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> but if you want to actually sell your products, you still have to go through the process of RF certification (although at a lower cost. Only you can decide if

> but if you want to actually sell your products, you still have to go through the process of RF certification (although at a lower cost. Only you can decide if the higher upfront cost of using a module vs. spinning your own is offset by the lower certification cost) I doubt it was your intention given the disclaimer there, but based on my own research into this issue, this is a highly misleading statement, especially for small volume products. Full FCC RF certification is not only very expensive, but also very complex from what I understand. It is NOT an easy process. That is why these modules are so popular in many actual commercial products. If you need FCC certification for your product and use a pre-certified module (and presuming no other radio hardware is present), you only have to undergo the testing for an unintentional radiator I believe, which is a much simpler prospect. The difference in cost is said to be in the neighborhood of $5K to $10K, though I haven't gotten any actual quotes yet, so I can't give anything definitive there. Disclaimer: IANAL of any description, and I have not yet gone through this process myself; I'm just researching it as I get ready to produce a product. Do your own research, or better yet, hire someone who truly knows this stuff!

petsfed 2y ago
I've been through the full FCC certification process for an intentional transmitter, and it is pretty labyrinthine, on top of being very expensive (I recall $30k, but I don't have access to that company's financials anymore). Its certainly true that a module can save you a lot of money for small volumes. Its actually pretty easy to figure out where the tipping point is: Its the difference in certification costs divided by the difference in BOM costs. Its a little bit more complicated when you factor in economies of scale, but by and large, module costs don't fall off as steeply as individual components do.

petsfed 2y ago

I've been through the full FCC certification process for an intentional transmitter, and it is pretty labyrinthine, on top of being very expensive (I recall $30k, but I don't have access to that company's financials anymore). Its certainly true that a module can save you a lot of money for small volumes. Its actually pretty easy to figure out where the tipping point is: Its the difference in certification costs divided by the difference in BOM costs. Its a little bit more complicated when you factor in economies of scale, but by and large, module costs don't fall off as steeply as individual components do.