What is a V16 connected beacon? Do you need her?

In case you are not a driver, it is likely that the attached V16 beacon is completely unknown to you. Otherwise, it’s quite likely that you’ve been hearing about it for a few months now, and more recently about the connected V16 beacon and how it’s going to impact the motoring world. But associated with what? And how? How does it work? What exactly is it for? What function does the fact that it is connected serve? It is mandatory? Should I find one and buy it now? Questions, questions and more questions that we will try to answer.

As a quick introduction, before we dive into the attached variant, let’s start by clarifying that the “normal” V16 beacon is a feature to replace the popular warning triangles, you know, the ones you have to risk your life to put on the road if your vehicle stalls for any reason on the road or on the roadside. Abuse in its placement is quite common and to solve this problem is DGT decided to replace them as an emergency signal with a light element which is attached to the top of the vehicle (which we can do without leaving it) and whose luminous power makes us visible at a great distance.

However, What does this have to do with the Internet, or more specifically, the IoT? Well, that’s where the connected V16 beacon comes into play. On the outside, there is nothing different from the basic model (without connectivity), but as the name already suggested, this version of the emergency signal has a mobile connection, that is, it connects to the Internet through the phone. network when necessary.

How does the V16 Connected Beacon connect to the Internet?

This is one of the points that raises the most doubts among users. Will they have to configure it to connect to the internet through their smartphones? Or with car connection systems? No, its use cannot be conditioned by the fact that we did not run out of battery or left our mobile at home. The beacon has its own connectivity, so it is not necessary to have other connected devices.

Where does the beacon connect?

On DTG 3.0. And what is DGT 3.0? Well, this is how the General Directorate of Transport explains it on its website:

«DGT 3.0 is DGT’s connected vehicle platform, which facilitates the connection of all actors that are part of the mobility ecosystem, offering road users constant real-time traffic information, enabling greater mobility.»

This in the context of the connected V16 beacon means that when we activate it, in addition to lighting up, it will connect to this platform.

What is it connected to?

The connected V16 beacon remains inactive when it is turned off, and this applies not only to its lighting, but also to its connection. The beacon will only connect to the DGT 3.0 when we turn it on to signal our position on the road, at which point it will transmit our exact location to speed up the eventual response of security and emergency services.

According to the regulations, there will be no privacy issues because when the beacon connects to the Internet to report our location, no personal information will be transmitted. In this regard, by having our own connection, that is, not using our personal connection (smartphone connection), it seems less likely that it can be used to obtain personal information.

It is mandatory?

Not yet, it’s still a few years away before the connected V16 beacon replaces the ubiquitous triangles. Currently, we can use triangles (for many years) or V16 beacons (from mid-2021), with or without connection, to signal incidents. However, this will change on January 1, 2026, when triangles and offline beacons will no longer be usable. With this deadline, DGT gives drivers and industry time to create and adopt them, but also sets a deadline for the infrastructure to be operational.

Will I have to pay for internet connection?

Yes and no. In other words, beacon connectivity has and will have its price, but you shouldn’t think in the same terms as a fiber optic connection at home or a mobile data plan. Movistar and Vodafone have already announced their connected V16 beacon models, that is, models that use their mobile networks, and in both cases connectivity is included in the price of the beacon for a certain number of years.

Can I buy it now?

If you want to be among the first to have one, yes, you can go through the box to get one. There are currently two DGT approved models already available on the market. According to the date of arrival, although only a few days apart, Help Flash IoT, produced by the Galician company Netun Solutions and connected via the Vodafone network, was the first to arrive. Its price is 59.95 euros and this price includes network connection until January 2038. This is its website.

A few days later, as I said, the FlashLED SOS V16 arrived, which also uses IoT-NB (Narrow Band) connectivity, but which, as you can imagine, uses the Movistar mobile network. Its price is also 59.95 euros, but it can be purchased temporarily for 49.95 euros. The data plan in this case includes connectivity for 13 years, although it is not clear whether from purchase, first use or when mandatory use takes effect on January 1, 2026. You can find more information on their website.

Now, maybe the million dollar question isn’t if you can buy it now, but if it’s worth buying now, and in that regard, the answer isn’t so clear. At the moment, as we told you, there are only two models on the market, so the offer is very limited and it is quite likely that new manufacturers and models will appear over time that could contribute to the decrease in its price.

On the other hand, if you’re planning to trade in your car soon, more and more dealers are considering donating it with new vehicles, so if that’s the case for you, we recommend waiting until you make said purchase.

Yes, it is likely that a few weeks before its mandatory entry into force there will be a monumental increase in demand, which may translate into less availability and, as always happens in these cases, an increase in prices. So my personal recommendation is that if you don’t have a specific reason to want to have it now, keep in mind that it’s almost three years away from mandatory, so you can wait and see how this market develops.

Attached V16 lighthouse and privacy

Both the General Directorate of Transport and equipment manufacturers and operators focus on this point, the beacon does not transmit personal data or any other type of information except for its own activation and geographic location. In this regard, and given that this is a device that is purchased separately (ie not linked to the vehicle or the owner’s data), we can at least in principle rest easy in this respect.

However, it will be interesting to see how future models of the beacon evolve, whether they start adding new features and along the way also start collecting and transmitting more data than is absolutely necessary for its primary function.