a major barrier for IoT developers, but new silicon devices and modules reduce
many of the barriers and enable Wi-Fi integration into emerging IoT applications and battery-operated
devices.
8 Texas Instruments
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
Bluetooth technology, named after an ancient Scandinavian king, was invented by Ericsson in 1994 as a
standard for wireless communication between phones and computers. The Bluetooth link layer, operating
in the 2.4-GHz ISM band, was previously standardized as IEEE 802.15.1, but today the IEEE standard is no
longer maintained and the Bluetooth standard is controlled by the Bluetooth SIG.
Bluetooth became very successful in mobile phones, so much that all mobile phones today, even entry
level phones, have Bluetooth connectivity. The main use case that made Bluetooth popular initially was hands-
free phone calls with headsets and car kits. Thereafter, as mobile phones became more capable, more use
cases like high-delity music streaming and data-driven cases such as health and tness accessories evolved.
As mentioned earlier, Bluetooth is a PAN technology primarily used today as a cable replacement for short-
range communication. It supports data throughput up to 2MBps, and although more complex topologies are
included in its specications, Bluetooth is primarily used in a point-to-point or in a star network topology. The
technology is fairly low power; devices typically use small rechargeable batteries, or two alkaline batteries.
Bluetooth Low Energy (also known as Bluetooth Smart) is a more recent addition to the Bluetooth
specication. Designed for lower data throughput, Bluetooth low energy signicantly reduces the power con-
sumption of Bluetooth devices and enables years of operation using coin cell batteries. Supported by the new
generation of smartphones and tablets, Bluetooth low energy has accelerated the Bluetooth market growth
and enabled a wide range of new applications spanning health and tness, toys, automotive and industrial
spaces. Bluetooth low energy also introduced proximity capabilities that opened the door to location-based
services like beaconing and geo-fencing applications.
The Bluetooth classic standard can support up to eight devices connected in a star network simultane-
ously. The Bluetooth low energy standard removes this limitation and can theoretically support an unlimited
number of devices, but the practical number of simultaneously connected devices is between 10 and 20.
One of the advantages of the Bluetooth standard is that it includes application proles. These proles
dene in great detail how applications exchange information to achieve specic tasks. To name one example,
the Audio/Video Remote Control Prole (AVRCP) denes how a Bluetooth remote control interfaces with
audio and video equipment to relay commands like play, pause, stop, etc. The comprehensive certication
programs dened by the Bluetooth SIG cover the entire protocol stack as well as the application prole, help-
ing Bluetooth achieve excellent interoperability in the market.
So how is Bluetooth related to IoT? It connects wireless accessories the last 10 meters to a smartphone
or tablet, which acts as an Internet gateway. A wearable heart rate monitor logging its data on a tness cloud
server, and a phone-controlled door lock reporting its status to a security company are just two examples of
the many IoT applications enabled by Bluetooth technology.
9 Texas Instruments
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
ZigBee technology is interestingly named after the Waggle Dance that bees do when coming back from a
eld ight, to communicate to others in their hive the distance, direction and type of food they found. This
analogy hints to the mesh nature of ZigBee, where data hops from node to node in multiple directions and
paths throughout large scale networks.
Based on the IEEE 802.15.4 link layer standard, ZigBee is a low-throughput, low-power and low-cost
technology. It mainly operates in the 2.4-GHz ISM band although the spec also supports the 868-MHz and
915-MHz ISM bands. ZigBee can deliver up to 250KBps of data throughput, but is typically used at much
lower data rates. It also has the capability to maintain very long sleep intervals and low operation duty cycles
to be powered by coin cell batteries for years. New ZigBee devices coming to the market can even enable
energy harvesting techniques for battery-less operation.
The ZigBee standard is maintained by the ZigBee Alliance. The organization runs certication programs en-
suring interoperability between devices, which allow products to wear the ZigBee Certied logo. The standard
denes the higher networking layers on top of the 802.15.4 link layer and various application proles enable
full-system interoperable implementations. ZigBee can be used in multiple applications, but it has gained the
largest momentum and success in smart energy, home automation and in lighting control applications, each
of which has a specic ZigBee prole and certication. Another reason the ZigBee standard has done so well in
these application areas is because of the mesh network topology that can include up to thousands of nodes.
Although the ZigBee standard has an IP specication, it is separated from the popular smart energy, home
automation and light link proles, and has not gotten much traction in the industry. To connect to the IoT,
ZigBee networks require an application-level gateway. The gateway participates as one of the nodes in
the ZigBee network and in parallel runs a TCP/IP stack and application over Ethernet or Wi-Fi to connect the
ZigBee network to the Internet.
6LoWPAN is an acronym for IPv6 over Low power Wireless Personal Area Networks. The promise of 6LoWPAN
is to apply IP to the smallest, lowest-power and most limited processing power device. 6LoWPAN is really the
rst wireless connectivity standard that was created for the IoT. The term Personal Area Networks within the
6LoWPAN acronym can be confusing because 6LoWPAN is typically used to form LANs.
The standard was created by the 6LoWPAN working group of the IETF and formalized under RFC 6282
Compression format for IPv6 datagrams over IEEE 802.15.4-based networks, in September 2011. As
indicated by the RFC title, the 6LoWPAN standard only denes an efcient adaptation layer between the
802.15.4 link layer and a TCP/IP stack.
The term 6LoWPAN is loosely used in the industry to refer to the entire protocol stack that includes the
802.15.4 link layer, the IETF IP header compression layer and a TCP/IP stack. But sadly, there is no indus-
try standard for the entire protocol stack, nor is there a standard organization to run certication programs
for a 6LoWPAN solution. Since the 802.15.4 link layer has multiple optional modes, different vendors can
10 Texas Instruments
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
implement solutions that are not interoperable at the local network level, and still call all of them 6LoWPAN
networks. The good news is that 6LoWPAN devices running on different networks can communicate with
each other over the Internet, provided that they use the same Internet application protocol. Furthermore, a
6LoWPAN device can communicate with any other IP-based server or device on the Internet, including Wi-Fi
and Ethernet devices.
IPv6 was chosen as the only supported IP in 6LoWPAN (excluding IPv4) because it supports a larger address-
ing space, hence much larger networks, and also because it has built-in support for network auto conguration.
6LoWPAN networks require an Ethernet or Wi-Fi gateway to access the Internet. Similar to Wi-Fi, the gate-
way is an IP-layer gateway and not an application-layer gateway, which allows 6LoWPAN nodes and applica-
tions direct access to the Internet. Since most of the deployed Internet today is still using IPv4, a 6LoWPAN
gateway typically includes an IPv6-to-IPv4 conversion protocol.
6LoWPAN is fairly new to the market. Initial deployments use both the 2.4-GHz and the 868-MHz/915-
MHz ISM bands. Building on the 802.15.4 advantages mesh network topology, large network size, reliable
communication and low power consumption and on the benets of IP communication, 6LoWPAN is well
positioned to fuel the exploding market of Internet-connected sensors and other low data throughput and
battery-operated applications.
Many industrial applications today use proprietary protocols running over radio transceivers. The radio trans-
ceiver provides the link layer of the network, (or often times just the physical layer). The rest of the network
protocol is implemented by the OEM. Systems architected in this way leave more exibility to the system
designer at the expense of interoperability and development effort.
These proprietary radio systems primarily use the lower ISM frequency bands 433 MHz, 868 MHz and
915MHz and therefore are commonly referred to as Sub-1 GHz solutions. Sub-1 GHz solutions often trans-
mit high power and can reach over 25 km with a simple point-to-point or star topology. Many utility compa-
nies have created proprietary NANs to relay meter readings to a neighborhood collection point. Other popular
applications for Sub-1 GHz radios are security systems and industrial control and monitoring.
To connect to the IoT, Sub-1 GHz systems need an application-layer Internet gateway. In many cases this
is simply a personal computer running a TCP/IP stack.
The wireless connectivity market is rapidly growing because of the IoT. Nevertheless, many IoT applications
are connected to the Internet with wires. Ethernet connectivity, power line communication (PLC) and industrial
communication standards such as Fieldbus are just a few examples, the discussion of which is beyond the
scope of this paper.
Not only wireless
Radio transceivers and
proprietary protocols
There are many wireless technologies in the world each one has benets, no one is perfect. The question
that you need to answer is which technology is the best one for my application? Hopefully this discussion
has helped you better understand the popular wireless technologies for IoT and their strengths and weak-
nesses. Figure 5 on the following page maps connectivity technologies to range, throughput, power source
and network topology. These data points should be just part of the decision process since as shown, there are
many overlapping areas.
Additional considerations that go beyond the scope of this paper are cost, ease of integration and security.
We see great improvement on total solution cost and ease of integration coming in many new products,
that all use wireless connectivity. Cost and integration efforts should be further considered in the context
of specic applications. Security aspects of IoT applications include the supported capabilities of each of
the protocols, as well as additional hardware and software considerations, which are better covered in a
separatepaper.
TIs SimpleLink portfolio of low-power wireless connectivity solutions wireless MCUs, wireless network
processors (WNPs), RF transceivers and range extenders for the broad embedded market makes it easier
to develop and connect anything to the Internet of Things (IoT). Spanning over 14 standards and technolo-
gies including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Bluetooth low energy, ZigBee, Sub-1 GHz, 6LoWPAN and more, SimpleLink
products help manufacturers add wireless connectivity to anything, to any design, for anyone.
www.ti.com/simplelink.
Range
Typical topology
Throughput
T
e
c
h
n
o
l
o
g
y
10m
ZigBee

6LowPAN
2.4-GHz
Proprietary
Sub-1GHz
BLE
Wi-Fi

100m 10km
Mesh Star P2P
Bluetooth

20 Mbps
2 Mbps
20 kbps
Technology
Wi-Fi

BLE
ZigBee
6LowPAN
Sub-1GHz
Bluetooth

2.4 GHz
Proprietary
ZigBee , 6LowPAN

Sub-1GHz / 2.4GHz
Wi-Fi , , BLE

Bluetooth

Typical power source

A
A
C
o
i
n
C
e
l
l
N
o
B
a
t
t
e
r
y
A
A
A
ZigBee
6LowPAN

BLE
Sub-1GHz
Bluetooth

Wi-Fi

11 Texas Instruments
Conclusion
Figure 5. Summary of wireless technology parameters
Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things June 2014
TIs SimpleLink
wireless connectivity
portfolio
12 Texas Instruments
SWRY010 2014 Texas Instruments Incorporated
Important Notice: The products and services of Texas Instruments Incorporated and its subsidiaries described herein are sold subject to TIs standard terms and
conditions of sale. Customers are advised to obtain the most current and complete information about TI products and services before placing orders. TI assumes no
liability for applications assistance, customers applications or product designs, software performance, or infringement of patents. The publication of information
regarding any other companys products or services does not constitute TIs approval, warranty or endorsement thereof.
SimpleLink is a trademark of Texas Instruments. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
With the industrys broadest IoT-ready portfolio of wired and wireless connectivity technologies, microcon-
trollers, processors, sensors and analog signal chain and power solutions, TI offers cloud-ready system
solutions designed for IoT accessibility. From high-performance home, industrial and automotive applications
to battery-powered wearable and portable electronics or energy-harvested wireless sensor nodes, TI makes
developing applications easier with hardware, software, tools and support to get anything connected within
the IoT. Learn more at www.ti.com/IoT.
Texas Instruments
and the IoT
IMPORTANT NOTICE
Texas Instruments Incorporated and its subsidiaries (TI) reserve the right to make corrections, enhancements, improvements and other
changes to its semiconductor products and services per J ESD46, latest issue, and to discontinue any product or service per J ESD48, latest
issue. Buyers should obtain the latest relevant information before placing orders and should verify that such information is current and
complete. All semiconductor products (also referred to herein as components) are sold subject to TIs terms and conditions of sale
supplied at the time of order acknowledgment.
TI warrants performance of its components to the specifications applicable at the time of sale, in accordance with the warranty in TIs terms
and conditions of sale of semiconductor products. Testing and other quality control techniques are used to the extent TI deems necessary
to support this warranty. Except where mandated by applicable law, testing of all parameters of each component is not necessarily
performed.
TI assumes no liability for applications assistance or the design of Buyers products. Buyers are responsible for their products and
applications using TI components. To minimize the risks associated with Buyers products and applications, Buyers should provide
adequate design and operating safeguards.
TI does not warrant or represent that any license, either express or implied, is granted under any patent right, copyright, mask work right, or
other intellectual property right relating to any combination, machine, or process in which TI components or services are used. Information
published by TI regarding third-party products or services does not constitute a license to use such products or services or a warranty or
endorsement thereof. Use of such information may require a license froma third party under the patents or other intellectual property of the
third party, or a license fromTI under the patents or other intellectual property of TI.
Reproduction of significant portions of TI information in TI data books or data sheets is permissible only if reproduction is without alteration
and is accompanied by all associated warranties, conditions, limitations, and notices. TI is not responsible or liable for such altered
documentation. Information of third parties may be subject to additional restrictions.
Resale of TI components or services with statements different fromor beyond the parameters stated by TI for that component or service
voids all express and any implied warranties for the associated TI component or service and is an unfair and deceptive business practice.
TI is not responsible or liable for any such statements.
Buyer acknowledges and agrees that it is solely responsible for compliance with all legal, regulatory and safety-related requirements
concerning its products, and any use of TI components in its applications, notwithstanding any applications-related information or support
that may be provided by TI. Buyer represents and agrees that it has all the necessary expertise to create and implement safeguards which
anticipate dangerous consequences of failures, monitor failures and their consequences, lessen the likelihood of failures that might cause
harmand take appropriate remedial actions. Buyer will fully indemnify TI and its representatives against any damages arising out of the use
of any TI components in safety-critical applications.
In some cases, TI components may be promoted specifically to facilitate safety-related applications. With such components, TIs goal is to
help enable customers to design and create their own end-product solutions that meet applicable functional safety standards and
requirements. Nonetheless, such components are subject to these terms.
No TI components are authorized for use in FDA Class III (or similar life-critical medical equipment) unless authorized officers of the parties
have executed a special agreement specifically governing such use.
Only those TI components which TI has specifically designated as military grade or enhanced plasticare designed and intended for use in
military/aerospace applications or environments. Buyer acknowledges and agrees that any military or aerospace use of TI components
which have not been so designated is solely at the Buyer's risk, and that Buyer is solely responsible for compliance with all legal and
regulatory requirements in connection with such use.
TI has specifically designated certain components as meeting ISO/TS16949 requirements, mainly for automotive use. In any case of use of
non-designated products, TI will not be responsible for any failure to meet ISO/TS16949.
Products Applications
Audio www.ti.com/audio Automotive and Transportation www.ti.com/automotive
Amplifiers amplifier.ti.com Communications and Telecom www.ti.com/communications
Data Converters dataconverter.ti.com Computers and Peripherals www.ti.com/computers
DLPProducts www.dlp.com Consumer Electronics www.ti.com/consumer-apps
DSP dsp.ti.com Energy and Lighting www.ti.com/energy
Clocks and Timers www.ti.com/clocks Industrial www.ti.com/industrial
Interface interface.ti.com Medical www.ti.com/medical
Logic logic.ti.com Security www.ti.com/security
Power Mgmt power.ti.com Space, Avionics and Defense www.ti.com/space-avionics-defense
Microcontrollers microcontroller.ti.com Video and Imaging www.ti.com/video
RFID www.ti-rfid.com
OMAP Applications Processors www.ti.com/omap TI E2E Community e2e.ti.com
Wireless Connectivity www.ti.com/wirelessconnectivity
Mailing Address: Texas Instruments, Post Office Box 655303, Dallas, Texas 75265
Copyright 2014, Texas Instruments Incorporated