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Apple Submits Third Model of Mystery 'Wireless Device' With Bluetooth and NFC to FCC
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I have to agree with a lot here, I think it's some little home automation step. I always wondered how Apple saw Nest. Seemed weird to just let Tony Fadell run in to a market and create a need for a product no one previously thought twice about - like a Thermostat. The Apple I used to know wouldn't have taken that lying down. That's their shtick. (Without using the phrase "a certain someone wouldn't have...")
External wiring is fascinating, which is why we all have to guess here. Never has Apple asked you to or allowed you to tinker since the old Mac Pro. Everything is glued and sealed to death. The only real guess is a Thermostat, the size and shape of an older AppleTV or Airport Express, with Siri features to act as a smart hub. (Their solution of having an AppleTV as a HomeKit hub is odd, and the ability to use 'any recent iPad laying around' is laughable.)
External wiring is fascinating, which is why we all have to guess here. Never has Apple asked you to or allowed you to tinker since the old Mac Pro. Everything is glued and sealed to death. The only real guess is a Thermostat, the size and shape of an older AppleTV or Airport Express, with Siri features to act as a smart hub. (Their solution of having an AppleTV as a HomeKit hub is odd, and the ability to use 'any recent iPad laying around' is laughable.)
Well, we know it's not chili because it has beans in it. But you're from a foreign land so your ignorance is forgiven.
Also, not enough obsequiousness in your quote.
Virtual Mac Pro Emoji Bar.
Makes obscenely expensive, 4 year old Mac Pros
seem like up to date, good value computers.
It's practically magic.
Makes obscenely expensive, 4 year old Mac Pros
seem like up to date, good value computers.
It's practically magic.
Do you have an RS-485 serial network in your house? And know how to wire to it?
Agreed. I think it's an NFC door terminal for internal use with their new HQ spaceship and perhaps in Apple Stores.
As noted before, I noticed that the original FCC setup diagram for the Equipment Under Test (EUT) accidentally left in the phrase, "Door SKU". Later versions removed that phrase.
Or, as you said, it could be some kind of Beacon / payment terminal, but it's pretty unusual for one to not also support USB, etc, at least if it were to be commercialized.
As someone else noted, most of these also only have a Component certification marking. Meaning they have not been tested as part of an overall system.
If you take a look on Energous website, they also have 3 different charging stations depending on the needs. Longer range, shorter range and a kind of plate to place charging device on. One could only hope that apple actually managed to implement this wireless charging technology!
That's what I'm still thinking too: A proximity card reader for access control applications. RS485 is a big hint.
But, apart from Apple's own HQ building, could this be Apple's "missing-link" product to extend the use of the iPhone's NFC and Touch ID far beyond simple credit card payments? As well as securing building access, it could tie iPhones and watches into: time-clocks, parking access, automated hotel check in, transportation, etc.
Let's just hope they don't make it thinner in the next revision. That'll take away half the fun.
We're on Page 1 and this is where we reached....
Yeah! Was thinking that too! It is very very very possible.
But I can't see Apple dooing it lol
Apple recently submitted an unnamed "Wireless Device" to the FCC, a U.S. government agency that regulates communications, for the third time. The latest filing lists a model number of A1845, slotting in between A1844 in the first filing and A1846 in the second, but there are no new clues as to what the device could be.
Apple again requested permanent confidentiality for most of the documents in the filing, including photos, user manuals, and schematics, so the entry largely remains a mystery. Test reports completed by UL Verification Services reveal that, just like in the first two filings, the device has Bluetooth LE and NFC.
The model numbers A1844, A1845, and A1846 do not correspond to any existing Apple products. A regulatory label in the first filing showed the device has at least two slightly curved edges and two Torx screws, but Apple cropped the image in the second and third filings, likely to give fewer hints about its design.
When the original "Wireless Device" was uncovered, there was some speculation that it could perhaps be a new Apple TV, but the prominent and lengthy regulatory text etched directly on the device, including a wiring guide, would be uncharacteristic of Apple to include on the exterior of a consumer-facing product.
The more likely explanation is that the wireless device is for internal use. It is possible that the device in question is something that is used in retail Apple stores, such as a product display unit or iBeacon-based equipment used to communicate with customer iOS devices, which Apple has filed with the FCC in the past.
The FCC filing could remain a mystery until the device is released, and we may not ever know if it does end up being a product for internal use. But it's fun to speculate, with predictions ranging from Apple's rumored Siri-enabled speaker to a smart thermostat given the RS-485 control signals listed.
Article Link: Apple Submits Third Model of Mystery 'Wireless Device' With Bluetooth and NFC to FCC
