Still choosing GPS for your positioning module? Maybe an integrated positioning and communication module is a better fit for you.

In today’s Internet of Things (IoT) applications, precise positioning and efficient communication have become indispensable core requirements across various scenarios. Traditionally, GPS modules have dominated many fields such as navigation, surveying, and logistics due to their high-precision positioning capabilities. In open outdoor environments, GPS can provide accurate location data and plays a critical role in professional areas like vehicle navigation, geographic coordinate mapping, and tracking of logistics cargo.

However, as IoT application scenarios become increasingly complex and diverse, the limitations of GPS modules have gradually become apparent. In challenging environments such as underground or indoors, GPS signals are easily obstructed or interfered with, causing positioning to fail. Environments like port container yards and underground pipelines are particularly affected. Moreover, standalone GPS modules lack built-in communication capabilities; to enable communication, additional communication modules must be added. This not only occupies extra device space but also raises hardware costs. Additionally, deploying in different regions requires adaptation to multiple frequency bands, increasing design complexity and expenses.

In contrast, integrated positioning and communication modules—such as those based on the Semtech LR1120 chip solution—highly integrate communication and positioning functions into a single chip. This achieves deep sharing of hardware resources and optimized configuration, simplifying design while improving performance.

The Rise of Integrated Positioning and Communication Modules
Represented by Semtech’s LR1120 chip solution, these modules integrate multi-band communication capabilities—including Sub-GHz LoRa, 2.4GHz, and S-band—with GNSS positioning and Wi-Fi passive scanning into a compact package. In typical IoT applications, they offer the following key advantages:

Integrated Communication + Positioning:
Seamlessly combines multi-band communication (Sub-GHz, 2.4GHz, S-band), multi-constellation GNSS scanning, and passive Wi-Fi MAC address scanning into a single core solution.

Low Power Operation:
By leveraging cloud-based calculation, it significantly reduces local processing power consumption. The Sub-GHz receiver sensitivity reaches up to –144 dBm, avoiding extra power drain caused by repeated signal acquisition attempts due to weak signals. Actual measurements show a receive current below 7 mA, sleep current under 1 µA, and adjustable transmit power up to 22 dBm.

Dual-Mode Positioning for Full Coverage:
LR1120 supports both GNSS and Wi-Fi scanning. The GNSS feature supports cloud-native multi-constellation scanning (e.g., GPS, BeiDou, GLONASS), combined with platforms like LoRaCloud or Tencent Cloud for efficient location resolution, enabling low-power geographic information acquisition. Wi-Fi passive scanning locates devices indoors by detecting nearby Wi-Fi MAC addresses, providing accurate positioning compensation where GNSS signals are unavailable, thus ensuring reliable positioning in various complex environments.

Multi-Band Support for Global Adaptation:
Compatible with LoRaWAN and Sigfox protocols and supporting LR-FHSS modulation, LR1120 flexibly adapts to different regional frequency bands and regulations (such as 915 MHz in North America, 868 MHz in Europe, 470 MHz in China), greatly simplifying global device deployment and reducing market expansion costs for enterprises.

Not a “Replacement,” but a “Complement”
It is important to clarify that integrated positioning and communication modules do not mean GPS modules will be completely replaced. Rather, they serve as an optimized solution for IoT sensing scenarios that require long battery life, low cost, and long-distance connectivity.

For professional applications demanding extremely high positioning accuracy—such as surveying, aviation, and autonomous driving—multi-frequency, high-precision GNSS remains an irreplaceable fundamental capability. However, for scenarios where ultra-high accuracy is not critical, and the focus is on asset tracking, remote transmission, and long-term offline device operation, integrated solutions offer significant advantages over traditional combined setups in terms of size, power consumption, and flexibility.

From standalone positioning to integrated positioning and communication, this is one of the key trends in the evolution of IoT terminals. Users are no longer satisfied with simply “knowing where things are”—they now want to “know in real time” and “transmit data instantly.” Behind this shift lies the inevitable result of increasing hardware integration under multiple constraints such as power consumption, size, maintenance, and cost. The Semtech LR1120 is just one representative of this integration trend. In the future, more chip manufacturers are expected to launch highly integrated, low-power multimode SoCs, driving IoT positioning and communication toward greater flexibility and wider adoption.

So next time you're selecting a solution, if you only need accurate positioning, GPS remains a reliable option. But if your application also demands low power consumption, long-range communication, and adaptability to complex scenarios, consider an integrated positioning and communication module—it may be an essential part of your next-generation IoT solution.