Web Bluetooth: Want to exclude certain devices when using navigator.bluetooth.requestDevice

Question

I have an array with the names of some devices I don't want to get when I do navigator.bluetooth.requestDevice

Is there a way to keep them out the same way you can filter devices by name?

navigator.bluetooth.requestDevice({ filters: [ { namePrefix: "SPDCM", }, ], optionalServices: [UUID_FOTA_SERVICE] })

Answer 1

There is not a way to exclude some devices as of March 2023.
The requestDevice filters (MDN docs & specification examples) only select criteria to include, but not mask, items to be included.

I've started a specification issue requesting exclusion filters. Please review and comment there to make a proposal. Adding as many specifics about your use case (e.g. specific device examples) will help motivate the work.

Answer 2

Chrome 114 has the new "exclusionFilters" option in navigator.bluetooth.requestDevice() that allows web developers to exclude some devices from the browser picker. It can be used to exclude devices that match a broader filter but are unsupported.

// Request access to a bluetooth device whose name starts with "Created by".
// The device named "Created by Francois" has been reported as unsupported.
const device = await navigator.bluetooth.requestDevice({
  filters: [{ namePrefix: "Created by" }],
  exclusionFilters: [{ name: "Created by Francois" }],
});

You can play with it at https://googlechrome.github.io/samples/web-bluetooth/exclusion-filters.html

Resources:

• https://developer.chrome.com/articles/bluetooth/#exclusion-filters
• https://webbluetoothcg.github.io/web-bluetooth/#ref-for-dom-requestdeviceoptions-exclusionfilters
• https://github.com/WebBluetoothCG/web-bluetooth/pull/600