Bluetooth Evolves to v2.1

[Darius Wey]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.bluetooth.com/Bluetooth/Press/SIG/BLUETOOTH_SIG_IMPROVES_USER_EXPERIENCE.htm' target='_blank'>http://www.bluetooth.com/Bluetooth/..._EXPERIENCE.htm</a><br /><br /></div><i>"The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), the more than 7,000-member strong trade association responsible for advancing Bluetooth wireless technology, today announced from CTIA WIRELESS 2007 details of a new specification which will continue the evolution of the short-range wireless technology and enhance the consumer experience. Bluetooth Core Specification Version 2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate) will soon be ready for members to develop products that take advantage of numerous enhancements. The new version of the specification adds: Improved Pairing - Makes the initial connection of Bluetooth devices easier for all users by reducing the number of steps in the pairing process. This enhancement will appeal to Bluetooth technology’s broad range of users, from the technically savvy to the technically adverse. Lower Power Consumption - Further reduces the already extremely low power consumption in many scenarios to increase the battery life of devices like mice and keyboards by up to five times, optimizing Bluetooth technology for consumer devices where ultra low power is an important consideration."</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/wey-20070328-bluetooth.jpg" /><br /><br />Truthfully, improved pairing and lower power consumption aren't significant enhancements. The previous Bluetooth 2.0 specification performed solidly at both, but as they say, you can never have too much of a good thing, so v2.1 is certainly a welcome update. Moving forward, what would you like to see implemented beyond v2.1?

[nosmohtac]

What would I like to see as we move forward? More devices with BT 2.0 or 2.1! I haven't seen too many devices with BT 2.0 yet, but I'm sure they'll be coming this year.

I live in an area that I can't purchase Tmobile or AT&amp;T service, and the CDMA side of things hasn't advanced much in the last year.

[mmidgley]

I'd like to see a GPS profile. The serial profile is sufficient for basic communication, but there are several ways in which it is less than ideal. GPS (whether hardware built-in or not) is becoming a common activity on PDAs.

m.

[kash]

I'd like to see a GPS profile. The serial profile is sufficient for basic communication, but there are several ways in which it is less than ideal. GPS (whether hardware built-in or not) is becoming a common activity on PDAs.

m.

and what exactly would a gps profile do? i guess it would be nice to allow more then one program to access a com port but thats the same as whats on the HX4700 dunno
hopefully this would be as nice as the 1.0 to 1.2 and the 2.0 update :) just software firmware on the adaptor

[Sven Johannsen]

I would just like to see OEMs provide al the profiles that would be usable on a device, rather than limiting them to what they think might be usefull or to what they want us to have.

[gibson042]

My personal favorite feature of 2.1 is its synergy with Near Field Communication (http://video.gearlive.com/video/article/161-bluetooth-21-edr-demo/). Moving forward, I'd like to see continued interaction between the two technologies, hopefully leading to NFC being fully incorporated into Bluetooth. Close range one-button pairing opens up unlimited possibilities.

[DaleReeck]

What I'd like to see is vendors to stop using the second newest chip always. When BT 1.2 came out, new devices would still come out with 1.1. When 2.0 came out, brand new devices would ship with 1.2. Now that 2.1 is out, I'm sure all new devices and devices shipping in the next six months will be 2.0.

I've yet to have a BT device with the latest spec on it.

[nosmohtac]

What I'd like to see is vendors to stop using the second newest chip always. When BT 1.2 came out, new devices would still come out with 1.1. When 2.0 came out, brand new devices would ship with 1.2. Now that 2.1 is out, I'm sure all new devices and devices shipping in the next six months will be 2.0.

I've yet to have a BT device with the latest spec on it.


I've had the same experience, but I'm partially to blame for that. I refuse to pay early adopter prices, as well as being a retail cost beta tester for some of these manufacturers. I wait until the products have been out for a while and thoroughly reviewed by several sources. But this doesn't seem to apply as much with BT devices, because even if I was willing to pay the higher prices for the latest products, there just aren't many available with the latest version.