Photon or Argon WIFI setup when deployed as a product?

[davidcool]

Hello all,
I’ve read through some topics on the forum related to deploying a Photon or Argon as a product to customers and how WIFI configuration could be managed. I didn’t manage to find any example code of how this might be done. Is anyone willing to share an example or two for this?

I am developing an iOS app displaying sensor data. I did see mention that it might be possible via bluetooth?

I’m looking for a solution where a client could go to a webpage or use an iPhone app to enter the SSID and password. I don’t want to have to use the particle app.

Also, I saw on the products page that the Argon is discontinued b/c of supply chain and mention of new Argon and Photon models. When will those be released and available? Would that impact this question in some way?

I apologize if this has been explored elsewhere, I’m just diving back into Particle world after a long break.

Many thanks.

[rickkas7]

The Wi-Fi Devices

Device	Form-Factor	Gen	Configuration Method	Lifecycle
Photon	24-pin	2	SoftAP, USB	Deprecated
P1	SMD Module	2	SoftAP, USB	Deprecated
Argon	Feather	3	BLE, USB	NRND
Photon 2	Feather	3	BLE, USB	Coming Soon
P2	SMD Module	3	BLE, USB	GA

The Photon and P1 are Gen 2 Wi-Fi devices and are generally no longer available for purchase. The STM32F205 MCU has 128K user firmware binaries and about 55K of available RAM.

The Argon is Gen 3 Wi-Fi devices that is currently available until existing stock runs out. It uses the Feather form-factor and uses BLE and USB for configuration. The nRF52840 MCU has 256K user firmware binaries and about 80K of available RAM.

The Photon 2 is the replacement for the Argon, is a Feather form-factor and uses BLE and USB for configuration. The RTL8721DM MCU has 2048K user firmware binaries and about 3072K available RAM.

The P2 is the a SMD module that is mostly pin compatible with the P1. The Photon 2 actually has a P2 on it, and firmware is binary compatible between the P2 and Photon 2. It uses BLE and USB for configuration. The RTL8721DM MCU has 2048K user firmware binaries and about 3072K available RAM.

Setup

Gen 2

The Photon and P1 generally used SoftAP (Wi-Fi access point mode) for configuration. This was generally from a mobile app, but it could also be done using a device-hosted web server. It could also be configured by USB, but that method is generally used by developers, not end customers.

A Device Setup SDK was available for iOS and Android to make setting up Wi-Fi and claiming devices easier. This is only available for the Photon and P1!

Gen 3

The Argon, Photon 2, and P2 all use BLE or USB for Wi-Fi configuration.

The setup.particle.io website is the preferred way for developers to set up their Wi-Fi devices. It uses browser-based USB. The Particle mobile app will be deprecated in the future and is not recommended.

For customers, the following methods will be available later this month (May 2023):

The preferred method if you are using a mobile app is to base it on our React Native BLE setup reference application. This shows how to set up Wi-Fi using the secure BLE connection. It is not a drop-in library like the Device Setup SDK but does illustrate the setup process.

There will also be a native iOS application. And a native Android application. Both of these are only example applications that show how to do the BLE setup and are not finished apps.

If you want to allow users to set up their device Wi-Fi over USB from a web browser, a sample app will be provided at the same time. This is HTML, Javascript, and CSS that you can customize and brand on your own website.

[rickkas7]

Documentation for configuring Wi-Fi on customer P2, Photon 2, and Argon devices for product creators is now available! Include information on BLE provisioning mode and other available techniques.

https://docs.particle.io/reference/device-os/wifi-setup-options/

[davidcool]

Many thanks for this!