A thing that should exist (assuming it doesn't): Bluetooth scheduling

"davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com" (davesaddiction)
10/29/2019 at 14:45 • Filed to: None

Just read an article about potential Bluetooth vulnerabilities, and everyone knows it’s a battery suck. Why is there no way to schedule when or where your Bluetooth turns on or off? Attempting to do this with IFTTT on iOS - hopefully I can find or make something that will do the job.

DISCUSSION (12)

Tareim - V8 powered > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/29/2019 at 14:49

it’s possible on Android, can make it do things based on connecting to a certain wifi or disconnecting etc.

functionoverfashion > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/29/2019 at 14:51

You can use NFC tags to do this kind of thing... I kind of went down that road at one point but found it wasn’t worth it to me right now. But it’s very intriguing.

facw > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/29/2019 at 14:51

Bluetooth hasn’t really been a big battery drain for a long time now. Chips have gotten more efficient and since at least BT 4/BLE, there has been low power modes that work quite well. If you are concerned about getting hacked, that’s one thing, but power consumption isn’t a big deal these days.

In any event, I leave mine on all the time, much better from a usability perspective.

MonkeePuzzle > Tareim - V8 powered
10/29/2019 at 14:52

as someone who long used android and switched to apple (due to a substantial discount), there is SO many things that you can do in android but not in IOS.

as you pointed out, I’m confident that setting a where or when for bluetooth to be enabled is fairly simple in android. I can see no such thing in apple’s options.

Textured Soy Protein > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/29/2019 at 14:56

I want to say several years ago HTC and/or Motorola had a thing built in to their phones where you could set certain actions to be triggered by certain conditions being met, i.e. when you leave your home GPS location, turn off your wifi . There’s an Android app called MacroDroid that has the same basic idea. Not sure if there’s an Apple equivalent.

Sampsonite24-Earth's Least Likeliest Hero > facw
10/29/2019 at 14:57

yeah mine is always on since thats how my phone talks to my watch

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Tareim - V8 powered
10/29/2019 at 16:55

Nice - I assumed as much...

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > facw
10/29/2019 at 17:02

Well, that’s good to know. Your thoughts on the security side - n ot worth worrying too much about?

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/29/2019 at 17:08

It’s considered good enough by major tech companies that find alternatives unacceptable.

Although it uses less energy now, on a per-bit basis it’s distinctly less efficient than modern 802.11 standards, especially the low-power modes . BLE is an attempt to bridge that gap and the Wi-Fi Alliance responded with 802.11ah (which isn’t widely used in devices yet, but is promising for other reasons).

facw > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/29/2019 at 17:16

I mean it is another attack vector to be sure, but unless we see more attacks I’m not too worried. Certainly on the Android side there are much bigger security risks.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > facw
10/29/2019 at 17:38

Good point.

Android giveth, and Andoid taketh away...

AestheticsInMotion > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/29/2019 at 22:22

I’ve got my phone set up to automatically turn on Bluetooth and connect to my stereo whenever I get in my car. Works great!

But yeah, echoing others, modern Bluetooth is a vastly different beast in terms of power draw (and connection strength!) then it was even just two years ago. Leaving it on all day makes a negligible difference for me, and I use my phone all day at work.