Touted as the world's first peer to peer wireless network, Helium Hotspots allows users to connect a wide variety of IoT devices to the internet while earning the hotspot controller, Helium (HNT) cryptocurrency. Each hotspot is built on blockchain technology, allowing a peer-to-peer network between the IoT devices and the ability to cover a 10-mile radius.
The internet of things (IoT) focused company – Helium – announced the launch of trackers that can be detected for several miles replacing Wi-Fi and Bluetooth devices.
Helium launched its first-ever tracking devices connected to the Hotspots to enhance the location of lost items, pets, etc. According to the release, the “Helium Tabs” (the tracking devices) allow users to locate their lost items up to a 10-mile radius whenever there is a Hotspot nearby.
Frank Mong, the chief operating officer at Helium, explained how the Tabs work:
“Helium Tabs is a tracking product that allows you to attach to your purse, your dog or cat, and track in real-time where that purse or dog and cat is. All that's needed is a Helium Hotspot to be within that five to 10-mile radius to give you that information.”
Moreover, every time a Helium Tab connects to a hotspot, the hotspot owner will be paid in HNT tokens. Any low-power wide-area network device specified to LoRWAN is also compatible with the Hotspots. Currently, the cost of a Helium Hotspot is £450, while a Tab tracker costs £49.
The rapid progress in the development and adoption of Helium products across North America has set the company towards a global expansion path, starting with Europe and Asia.
Helium reports that “The People's Network” is currently connected to over 1000+ cities across the continent, including an ecosystem of “Hotspot owners, customers, partners, and developers.”
The company, created by the co-founder of Napster, is expanding its Hotspots operations to 32 European nations and seven countries in Asia in a bid to create a global wireless IoT network.
Following a $15 million Series C funding round, led by Union Square Ventures and Multicoin Capital, Helium saw accelerated adoption and development rates. It announced its plans to expand its crypto mining modem services to over 250 cities within the U.S.