Does anyone have experience with the BuzzBox monitoring system? https://docs.osbeehives.com/docs/what-is-the-buzzbox-app
It monitors temperature and humidity, but it’s main feature is monitoring the sound of the hive to assess conditions. No scales unfortunately. Arnia have that option too, but don’t offer wifi connection, only 2G/3G, both dead and dying in Australia. I find the concept of assessing hive sounds intriguing and tempted by this product. Any thoughts?
Actually, my Arnia works really well here on 3G. I have set all my devices to 3G, as 4G reception is not as good. I get 1 bar more on 3G.
Good for now, Webclan. 3G is scheduled to close down in 2020 and 2G is already dead. I get lousy reception in my hilly area so anything that is limited to the mobile network is useless here. If Arnia added wifi I’d jump onboard. They seem to have the most robust system available with great reviews. In the meantime I’m investigating wifi enabled alternatives.
I must be stuck n the 20th century. I’ll leave the electronic gadgetry to all you millennials. Even “spell check” is stuck in the 20th century. It doesn’t recognize the word “millennials”.
Hahaha. Oh, hang on… LOL. We had Technology in the 20th century. I did my Radio Trade in the RAAF on valves, then those new fangled transistors and LEDs when blue was an impossible dream. The tech nerd in me loves to keep up with new tech, alas the rest of life sometimes gets in the way.
Unfortunately, I don’t think Arnia is working on WiFi. I was very reluctant as well when we discussed 3G.
Hopefully they will be 4G ready before it’s all switched off here.
Last I enquired they had no plans for wifi, but I guess they’ll upgrade eventually to 4G. Do you have the audio option in yours? I’m interested to hear any feedback. I believe Dawn_SD has the option.
Yes, have the mic. I’ll try take a pic of the graphs for you.
Thanks, Webclan. Quite a lot of data. Has it been useful to you for spotting pending problems?
Apart from seeing how active a hive is, I have seen when nectar is being fanned or robbing took place, but weight and humidity changes also play into that. You can definitely work out which queen slows down laying in winter or when they get too hot in summer.
These are facts one could just about work out by just watching the hives.
I enjoy reading graphs, that’s all.
Else we didn’t have any problems so far.
The brood temp would indicate immediately if the queen died or stopped laying, but that didn’t happen yet either.
The best is that you can observe your hives when away. Peace of mind.
I like looking at data too. The Arnia has loads to sift through. The idea of checking on your hives while away is very cool. Maybe I could hack a wifi solution for it. Just need more time.
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Go for it.
We’ll be with you with all our equipment.
Maybe you could work with Arnia, to make them realize there is a world market including all their expertise.
3G is a bit almost in the past, as you said. At least in Australia.
Would be a shame if all our cool Arnia system is suddenly not working anymore once 3G is switched off.
I’m not sure if the company is getting prepared. Heard England is still happy on 2G.
I wonder if @Dawn_SD is on 2 or 3G, and if her location is going to keep 2 or 3G up for much longer in the future.
In the end, Arnia will have to respond to market.
They can’t just leave people all over the world with very expensive suddenly useless equipment.
I believe it is 2G, from my discussions with Arnia support. Given our proximity to Mexico and that a large part of the population is on low wages here, I would guess that there is pressure to maintain 2G for a good while.
The Gateway box (cellular modem) has a Zigbee chip in it, so it may well be possible to hack something if you are good with electronics.
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Thanks, Dawn. I have a cousin who is a genius at electronic circuit design. I’m confident that he could come up with a solution. Maybe even a user installable modification.
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I just heard 2G is getting switched off end July here. Not sure if it’s Australia wide, but guess so.
A few people I know have to get new phones right now.
I hope they will give 3G a little while longer. At least till Arnia caught up.
Yes, 2G shut down this year. It’s all but dead now. 3G is scheduled for 2020. It’s lead by Telstra so maybe other carriers will last a little longer. Spectrum licensing ultimately determines the life. 4G and 5G(rolling out next year) are better use of the radio spectrum. So Arnia should look to a 4G/5G/wifi option to future proof.
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The problem with 5G is that they haven’t even agreed the standards yet. The more it changes, the more it stays the same… 
Even with WiFi, do you go a, b, g, n or what? 
Agreed, Dawn. I don’t know whether the Arnia is modular in design or if everything is on one board. I can see benefit in having a plug-in comms board that could be user upgraded as the technology develops. I like the look of 802.11ah for wifi. Greater range, lower power consumption and penetrates walls.
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