Sync over Bluetooth using Bluetooth-LE and iBeacon

nnppss

I can see a great opportunity for you guys to seriously enhance the syncing experience using Bluetooth-LE and iBeacon.

I switched back to 1Password from LastPass recently. The reason I moved to LastPass was the syncing experience. The reason I moved back was paranoia over having that data stored on someone elses servers (esp with the NSA stuff going on). That said, I'm super happy to have switched back - the overall experience on the desktop and mobile is way better, and the handy USB syncing utility covers me for syncing and doesn't set my spidey senses off.

That said, there's always room for improvement, and Bluetooth LE / iBeacon could represent a huge opportunity for you to take the next step in the syncing user experience. I'm sure I don't need to elaborate the limitations of the current syncing implementations, but I will:

• Dropbox: Requires a bit more setup than iCloud. Storing pretty sensitive info on someone elses servers.
• iCloud: Storing pretty sensitive info on someone elses servers.
• Wifi: Need to be on same wifi network - not always possible. (For me - rarely possible)
• USB: Need to be physically connected; not that hard, really.

The advantage of some Bluetooth LE based, iBeacon implementation would be that a) you're not storing data on anyone elses servers, b) there isn't anything at all special that the user has to do to permit the phone and desktop to talk to each other: no need to be on the same wifi network, no need to be physically connected. The user just has to have the phone somewhere near the mac and - voila! It has the ease of syncing with iCloud, without transmitting and storing your data with someone else.

I found this article which had pretty good coverage of this topic, at a technical level: http://www.doubleencore.com/2013/09/whats-new-in-bluetooth-le-ios-7/

Thoughts?

nnppss

The guys from Knocktounlock were kind enough to get back to me with a little bit of information about how they do their thing:

As for how Knock functions in terms of only working when the device is in range, that part of Knock is actually pretty simple as far as the Bluetooth is concerned. The iOS device advertises its presence over Bt and the Mac searches for the advertisement. Once those two interact, the Mac initiates a connection over Bluetooth. At this point, you can initiate pairing, which creates an additional identifier that Knock uses to confirm future pairing requests.

eva_s

Hi @nnppss,

Thanks for taking the time to write in to us with your feature recommendation. It's always so great to hear from people who love 1Password as much as we do. We're always looking to make 1Password the best and most user-friendly it can be, and your input into the process is much appreciated. While we can't directly discuss our future plans, I have noted down your request and we will look into it.