{"product_id":"adafruit-bluefruit-le-friend-ble-4-0-nrf51822-v1-0","title":"Bluefruit LE Friend - Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE 4.0) - nRF51822 - v3.0","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Bluefruit LE Friend is your new BLE BFF! This USB-to-BLE board makes it easy to get your computer talking to your BLE enabled phone or tablet using a standard serial\/UART connection.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn it's simplest form, it works on the same principle as a common USB\/Serial adapter. Any data that you enter via your favorite terminal emulator on your development machine will be transferred over the air to the connected phone or tablet, and vice versa, as a basic 'UART' connection\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe short and sweet:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCompletely transparent Data mode for USB to Bluetooth LE UART connectivity from computer to tablet\/phone\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eConnect to any phone or tablet with BLE, great for debugging or developing BLE devices or apps\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWorks great with both Nordic (Android\/iOS) or Adafruit (iOS) UART app, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/adafruit\/Bluefruit_LE_Connect\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003echeck out Adafruits source code if you want to create your own app!\u003c\/a\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUses the fancy Nordic nRF51822 chipset with custom firmware\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOptional Command mode to set GATT services\/characteristics, advertising name\/packet, Beacon capability, query status, RSSI, etc.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eComes with standard Over-the-Air DFU bootloader, reprogram firmware using any BLE-capable iOS or Android device\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e4 LED indicators: blue connection status, red mode status, orange and green for RX\/TX\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSnap-off SWD connector for advanced JTAG re-programming\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe details:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou might be asking, \u003cstrong\u003eHey my macbook already has Bluetooth and I can get a USB Bluetooth adapter, so why use this?\u003c\/strong\u003e Good question! You can get a \u003ca href=\"\/en-eu\/products\/bluetooth-4-0-usb-module-v2-1-back-compatible\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eBluetooth 4.0 USB dongle\u003c\/a\u003e from the store already, but Windows 7 doesn't support Bluetooth Low Energy natively, and on Win8 or OS X you'll have to sort through a huge pile of native Bluetooth APIs and development tools that often require an annual paid license and specific license terms to access. You can't just connect wirelessly without a huge stack of software or firmware in the way because there isn't a standard, open source, cross-platform way to talk BLE today.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Bluefruit Friend is much more, it has a full BLE peripheral stack and interface software so that you can treat your BLE connection just like a UART connection - that makes it trivial to use with free Terminal software or scripting software like python (with pySerial). Using Bluefruit LE Friend, you can be up and running in under and hour on just about anything with a USB port, with easy migration across platforms and operating systems.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo use, simply plug into your computer and flip the switch to either \u003cstrong\u003eUART\u003c\/strong\u003e mode (transparent data transfer, anything you type will be sent, and data from phone is received as well) or \u003cstrong\u003eC\u003c\/strong\u003eo\u003cstrong\u003eM\u003c\/strong\u003eman\u003cstrong\u003eD\u003c\/strong\u003e mode, where thanks to an easy to learn \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/introducing-adafruit-ble-bluetooth-low-energy-friend\/standard-at\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eAT command set\u003c\/a\u003e, you can also \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/introducing-adafruit-ble-bluetooth-low-energy-friend\/command-examples\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003ecreate you own basic GATT Services\u003c\/a\u003e and Characteristics, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/introducing-adafruit-ble-bluetooth-low-energy-friend\/beacon\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003esimulate Beacons\u003c\/a\u003e, and change the way that the device name appears\/advertises itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo make sure that your device stays up to date and can benefit from the latest Bluefruit LE firmware from Adafruit, you can also \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/introducing-adafruit-ble-bluetooth-low-energy-friend\/field-updates\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eupdate the firmware on your BLEFriend over the air\u003c\/a\u003e using any BLE-supported iOS or Android device. They always try to keep the bar as high as possible at Adafruit, and one of the biggest advantages of the BLEFriend and the entire Bluefruit LE family is that \u003cem\u003ethey wrote and maintain all of the firmware running on the devices themselves from scratch\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003eand they'll be releasing new firmware and bug fixes without having to rely on a third-party vendor. For super-advanced users, they have an SWD connector on board that can be used to reprogram the nrf51822 using Nordic's SDK and an SWD debugger like the J-Link.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou can even \u003ca href=\"\/en-eu\/products\/adafruit-bluefruit-le-sniffer-ble-4-0-nrf51822-v1-0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003epick up a sniffer edition of the board that comes pre-flashed with special firmware that \u003c\/a\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.adafruit.com\/products\/2269\"\u003eturns your BLEFriend into a low cost Bluetooth Low Energy sniffer\u003c\/a\u003e, capturing data and pushing it out to Wireshark. This firmware takes over the entire module so you cannot use the over-the-air programming ability, a J-Link programmer is required.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDownload the free Android\/iOS app and you're ready to rock! \u003c\/strong\u003eUsing Adafruits Bluefruit \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/bluefruit-le-connect-for-ios\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eiOS App\u003c\/a\u003e or \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=com.adafruit.bluefruit.le.connect\u0026amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eAndroid App\u003c\/a\u003e, you can quickly get your wireless project prototyped by using your iOS or Android phone\/tablet as a controller. There's a \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/bluefruit-le-connect-for-ios\/controller#color-picker\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003ecolor picker\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/bluefruit-le-connect-for-ios\/controller#sensors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003equaternion\/accelerometer\/gyro\/magnetometer or location (GPS)\u003c\/a\u003e, and an 8-button \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/bluefruit-le-connect-for-ios\/controller#control-pad\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003econtrol game pad\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/introducing-adafruit-ble-bluetooth-low-energy-friend\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAdafruit have a huge tutorial with all the details over at the Adafruit Learning System!\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTECHNICAL DETAILS\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/learn.adafruit.com\/introducing-adafruit-ble-bluetooth-low-energy-friend\/downloads\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eDatasheets, Drivers and EagleCAD files are available on tutorial download page\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAs if April 5, 2017\u003c\/strong\u003e the board has been updated to change the USB-Serial converter chip to CP2104 and remove the SWD connector (you can get to the SWD connection pads on the bottom of the PCB). This version is backwards compatible with previous versions.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAs of July 29th, 2015 we're selling an updated version with a black PCB and the nRF51822 module with 32KB of SRAM. This version is backwards compatible with previous versions and can also be used with the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/adafruit\/Adafruit_BluefruitLE_Firmware\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eAdafruit Bluefruit LE firmware v0.6.2 and higher\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/strong\u003e If you have the blue PCB version, that is 16KB and you can only go up to v0.5.0 due to RAM limitations.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProduct Dimensions: 61.0mm x 18.0mm x 7.0mm \/ 2.4\" x 0.7\" x 0.3\"\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWeight: 6.5g\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Adafruit","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":998517573,"sku":"ADA2267","price":19.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0174\/1800\/products\/2267-00_b.jpg?v=1539263292","url":"https:\/\/shop.pimoroni.com\/en-eu\/products\/adafruit-bluefruit-le-friend-ble-4-0-nrf51822-v1-0","provider":"Pimoroni Ltd","version":"1.0","type":"link"}