When we talk about "tags," here we refer to a different type of IoT tag depending on the situation in which they are used. There are many types of IoT tags. Just think of barcodes and QR codes, but also RFID and NFC. But then we ask ourselves some things: which tags are active and which are passive, what is the difference, what are the features and where is the price difference?
Some say we are headed for an era where everything is automated. If you look at it realistically for a moment, we are full speed ahead to that era. Today, we can already communicate with our refrigerator when it runs out of cheese and control the lighting within our home with a single system. So IoT tags are just a logical part of this technological advancement.
To keep it simple, we will split the concept of IoT tags into two broad categories: passive and active. IoT tags can be viewed as a communication medium. Stimuli come in, the tag captures the stimuli and in response it will perform a certain action (e.g., save data, open documents, etc.).
PASSIVE
Passive tags themselves do not have a power source, meaning that they only start communicating once they receive a signal from an RFID antenna or reader. Thus, without this stimulus from an antenna or reader, a passive IoT tag itself will do nothing.
This is also the reason why a passive IoT tag is not suitable for all purposes, as it is quite a bit more limited in its capabilities compared to an active IoT tag. This does make them remarkably cheaper. The best-known examples of passive tags are barcodes and QR codes.
ACTIVE
Unlike passive tags, active IoT tags do have their own built-inpower supply or battery. That is, an active IoT tag is fully capable of sending a signal on its own, and thus does not operate only when it receives a stimulus from an RFID antenna or reader.
Since there is a battery/power supply in the tag, you will have to consider the battery life. That depends heavily on the number ofsignals the tag receives and sends per day. With a handful of signals per day, the battery will obviously last much longer than when the tag sends a notification every minute.
Active tags are capable of much more than passive tags. This makes them an immediately reliable choice when you want to track in harder-to-reach areas, provided they are not surrounded by a large amount of metal as this interferes with the signal.
The choice between passive and active
Before choosing between a passive or active IoT tag, it is important to determine exactly what information you want to find out. An active tag is capable of collecting and relaying more complicated information than a passive IoT tag.
If you want to link people through your flyer to your website, all you need is a QR code. If you are looking for a way to track expensive goods, for example, then an active tag is a much better option.
TIP: To keep the signal from your IoT tags as optimal as possible, make sure they are not surrounded by a large amount of metal as this interferes with the signal. In the car, it's best to place the tag on the dashboard and definitely don't put metal writing boards on top of it.
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