This Bluetooth GATT course is a must watch

Bluetooth is a backbone technology for countless off-the-shelf and hacker devices. You should know how to work with it – especially nowadays you will definitely be working on the Bluetooth GATT (Generic Attribute) layer. This two-part project from (V. Hunter Adams) of Cornell fame spares no detail to ensure you learn Bluetooth GATT for all your hacking needs – not only will you find everything you could want to know, you’ll also get an example of a GATT server and client application codebases that you can use in your projects, designed to work with the widely available Pi Pico W!

What’s better than a visual demonstration? The video below shows the GATT server running on a Pico W and processing six different parameters simultaneously. (Hunter) explores the server’s features with a smartphone app: sending string data back and forth, switching an LED, and even changing the parameters of the Pico’s audio or video color output. Flash the server code into your Pico W, play with it, read through it and follow the tutorial to find out what makes it tick.

What if you already have a GATT server device that you want to manage? After going through the server tutorial, pull up a second Pico W – you’ll of course get the GATT client tutorial, also accompanied by a video and sample code. This client is a user interface for the GATT server we just mentioned, controlled via the command line and equipped with features such as notifications. You may not even notice it happening, but you’ll have two Pi Picos connected via a Bluetooth link in no time, accompanied by a detailed university-level explanation of every single aspect. If that’s not enough to hack into the device of your choice, give it some time to sink in.

If you want to play with Bluetooth, you can’t find a better tutorial to start your project with – or just to understand BT GATT at a level an average hacker can only dream of. No matter if you want to capture data from your treadmill, free your continuous glucose monitor, or hack into gun safes for research purposes, this is a great course to crack open.