SUN NEW LAUNCHES

Today the Bluetooth SIG^(INFO) announced the new Bluetooth 3.0 standard that can make use of 802.11 wireless LAN technologies to add a new "High Speed" mode to Bluetooth devices. New Bluetooth 3.0 chipsets were announced earlier today, and we should expect to see initial products using the new system by the end of the year.

The idea behind Bluetooth 3.0 and the new optional "High Speed" spec is to allow hardware manufacturers to take advantage of the increasingly common situation where a mobile device contains both Bluetooth and 802.11b/g wireless LAN support, providing throughput as high as 24Mbps in 802.11g devices. When the need for transferring large amounts of data pops up, 802.11 capable Bluetooth 3.0 + HS devices will be able to use high-speed WLAN connectivity to transfer files more quickly, and with less power draw, than if they were to use existing Bluetooth EDR^(INFO) technologies. Bluetooth 3.0 handles the creation of the ad-hoc 802.11 connections between devices, and the spec allows for both Bluetooth based and traditional 802.11/WiFi connections to run at the same time.

The Bluetooth SIG expects to see the new technology used in devices like digital cameras, camcorders, TVs, and, of course, cell phones. The new Bluetooth 3.0 spec also features some general enhancements that will improve power management and connection reliability in all Bluetooth devices.

While it is possible for existing devices that have 802.11 and Bluetooth 2 + EDR support to be upgraded to the new Bluetooth 3.0 spec, Bluetooth SIG executive director Mike Foley thought that would be unlikely to happen for the vast majority of devices. Foley also mentioned that a new Bluetooth "Low Energy" specification is set to be rolled out by the end of the year. The new low energy spec is designed for devices like watches and pacemakers, which must rely on very small batteries to function.