How to scan for Bluetooth Low Energy devices in Windows 8 Desktop?

Question

How to scan for Bluetooth Low Energy devices in Windows-8 Desktop?

I\'ve tried to use WinSock APIs but all I\'m get is Bluetooth Classic devices.

I\'ve also

Answer 1

You could use BLE hardware module that you can control via a serial interface. Depending on your use case this may not be what you want as it does not make use of Windows 8's internal BLE stack! Basically this solution is for tinkering/development.

I know these two devices that can do this and have APIs for BLE discovery:

• HM-10: http://imall.iteadstudio.com/im130614001.html
• BLE112: https://www.bluegiga.com/en-US/products/bluetooth-4.0-modules/ble112-bluetooth--smart-module/

Answer 2

In case other people are looking for an answer.

In Windows 8 (Desktop & Metro App) there are NO APIs for BLE device discovery and pairing.

This is not lack of implementation, it is by design. Windows folks want us to use "inbox experience" to search & pair BLE devices.

For more details, see this MSDN forum thread.

Good luck!