Bluetooth Replacement From Nokia?

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)

Nokia has developed a potential successor to Bluetooth (http://www.macworld.com/news/2006/10/03/wibree/index.php) dubbed Wibree (http://www.wibree.com/). Separating this technology from other potential, but more developed technologies (ZigBee (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zigbee)) is its interoperability with existing Bluetooth radios, making cheap dual-mode devices a possibility.

While Bluetooth's power requirements are far less than other wireless protocols such as WiFi/802.11, some deem it still too high for some applications. According to MacWorld, the technology is capable of delivering 10 Mbps data transfers at up to 10 meters, however this may be in doubt as the technology's website cites "physical layer bit rate of 1 Mbps."

Apple currently uses Bluetooth for communication with its wirless keyboard (http://guides.macrumors.com/Apple_Wireless_Keyboard) and wireless Mighty Mouse (http://guides.macrumors.com/Mighty_Mouse), as well as communication with mobile phones via iSync (http://guides.macrumors.com/iSync).

Digg This (http://digg.com/tech_news/Bluetooth_Replacement_From_Nokia)

[ppc_michael]

1 Mbps? Meh. Although that would be pretty great for mice/keyboards. Bluetooth is so expensive. :(

[twoodcc]

i really don't think bluetooth is going anywhere

[Josias]

Bluetooth 2.0 with Enchanced Data Rate gives you 3 mbps (I know that is just a figure, but...)

This doesn't sound like great news. It doesn't have longer range. It seems to be faster and if I'm not misunderstood, it consumes less power. Wibree sounds really dumb. Bluetooth sounds way cooler.:D

[ssamani]

Apart

[poppe]

bluetooth is pretty nice for keyboards and mice, but other than that all the other products I've seen and used don't work all that great. Specailly head sets for cell phones... All the ones I have tried are always receiving interferences and become scratchy/static like. I'm down with advancements.

[BornAgainMac]

I like the name "Bluetooth". I makes me laugh when I hear it.

[mkrishnan]

So...wibree and zigbee...is the principle requirement of the new standard that it have a retarded name? :eek: :rolleyes: ;)

And arrrrgh... yarrrr... I like the name Bluetooth also. It was even better four years ago, when I got my first BT headset, and no one ahd even heard of it. Yarrrrghhh!!! :)

[sbrhwkp3]

I like Bluetooth. It lets me transfer songs from iTunes as ringtones for my phone wirelessly, plus pictures and videos too. But if this works better then bring it on. I don't care about the name. As long as it works.

[Eduardo1971]

I like Bluetooth. It lets me transfer songs from iTunes as ringtones for my phone wirelessly, plus pictures and videos too. But if this works better then bring it on. I don't care about the name. As long as it works.

Agreed. I too, love Bluetooth on my Sony Ericcson W600i phone. I am able to easily transfer photos and music on it. As long as something works.

[Coheebuzz]

I use Bluetooth to transfer small files to my different computers on the fly, so any bandwidth increase is welcome.

But the thing i hate with Bluetooth is the poor reception when there are obstacles around - sometimes it's impossible for my G5 which is placed under the desk to communicate with my laptop which is on top on the desk and i have to lift my legs up so the signal can get through!

Thats really primitive :rolleyes:

[Hattig]

I guess that WiBree is Bluetooth with a saner* more generic software/protocol stack, and possibly simpler controllers prior to the radio part which remains the same - however reusing existing Bluetooth controllers might make more sense.

Bluetooth is pretty entrenched however now. It will be hard to encourage uptake of yet another wireless standard that operates in the same space.

* Bluetooth's protocol stack includes serial port emulation at one part IIRC

[noservice2001]

backwards compatible eh? that ought to be interesting to see used in devices...

[mdntcallr]

hey technology is always advancing
dunno if it would be building something for patent money, or to build a better bluetooth

[Clive At Five]

Successor to Bluetooth... damn. I don't even have Bluetooth yet... ;)

But that's because this is my phone: http://img.phonescoop.com/img/p/245/341_1.jpg

You think you've all been holding out for a PhonePod? You ain't got nothin' on me and my playskool piece of trash.

But if Apple foresakes bluetooth in exchange for solely the standard iPod terminal, I'll still be out of the loop. heh. I'll be the last (hu)man on Earth without a Bluetooth device. *snickers*

-Clive

[Prom1]

Nokia is just upset that Ericsson created Bluetooth.

> FACTS of Bluetooth. Already a world standard & is open; with a certification group involving MANY manufacturer's including Nokia.
- Many profiles exist that allow for things like OBEX push, Stereo Headphone/Music Streaming support (v1.1/1.2/2.0).
- 3Mbps in a Asynchronous transfer mode (BTv2.0+EDR) and ITS that fast overhead was already factored in; this is why without the EDR you only get 2.1Mbps.
- Its power consumption is VERY low especially cellphones like SonyEricsson lineup. If critics of power consumption exist then they've been using products that have inferior chipsets, OR using Class 1 BT radio's that can transmitt up to 100meters! Yes there are 3 classes, most cellphones are Class 3 which is at 10meters (only the Moto Razr has Class 1 that I'm aware of).
- Bluetooth will be blended with the UMA project that will allow MUCH faster bandwidth close to 10Mbps or higher.

Think of ALL the products that already use bluetooth.
Many company's like RedM have already (3 years ago) used Bluetooth in a Wide Area Network open to the public.


[EDIT] btw, Bluetooth is that name of a Viking that was able to Concor lands and unify a nation with his Soothsaying, his tooth was actually Blue!

[bloodycape]

What is the differences and advantages between wibree, wibro, and wimax?

[mkrishnan]

Successor to Bluetooth... damn. I don't even have Bluetooth yet... ;)

Wow, that's ill! :o

[Kid Red]

Will it be safer than bluetooth? That would be most important to me, less radiation exposure.

[notjustjay]

What is the differences and advantages between wibree, wibro, and wimax?

... and will they work with my wii?

:D

[bjdku]

From a technical perspective, how could we not love improvements and competition. But come on, we already have an open standard, bluetooth, and it took a TON of marketing dollars to educate the consumer on what bluetooth is. That is where most of the effort went, but now, the tide is turning, and bluetooth is improving fast...couldn't Nokia just work within the bluetooth group they are members of? They just want licensing dollars.

[Surreal]

can we make bluetooth more reliable before we work on new stuff?

i am going to buy a usb mouse because bluetooth is simply lagariffic.

[dernhelm]

... and will they work with my wii?

:D

HA! Maybe Nintendo's terrible name wasn't as terrible as we originally thought, eh?

[dernhelm]

[EDIT] btw, Bluetooth is that name of a Viking that was able to Concor lands and unify a nation with his Soothsaying, his tooth was actually Blue!

Close, but no banana:
http://www.cellular.co.za/technologies/bluetooth/bluetooth_king_harald.htm

[Analog Kid]

From a technical perspective, how could we not love improvements and competition. But come on, we already have an open standard, bluetooth, and it took a TON of marketing dollars to educate the consumer on what bluetooth is. That is where most of the effort went, but now, the tide is turning, and bluetooth is improving fast...couldn't Nokia just work within the bluetooth group they are members of? They just want licensing dollars.
Have you read the article? They are working with the Bluetooth group... This is simply another protocol that is lower speed, lower power, but can reuse much of the same hardware used in Bluetooth to save cost. It's not a headset replacement, it's for talking to sensors and ultra low power, low data rate devices. Think pulse sensors, or watch interfaces.

[Analog Kid]

What is the differences and advantages between wibree, wibro, and wimax?
WiBro and WiMAX are essentially the same-- long range (kilometers) wireless broadband. WiMAX is the global standard under development that's apparently getting picked up by Sprint in the US and others elsewhere to provide "4G" wireless services. Depending on how they use the spectrum they'll get T1 speeds. WiBro is the Korean variant that follows a similar design but was deployed before the WiMAX forum settled on a final standard.

You don't want WiMAX in a watch unless you're willing to carry a very large battery on your wrist.

Wibree is a low data rate, short range, ultra-low power wireless link for peripherals like sensors, keyboards and mice.

[bjdku]

Have you read the article? They are working with the Bluetooth group... This is simply another protocol that is lower speed, lower power, but can reuse much of the same hardware used in Bluetooth to save cost. It's not a headset replacement, it's for talking to sensors and ultra low power, low data rate devices. Think pulse sensors, or watch interfaces.


Thanks smarty. I commented before the update was made.

[Analog Kid]

Thanks smarty.
Anytime I can be helpful and be praised for my intelligence is a good day... ;)

The article title is misleading though-- this isn't being billed as a BT replacement, even by Nokia. It's complementary.

[Prom1]

Close, but no banana:
http://www.cellular.co.za/technologies/bluetooth/bluetooth_king_harald.htm

Haha ... here is some more info...

Harald Bluetooth, son of Denmark's first king, Gorm the Old, from whom the present Danish queen, Margarethe II, traces direct descent, did not have blue teeth. Instead, the name refers to a great man with a dark complexion. The Danish word for blue, blå, also meant dark and the words for man, mand, and tooth, tand, sound much the same. Harald Bluetooth is credited with Christianizing Denmark, Norway, and parts of Sweden and with uniting the countries into one kingdom. At the time of his rule, somewhere between 940 and 980 AD, southern Sweden was part of Denmark. In southern Sweden is the city of Lund, which is where Ericsson developed the Bluetooth technology. According to Ericsson in its discussion of Harald Bluetooth (http://bluetooth.ericsson.se/bluetoothf/beginnersg/default.asp?page=2), "One of his skills was to make people talk to each other....," hence the choice of Bluetooth to name this communications standard. If you're ever in Jelling, Denmark, you can view the rune stone Harald Bluetooth raised in honor of his parents. There's another, vastly newer, rune stone dedicated to Bluetooth himself. It's outside Ericsson's Mobile Communications office in Lund.
Note: link above is dead its VERY old previous to 2001. Gives ya an idea of how long BT has been around and its uphill battle against analysts and self claimed gurus' saying WiFi was going to kill it. yeah right. I was going by memory in my earlier post.


Some more information
http://www.ericsson.com/ericsson/corpinfo/publications/review/2000_04/124.shtml

Today, many people carry numerous portable devices, such as laptops, mobile phones, PDAs and mp3 players, for use in their professional and private lives. For the most part, these devices are used separately—that is, their applications do not interact. Imagine, however, if they could interact directly: participants at a meeting could share documents or presentations; business cards would automatically find their way into the address register on a laptop and the number register on a mobile phone; as commuters exit a train, their laptops could remain online; likewise, incoming e-mail could now be diverted to their PDAs; finally, as they enter the office, all communication could automatically be routed through the wireless corporate campus network.

These examples of spontaneous, ad hoc wireless communication between devices might be loosely defined as a scheme, often referred to as ad hoc networking, which allows devices to establish communication, anytime and anywhere without the aid of a central infrastructure. Actually, ad hoc networking as such is not new, but the setting, usage and players are. In the past, the notion of ad hoc networks was often associated with communication on combat fields and at the site of a disaster area; now, as novel technologies such as Bluetooth materialize, the scenario of ad hoc networking is likely to change, as is its importance. In this article, the authors describe the concept of ad hoc networking by giving its background and presenting some of the technical challenges it poses. The authors also point out some of the applications that can be envisioned for ad hoc networking.

For almost EVERYTHING to know how was bluetooth implemented in the beginning before knowing how its evolved today ... read this PDF... http://www.ericsson.com/ericsson/corpinfo/publications/review/2000_04/files/2000046.pdf

Will it be safer than bluetooth? That would be most important to me, less radiation exposure.

You cannot be serious?! Do you realize this arguement has been proven DEAD for quite some time now? BT radio's even at at Class 1 (100Meters) dont even generate 1 degree celcius temparature change in less than 1 mm deep of human flesh at a range of less than 5cm's away.

I'm digging on WHERE I found that source I believe its on Ericsson's site.


How is the Bluetooth technology licensed? Are there patents or licenses involved? Is this technology royalty-free?

While there are many patents on different parts of the technology, the Bluetooth wireless specification plans to remain a royalty-free specification. As a member of the Bluetooth SIG, you will need to execute several agreements to enjoy these benefits.

Bluetooth SIG Members

The Bluetooth SIG has over 4,000 member companies developing, manufacturing, and selling thousands of Bluetooth enabled products worldwide. Because Bluetooth wireless technology is an open platform, all members of the Bluetooth SIG have permission to use Bluetooth wireless technology in their products and services. There are three levels of membership with unique benefits: Promoter, Associate, and Adopter.

[bloodycape]

WiBro and WiMAX are essentially the same-- long range (kilometers) wireless broadband. WiMAX is the global standard under development that's apparently getting picked up by Sprint in the US and others elsewhere to provide "4G" wireless services. Depending on how they use the spectrum they'll get T1 speeds. WiBro is the Korean variant that follows a similar design but was deployed before the WiMAX forum settled on a final standard.

You don't want WiMAX in a watch unless you're willing to carry a very large battery on your wrist.

Wibree is a low data rate, short range, ultra-low power wireless link for peripherals like sensors, keyboards and mice.

I knew wibro is kinda of big korean and so is wimax as many devices have that option. But thank you for making sense of it, but one question. Will wimax be the next wifi technology and wibro be like the next cell technology(similar to evdo, edge, umts, and so on)?