Show

Bluetooth 3.0 to be launched on April 21

Sam Symons
10 April 2009 - 03:25
22 Comments
Liked this (2)

The anticipated Bluetooth 3.0 is gearing up to be launched this month, on the 21st, according to Wi-Fi Net News. Currently, there is no official list of chip-makers who have partnered up to make this all possible, but it's expected to be released along with the specification later this month.

So, what does this mean for us? Well, first and foremost, dramatically improved Bluetooth speeds. Bluetooth 3.0 will make transferring files a lot faster, because it uses 802.11 technology, and can switch between the faster standard and the slower, previous standard. When the new chip finds another chip or computer that uses the faster 802.11 standard, they both switch to that option and transfer the files needed. Upon doing so, they shift back to the slower standard, to save battery life. This option works without any need to connect to a wireless network to help speed things up, also.

It won't take long for devices to start showing up with the new standard, after the formal announcement, so a better way to wirelessly transfer files isn't far off, folks. Once the official announcement is made, apparently the group behind the standard, the Bluetooth SIG, will have a bunch of products ready to sample.

Comments (22)

  1. Karo - 323z IT - 10 April 2009 - 04:29

    If only Windows 7 had native support for this as well. We need better Windows Vista and 7 bluetooth with stable drivers, out of the box is very lacking.

  2. Geranium_Z__NL - 10 April 2009 - 04:41

    Maybe with a service pack eh?

  3. Karo - 323z IT - 10 April 2009 - 04:43

    They can create a hotfix of it just like they did with XP and WPA2 network support. A service pack is too much wait.

  4. PsykX - 10 April 2009 - 05:39

    Yeah, it isn't too much to add. Maybe a driver does the job well.

  5. lee27 - 10 April 2009 - 08:28

    What are you on about? Support is added in vista in service pack 2 and it already exists in windows 7.

  6. torrentthief - 10 April 2009 - 11:27

    isn't bluetooth 2.1 support in vista sp2 and windows 7? I dont think bluetooth 3.0 is supported in either o.s.

    They should be though as it launches in just 1.5 weeks, surely MS could hold back vista sp2 final and windows 7 final and add these 2 important technologies.

  7. PsykX - 10 April 2009 - 04:44

    Since an iPhone is probably currently in production or near it, and will be released in June-July, I guess it is safe to say that we'll have to wait until June 2010 to get this new feature... I hope it won't get people so mad eh, it's quite easy to understand.

  8. Karo - 323z IT - 10 April 2009 - 04:48

  9. Kushan - 10 April 2009 - 07:27

    Looking forward to better wireless headphones, myself.

  10. xpclient - 10 April 2009 - 07:47

    I thought 3.0 was going to use UWB, suddenly when did they switch to 802.11?

  11. WooHoo!!! - 10 April 2009 - 11:05


    I've never got on with bluetooth on computers for some reason. Maybe it's just crap driver, software support but it's just infuriating half the time.

  12. carmatic - 10 April 2009 - 14:06

    so let me get this straight, theyre launching the standard, that will be incorporated into products that have yet to be built... am i right?

  13. cybertimber2008 - 10 April 2009 - 23:19

    Well yes that's how the process typically works

  14. Raa - 10 April 2009 - 14:06

    Finally they use the .11 standard. Only took, what.. 8 years?

  15. roadwarrior - 10 April 2009 - 14:20

    I had often wondered why they didn't simply merge Bluetooth and Wifi standards, since both operate in the same frequency range. I guess this is the first step in that direction.

  16. carmatic - 10 April 2009 - 18:19

    roadwarrior said,
    I had often wondered why they didn't simply merge Bluetooth and Wifi standards, since both operate in the same frequency range. I guess this is the first step in that direction.

    i think its more than just the frequency range.... getting something to emit radio waves of a certain frequency is easy, compared to stuff like the transmission power, range, bitrate, different forms of data encoding, error correction, and all that stuff... bluetooth is targeted at a different class of devices than wifi....bluetooth to wifi, is like usb to ethernet ... one is something you plug your mouse into your computer with, the other is for computers to connect to each other....

    having bluetooth and wifi merge is something like having a lan-capable mouse... which is quite cool, if you think about it

  17. roadwarrior - 10 April 2009 - 23:50

    carmatic said,
    bluetooth is targeted at a different class of devices than wifi....bluetooth to wifi, is like usb to ethernet ... one is something you plug your mouse into your computer with, the other is for computers to connect to each other....


    And yet, USB Ethernet and USB WiFi devices are quite common. The overlap between the two technologies is quite extensive. Bluetooth can be used for short range networking already, is it really that much of a stretch for it to be extended to full networking capabilities? The same hardware should in theory be able to operate with both bluetooth and WiFi, if the software and firmware supported it (which was my point in the first post).

  18. bmaher - 10 April 2009 - 16:34

    I haven't actually used bluetooth for about 2 years now.

    Last time I used it was when one of my wireless NICs died and I needed a quick way to get internet access on that PC.

  19. Lord Zog - 10 April 2009 - 19:25

    From my understanding, USB 3.0 and Bluetooth 3.0 are already in Win 7.. If i am wrong, don't see it being too hard to add Bluetooth 3.. (USB 3 IS already in..)

  20. PatrynXX - 10 April 2009 - 21:37

    So if I have a bluetooth card inside the dell, should I assume there would be a replacement card?

Please Log In or Register to post a comment.