Android emulators are great for developing BluetoothLE applications. The trick is getting the Android emulator to recognize the BluetoothLE adapter.

What you’ll need:

  • Androidx86 iso from android-x86.org I used the 4.4 release candidate
  • Virtual Machine software: I used Oracle VirtualBox
  • A BluetoothLE USB adapter: I used the Cirago Bluetooth 4.0 USB Mini Adapter (BTA8000)
  • Android SDK for debugging
  • Install VirtualBox
  • Download Androidx86
  • Open VirtualBox and create a new machine. Set type to linux/other(32bit)
  • Set the virtual machine’s memory and harddrive space to whatever you need (but at least the minimum specs for Android).
  • When asked for the OS image, select the Androidx86 image you download from Androidx86.org
  • When the virtual machine boots, choose to install Android.
  • When the installation completes, shutdown the Android virtual machine and unmount the iso image
  • Plug in the Bluetooth USB adapter and add it to the Android Virtual Machine’s settings
  • Start the Android Virtual Machine and go through the start-up screens to configure Android for use
  • In the Android VM go to the settings and enable BluetoothLE (if this fails reboot the VM and try to enable again)

Chris Larson

September is my birthday month. This year I'm doing something special for myself. I'm giving my future 40 year old self a birthday present.

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