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by untog 5299 days ago
Some things that are not possible yet (though it would be super cool if they were on Apple’s todo list):

- iPhone to iPhone CoreBluetooth communication

This is a killer. All of the ideas suggested in the article would require custom built hardware- if we could do user-user connections then I think a lot more would be possible.
3 comments
Timothee 5299 days ago
You can already have user-to-user connections through BlueTooth.

One way is to use GameKit (http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/Networ...) but I believe you can just go with a BlueTooth connection.

Are you thinking about something else? Is it some specificity of GameKit that's limiting you?

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ricardobeat 5299 days ago
Apple has just revamped their hardware partner program, supposedly providing easier access to BL4 chipsets. Other hardware makers will certainly follow. I bet (and hope) this will be bigger than RFID.
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gonzo 5299 days ago
What are you attempting to say here?

While Apple has made recent changes to MFi (can't discuss, NDA), these are expressly NOT about access to Bluetooth LE or 4.0 "chipsets".

What IS true is that you don't have to go through MFi to have a device that talks LE to an iOS device.

Is this what you were trying to say?

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ricardobeat 5299 days ago
Yeah, I misused "chipsets". AFAIK you need an Apple-certified chip to interface to an iOS device via BT/AirPlay, isn't that right?

I'm just relaying news I've hear somewhere else, feel free to correct me.

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masklinn 5299 days ago
As Timothee notes, peer-to-peer already exists, it was one of the big bullet points in iOS3, as part of the push towards improved gaming experience (which also yield GameCenter in iOS4).

I've yet to see an application make use of peer-to-peer communications at all (as well as in-game chat, though I'm pretty happy about that one).

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guptaneil 5299 days ago
I made a concept app that uses GameKit to share flashcards between iPads[1]. P2P in iOS is definitely underused, especially in non-gaming apps, but even GameKit requires some sort of connection setup. Having a zero-configuration P2P connection would be quite useful for many apps, such as Bump.

1: https://github.com/neilgupta/NoteBuddy

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