Wow. This week, the media went after Amazon’s distributed IoT network with a vengeance. Both the mainstream news and the tech press came out in

Planning to reject Amazon Sidewalk? Do it for the right reasons

submited by
Style Pass
2021-06-05 17:30:08

Wow. This week, the media went after Amazon’s distributed IoT network with a vengeance. Both the mainstream news and the tech press came out in force to recommend that people opt out of Amazon’s Sidewalk Network before June 8th, when Amazon is due to turn it on. I, on the other hand, recommend that you opt in.

There are really only four reasons to opt out of the network, and after I tell you a bit more about it, I hope you’ll agree with me. If not, here’s how to opt out.

Amazon designed the Sidewalk Network to provide a middle ground between home Wi-Fi networks and cellular coverage, with low-cost connectivity for devices that are out of Wi-Fi range but where cellular radios aren’t a fit due to their cost, size, or battery needs. These Low-Power Wide-Area Networks (LPWANs) have attempted to gain ground for a decade as companies have tried to provide coverage for IoT devices.

The biggest challenge in building these networks is cost, followed by power consumption. If someone wants to build a sensor that shares weather data a few times a day, it doesn’t make sense to buy a cellular subscription or put an expensive cellular module into the device. But if they have access to cheaper connectivity, it opens up a world of possibilities. An inexpensive radio coupled with inexpensive data would mean the cost of running the device could be much lower and built into the cost of the product, which means we could see a lot of new products.

Leave a Comment