Configure Gimbal iBeacon without iPhone?

Question

Is there a way to configure the physical gimbal beacon without an iPhone?

In these instruction, it says you need to use the iPhone app. Is there another way with Android, PC, etc?

Answer 1

To apply custom configurations to a Gimbal Beacon or to change the Beacon Type from "Gimbal" to "iBeacon", you need the Gimbal Beacon Manager iOS App: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/gimbal-beacon-manager/id785688563

The configuration app is iOS only, there is no desktop or Android version of this configuration utility.

The steps to configure a beacon are: -- register the beacon at Gimbal.com -- create a configuration for your beacon(s) -- set the beacon to use the specified configuration on gimbal.com -- Launch the app on your iOS device, and go to the "Configure" section -- reset the beacon by opening it and taking out the battery and closing it again -- at this point the app will see the newly reset beacon (via Bluetooth), and ask if you want to update it. Press the "Update" button, and you're done.

So yes, you need an iOS device to configure the beacons.

Answer 2

As of today, Gimbal's beacons will work on both iOS and Android. You are certainly able to set everything up on your Gimbal Developer Account and configure the Gimbal SDK to work with your application and OS of choice. However, you won't be able to test these beacons without a device with BLE or Bluetooth Low Energy support.

This could be a tablet or a phone but most certainly will need a physical device to test things with. Also, keep in mind Gimbal's beacons are compatible with the iBeacon specification but aren't necessarily considered to be official iBeacons (strictly from a trademark/brand perspective). You must have a Gimbal Developer Account in order to use their beacons (whether running in iBeacon or Gimbal proprietary mode) and when going to production will want to consider the pricing per active user to use the service.

As noted before, what's nice about the Gimbal beacons is they are cross-platform. Some manufacturers will only allow their beacons to work on certain platforms or require the use of a proprietary SDK other than one which is open/public. Gimbal uses a proprietary SDK and requires the use of their backend service.

I hope I cleared things up for you. If you wish to know more about using the Gimbal Proximity SDK for Android or setting up the Gimbal Proximity SDK for Android Studio, please click on the respective links.

Update 10/11/2016

You are also able to configure a subset of items directly with the SDK inside your application but Gimbal is really pushing everything to be configured via your Gimbal Developer Account (a.k.a. Gimbal Admin Dashboard).

As far as configuring everything with a separate application from the one you are developing (e.g. a standalone application that allows you to configure your beacons which are associated with your Gimbal account), the only option I'm aware of is the Gimbal Manager for iOS.

Keep in mind this app basically accomplishes the same thing as if you were at your computer and logging into your Gimbal Developer Account. This could be convenient in situations where you are running around placing beacons and are not directly near a computer.

Granted, you could also accomplish the same thing on a mobile browser logging into your Gimbal Developer Account but a native app is likely to work better.

Thus, looking back at your question, the only standalone app for any platform to configure your beacons is the Gimbal Manager for iOS. With that being said, below is a simple list showing current options to configure your beacons.

1. Gimbal Developer Account
2. Gimbal Manager for iOS
3. Gimbal SDK from Within Your Application

Finally, if you need any assistance troubleshooting your beacon signals please see this article.