Does nRF52805 supports BLE 6.0 when using SDK 2.8 or later?

[PKG]

Hello,

I want to confirm whether the nRF52805 supports Bluetooth 6.0 features when using the Nordic SDK version 2.8 or later.

Thanks,

PG

[SwRa]

Hi Praveen,

Yes, the nRF52805 supports BLE 6.0 features with NCS v2.8.0 and later. See the compatibility matrix: https://docs.nordicsemi.com/bundle/comp_matrix_nrf52805/page/COMP/nrf52805/nrf52805_ble_qdid.html 

Best Regards,

Swathy 

[PKG]

Hi Swathy,

Good to know it supports the BLE 6 feature. Could you tell me which sample I should use to test BLE 6 on the nRF52805? When I try building the peripheral_hr  sample for the nrf52dk/nrf52805 target, I get errors like "ld.bfd.exe: region RAM overflowed" because the nRF52805 only has 192 KB of Flash and 24 KB of RAM. If I want to test BLE 6, which sample is small enough to fit within this device’s memory limits? 

Setup Details: SDK 3.1.0, IDE: VS Code, nrF Connect extension, nRF52805 .

Thanks,

PG

[MJJ]

Have you tried the minimal configuration?

[PaKa]

And BLE 6 feature is not really clear. The nRF52805 is qualified to Bluetooth Core 6.2 with the latest nRF Connect SDK tag and this means it supports all the latest erratas from the Bluetooth 6. It does not mean it supports Channel Sounding for instance, this was the hallmark feature for Bluetooth 6.

What features are you looking for?

[PKG]

Hi,

You mean, even though the nRF52805 is approved for Bluetooth Core 6.2 when used with the newest nRF Connect SDK, this only means it follows the updated rules and fixes in the standard? It does not mean the chip supports new Bluetooth 6 features. For example, Channel Sounding,  the main new feature in Bluetooth 6, does not work on the nRF52805 because the hardware isn’t built for it.

Thanks,

PG

[PaKa]

Hi,

so the Bluetooth Core specification used for certification only ever guarantees that the device complies with all the latest errata fixes and other mandatory features. Since 4 the more or less the only mandatory features have been the errata workarounds.

You can never use the Bluetooth core version number to determine if specific features are supported in the device. As in, a nRF52 device is certified to Bluetooth Core 6.2 but does not support Channel Sounding, only the nRF54L series does that.

You can use the Bluetooth core version to determine what features are guaranteed to not be supported. A device certified to Bluetooth Core 5.3 will not support Channel Sounding as that require Bluetooth core 6.0.

This has been the case for a long time but the Bluetooth SIG is working to improve the messaging around the version and feature support.