"Tile Pro" Tracker - Impressive Range

[jumpingfool]

I have recently purchased the newly released "Tile Pro" bluetooth tracker after noticing a number of reviews online were giving good reports in terms of the BLE range.

The device is using the TC35678 from TI connected to an RF amplifier that I've been unable to identify marked X8 OZ4D. It also has a pretty funky looking PCB antenna - you can see it in the FCC report here:

fccid.io/.../Internal-Photos-3495407

They claim battery life of 1 year on a CR2032.

Under test the line of sight range from this device is nearly double that I can achieve from the NRF52 DK. Is this a function of the amplifier, the antenna design or potentially both?

If I move my design to the 52840 with +8db output can I reasonably expect to achieve similar performance in terms of range and battery life, or will an RF amplifier need to be incorporated into the design in order to achieve this?

[ovrebekk]

Hi

Was the output power of the nRF52832 +4dBm when you compared it, or was it lower?

I strongly doubt the antenna of the Tile module is better than the one on the DK, due to it's smaller size. If they did a good job tuning it (which I assume they did, judging by the range) it should be comparable.

If the range is double this is most likely caused by higher output power, and double the range equals roughly 6dB higher output power.

To summarize, if the Tile was double the range of the nRF52DK at +4dBm, then I doubt the nRF52840 at +8dBm will be able to beat it, but it should get you close.

As a final note, the TC35678 appears to be a Toshiba part. I wasn't aware they were in the BLE space, but these days everyone is.

Best regards
Torbjørn Øvrebekk

[ovrebekk]

Hi

It's not unreasonable that the smaller Tile antenna would be more omni-directional. A straight monopole antenna will have a hole in the direction it is pointing, while a meandering antenna will have a more unpredictable (and usually more omni-directional) radiation pattern because of the many bends in the antenna.

I have never heard about the X8 part. Googling this part number didn't yield much either, so it's hard to say what it could be. Skyworks is the most common provider of PA solution in Nordic designs, but it doesn't look like one of those.

If you want to design your own PCB we are happy to look over your layout, and we can also assist in tuning the antenna if you don't have the lab equipment to do so yourself.

Best regards
Torbjørn