Sigfox, the developer of a low powered wide area network technology for IoT connectivity has introduced what it says is the world’s first, ultra-low cost IoT connectivity modules, with prices starting at $US3.0 in Asian and American markets and $US2.0 in European, Middle East and African markets.
No reason was given for the 50 percent price differential. Nor has Sigfox indicated the volumes to which these prices will apply.
Sigfox says the new modules are as little as one twentieth the price of LTE cellular modules and one fifth the price of the closest competing LPWAN technologies. It says the LPWAN market is set to grow 90 percent annually to $US24.5 billion by 2021.
Sigfox says it achieved this “unprecedented low cost” it worked with its partners to optimise every aspect of the design and specification down to the silicon level. “The module specifications are also royalty free to ensure the lowest possible cost, whilst encouraging even greater levels of innovation.”
The first manufacturer of the module is Korea’s Wisol, which is already delivering samples based on ON Semiconductor single chip SoC and which will start mass production in December 2016, Sigfox says. Also Taiwan-based InnoComm will be manufacturing modules based on NXP transceivers. Its samples will be available from January 2017, with mass production starting in March 2017.
In addition to these suppliers, Sigfox says it has built a comprehensive supply chain of ecosystem partners that are developing, selling and supporting the connected devices.
“Sigfox ecosystem partners will also be launching new modules to combine the Sigfox protocol with other complimentary connectivity protocols, such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE),” Sigfox says. “Combining these protocols with Sigfox will deliver additional benefits and features that are required by many IoT applications. These additional low cost modules will be available in early 2017.”
