Some apps work better with an object in the user's hand: a tag they tap, a small screen they glance at, a button they press. This page is for app and software companies that want one, carrying their own brand, without an electronics team. It covers when you do not need custom hardware at all, how a device reaches your app, whose cloud it depends on, and what Anvol needs from you to cost it.
What kind of device does your app need?
Most devices that work with an app do one of three jobs. Tap: an NFC tag or object the phone reads; the phone does the work, so the object needs no battery (NFC devices). Glance: a screen, often e-ink, that shows something from your service; it needs power and Wi-Fi (e-ink displays). Press: a button that sends an event to your service; battery life and the radio are the hard parts (smart buttons). Pick the one job first. A device that tries to do all three is a much bigger project.
Do you need custom hardware, or will an off-the-shelf tag, button or screen do?
Often an off-the-shelf part is enough to find out whether your users want it. Printed NFC tags can be ordered from one unit (Tagstand). Smart buttons can carry your logo (Flic). E-ink displays are sold to businesses in volume (TRMNL lists 151 units and up from $99 each). Test with one of these before you pay for anything custom.
Custom hardware makes sense when the object itself is part of your brand, when the device has to talk to your own server rather than a vendor's platform, when the shape or behavior you need does not exist, or when you need to control supply.
How does the device talk to your app?
NFC. The phone reads the tag. On iPhone, background tag reading hands the tag to your app only when the first record on it is a Universal Link for your domain; a custom URL scheme such as myapp:// does not work (NFCore's guide). On Android, your app registers for the tag with an NFC intent filter.
Bluetooth LE. The device needs a battery and your app needs pairing and connection code. Good for things that stay near the phone.
Wi-Fi. The device talks to your server directly, so it works when the phone is away. The step users find hardest is getting it onto their Wi-Fi the first time; plan that flow early.
Whose cloud does the device run on?
If the device depends on another company's platform, your product depends on that company's plans. Amazon stopped selling its AWS IoT button in January 2020, and a customer who had bought nearly 2,300 of them over three years found out as sales stopped. Tidbyt stopped releasing new devices when it joined Modal in November 2024. A device you have made can point at your own server, so its life follows your service rather than a vendor's roadmap.
What does Anvol need from you to cost it?
A sentence is enough to start: what the device does, who holds it and roughly how many you want. It helps to say which phones your app runs on, whether the job is tap, glance or press, and whether you want one sample, tens or hundreds. Bring your logo and brand files if you have them. Anvol replies with the version it would build first, the choices that will drive the cost, and the one question it needs answered before it can put a number on it. Talking to Anvol and getting a cost is free.
What does the first sample round give you?
A sample round ends with a physical sample and the files behind it: schematic, enclosure 3D model (STEP), test report, photos and video. A 30% deposit starts a round; the balance is due after you approve the sample. The minimum is one unit. After that, a small batch of tens to hundreds is tested unit by unit and ships with a quality report and, where it applies, a certification test report such as FCC. How prototypes work.
Who owns the device, the design and the app?
Anvol is a product, not a shareholder: you own what you make. For a build you pay for, the rights are set out in your project agreement. Your app, your server and your users stay yours; the device is built to talk to them.
An example: board, firmware and app built together
Anvol's engineers built a lidar line-following car with a custom control board, an OLED display, lidar obstacle avoidance, magnetic line tracking and a companion phone app: the board, the firmware and the app came from the same engineers. Their City Smart kit series ships with each customer's own branding, silkscreen and packaging. More at anvol.dev, the engineering and production side of the same company.
What this is not
A cost is not a guaranteed final price or delivery date, and nothing is charged or started without your approval. How Anvol works · More answers · What an AI cofounder for hardware is.
Reviewed September 29, 2026. Talk to Anvol