03-12-2004, 04:00 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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Socket Communications Bluetooth Serial Adaptor
"Socket`s Cordless Serial Adapter with Bluetooth Wireless Technology eliminates your conventional RS-232 serial cable, providing an easy-to-use, invisible connection. This small adapter allows any device with a standard 9-pin serial port to communicate wirelessly. It will communicate with another Cordless Serial Adapter or any Bluetooth enabled device. Take advantage of Personal Area Networking easily and quickly. You don`t need to install any drivers on the host device - just plug into the 9-pin serial port on your industrial equipment and wirelessly download the information you need to any Bluetooth enabled mobile computer (i.e., notebook, Pocket PC, Palm or Mac OS device}. Reduce costs by decreasing cycle times for equipment maintenance and servicing through easier access to serial ports in difficult or dangerous-to-access areas. Do you have cabled connections you would like to replace with a cordless solution? Attach a Cordless Serial Adapter on each side and presto - your bulky cables are gone." [Affiliate]
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03-12-2004, 04:08 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 469
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I'm still not understanding this adapter. I remember talking about it here in a discussion thread, but, can I connect it to a gps serial cable and transmit data wirelessly? This would be very cool as I have a garmin etrex that I have no intention of getting rid of. Will this work??????
Also seems a bit pricey :roll:
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03-12-2004, 04:19 PM
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Theorist
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 302
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I have the an eTrex also and was wondering the same thing. It looks like you can - "Attach a Cordless Serial Adapter on each side and presto - your bulky cables are gone."
However, I experimented with a serial-to-usb converter recently and it worked flawlessly. It's not wireless but it's better than serial.
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03-12-2004, 04:22 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,264
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by powder2000
Also seems a bit pricey :roll:
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Agreed, and you would need 2 correct?
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03-12-2004, 04:27 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 319
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You would need one for the etrex and then you could connect with any bluetooth enabled device without a second.
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03-12-2004, 04:39 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 469
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OK, I have an idea. PPCThoughs needs to review one of these babies with a ppc and etrex and see if they can get a connection :lol: Heck, I'd even be willing to review it :lol:
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03-12-2004, 04:46 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Sep 2004
Posts: 454
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Nice idea, but I've got a printer adaptor along the same lines that's useless to me because my Pocket PC's print application doesn't support that particular printer, and my Windows XP box will see the printer but refuses to print to it.
Won't make that mistake again. Just because a piece of hardware fits a connector doesn't mean the software will be able to use it.
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03-12-2004, 04:52 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 469
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Ya, but you are talking printer software, which makes sense. All this claims to do is bridge a serial connection wirelessly (what bluetooth was meant to do). If I was using a cable, all I would set my software settings to was NMEA interface and the com port. I only question where this would get the power to make the connection from. You would think it would get it from the gps, but I don't think gps units are meant to power anything. When you connect by serial connection, your ppc is doing all the work, the gps is merely releasing the data. But that release of data, is powered in a small amount. Hmmmm............... I'm just thinking out loud here. What do you all think.
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03-12-2004, 05:00 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 113
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by hamishmacdonald
Nice idea, but I've got a printer adaptor along the same lines that's useless to me because my Pocket PC's print application doesn't support that particular printer, and my Windows XP box will see the printer but refuses to print to it.
Won't make that mistake again. Just because a piece of hardware fits a connector doesn't mean the software will be able to use it.
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Well maybe not for a printer, But a GPS should theoritically work. All a serial gps does is pass a stright NMEA format string containing information such as lat, lon, time, speed etc. Its actually the software on your PC or PPC that takes care of the plotting, waypoint calculation and displaying onto a map. Serial GPS receivers are essentially dump terminals that receive one-way data from satellites and do some basic calulcations/triangulation and format the data into a standard NMEA compliant tex string. I've yet to hear of a NMEA compliant gps serial port receiver requiring special connection drivers.
Actually , I was able to do a terminal connection using the windows terminal program into my very simple serial GPS receiver and was able to see plain text NMEA data strings in my terminal.
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03-12-2004, 05:00 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 112
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by hamishmacdonald
Nice idea, but I've got a printer adaptor along the same lines that's useless to me because my Pocket PC's print application doesn't support that particular printer, and my Windows XP box will see the printer but refuses to print to it.
Won't make that mistake again. Just because a piece of hardware fits a connector doesn't mean the software will be able to use it.
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Sounds like an Anycom BT print adapter. I had one of those POS adapters and sent it right back.
BTW, this serial adapter does work for my mimio bar here in the office. I have a serial adapter connected to the bar and my 3Com card finds the mimio & communicates just fine. Eliminated a 55 foot cable, which was needed to snake all the way around the wall and back to my desk.
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Linear Mode
