There’s a bundle of software for working with it, including the usual Arduino IDE board definition. Particularly intriguingly, there are frameworks for Android and iOS software that can work with it reading the sensor data. For software devs who don’t want to get dirty in hardware, this provides an easy introduction to building software which interfaces more with the real world. It would, for example, allow you to build a Wii Nunchuk-style input device without having to get out your soldering iron or breadboard. There’s a sample application that you can run without even touching the hardware – just power it up and you can get the info you need off the device.
While the documentation for the project isn’t awful, neither is it great. The information you need is likely to be on the website, but it won’t necessarily be easy to find or understand, especially if you’re new to embedded hardware development. This is a slightly unusual situation: it’s an interesting option for real beginners because you can do so much without having to worry about the hardware, but it’s not a great option for intermediate users because once you do have to start worrying about the hardware, it’s not as simple as many other options.
The more you need to add to it, the more you’re likely to get bogged down by the documentation and relatively small community of hobbyist developers on this platform. For advanced users, the advantages kick in again – provided you don’t need to add too much to it, it’s still small, low power, and quick to get started with.
sensiEdge $70 sensiedge.com
Verdict
A feature-packed board for Bluetooth development, but with some quirks.
