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uwb posts

Bluetooth 2.2 spec could be released as early as mid-2009 (Updated)

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Dec 4th 2008 @ 11:13PM

According to CNET, it looks like Bluetooth 2.2 will see the light of day sometime in mid-2009. Designed to work in tandem with other wireless technologies already present in many devices, the spec will be referred to either as Bluetooth 10x (working in conjunction with WiFi) and Bluetooth 100x (working with UWB). Something like this should good news for manufacturers of PMPs and handsets, expanding the range of possibilities to include Bluetooth media streaming and much larger file transfers. On the other hand, perhaps the new spec will finally herald the age of the Bluetooth viruses the doomsayers have been hollerin' about. No matter what happens, it shouldn't be too long before we find out.

Update: Apparently, this was only according to CNET. According to SIG's PR: "We're... trying to find the source for this story as it is incorrect. We have made no such announcement recently and 2.2 was never intended as a name for the next spec." It looks like someone pulled this info out of thin air -- we'll keep you posted if we hear otherwise. Thanks, Eric!

Bluetooth SIG looks at Bluetooth-WiFi to hasten transfers

by Darren Murph posted Feb 10th 2008 @ 4:35PM

If you'll recall, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group already had plans laid out to speed up Bluetooth by teaming it up with UWB, but needless to say, that didn't exactly take the world by storm. Thankfully, it seems the crew is trying something else in an effort to speed up BT transfers, and judging by the ubiquity of WiFi, we reckon this endeavor has a much better chance at gaining traction. According to Michael Foley, director of the Bluetooth SIG, these so-called Bluetooth-WiFi (just a temporary name, folks) devices will "use the regular low-power Bluetooth radios to recognize each other and establish connections, and if they need to transfer a large file, they will be able to turn on their WiFi radios, then turn them off to save power after finishing the transfer." For whatever reason, Foley also noted that it wouldn't be letting the dream go with regard to Bluetooth-UWB -- we're sure consumers will adore the confusion.