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Silicon Labs, Amazon Stroll the IoT Sidewalk Together

Sept. 21, 2020

The pair are set to collaborate on Amazon’s Sidewalk, a shared network for spreading Wi-Fi wealth.

Silicon Labs plans a collaboration with Amazon to support Amazon Sidewalk, a shared network created by neighbors who share a small portion of Wi-Fi bandwidth to help their devices work better at home and, yes, out on the sidewalk. Silicon Labs’ wireless implementations for Amazon Sidewalk will enable developers to create IoT products with encrypted cloud communication, no matter which protocol is used. Silicon Labs’ EFR Wireless Gecko Series products support Sidewalk's sub-GHz and Bluetooth Low Energy protocols.

Operated by Amazon at no charge to users, Sidewalk helps simplify new device setup, extends the working range of low-bandwidth devices, and helps them stay online and up-to-date even if they are outside their home’s Wi-Fi range. With Amazon Sidewalk, users can experience improved coverage of smart devices in and around the home and throughout the neighborhood, enable limited offline connectivity for uses such as motion alerts from security cameras, receive customer support for troubleshooting even when Wi-Fi is down, and easily setup new devices.

In the future, Sidewalk will power new device functionalities such as tools that can self-diagnose problems and order replacement parts, deliver improved range with reduced energy consumption for smart locks, and offer the ability to locate pets or valuables throughout your neighborhood.

Equipped with multiple layers of security and privacy, Amazon Sidewalk will support Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Frequency Shift Keying (FSK) and Chirp Spread Spectrum (CSS) in the 900-MHz band.

Silicon Labs, www.silabs.com

About the Author

David Maliniak | Executive Editor, Microwaves & RF

I am Executive Editor of Microwaves & RF, an all-digital publication that broadly covers all aspects of wireless communications. More particularly, we're keeping a close eye on technologies in the consumer-oriented 5G, 6G, IoT, M2M, and V2X markets, in which much of the wireless market's growth will occur in this decade and beyond. I work with a great team of editors to provide engineers, developers, and technical managers with interesting and useful articles and videos on a regular basis. Check out our free newsletters to see the latest content.

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In his long career in the B2B electronics-industry media, David Maliniak has held editorial roles as both generalist and specialist. As Components Editor and, later, as Editor in Chief of EE Product News, David gained breadth of experience in covering the industry at large. In serving as EDA/Test and Measurement Technology Editor at Electronic Design, he developed deep insight into those complex areas of technology. Most recently, David worked in technical marketing communications at Teledyne LeCroy, leaving to rejoin the EOEM B2B publishing world in January 2020. David earned a B.A. in journalism at New York University.