BlackBerry announced support for Bluetooth Smart Ready, enabling developers to create BlackBerry 10 apps which work with a range of compatible hardware.

Bluetooth Smart is supported by a range of products including fitness products such as heart rate and blood pressure monitors, smart watches, and gaming accessories.

BlackBerry provides support for various Bluetooth profiles via its native development kit, including AES-CCM cryptography and privacy features to ensure data is secure when transmitted from the peripheral to the smartphone.

Bluetooth Smart enables devices to communicate through “short, highly efficient data transfers, with low power requirements that help preserve the battery life of both the smartphone and the Bluetooth Smart device”.

“Interconnectivity opens up an exciting, new world for app developers. When devices are able to speak to each other, the possibilities become vast,” said Alec Saunders, VP of developer relations & ecosystems at BlackBerry.