What is Bluetooth? – A Guide to the Technology

Bluetooth is one of the newest and most misunderstood technologies of today. But considering the way the technology is spreading now, the average cell phone user, even the one averse to techno babble, needs to know about it. Bluetooth-enabled phones have expanded the cell phone market and made your choice even more extensive. The current trend is for Bluetooth-enabled headsets, which not only allow hands free communication, but also are also valuable fashion accessories. Bluetooth wireless technology reviews can help you navigate your way in the world of Bluetooth. But first we need to understand: What is Bluetooth?

The art of toothing

There are many kinds of connections between machines. The most prominent (and the messiest) are wires. Bluetooth is an extremely efficient wireless protocol by which machines engage in conversation. Bluetooth is a wireless technology first developed by Ericsson. With Bluetooth, machines can talk to each other wirefree by sending data over a short-range radio frequency. The technology gets its name from the 10th century king Harald Blatand a.k.a. Bluetooth. Bluetooth works within a range of 30 feet and works only with devices, which use compatible versions of Bluetooth. One of the most special features of Bluetooth is that Bluetooth devices randomly change their frequencies thousands of times per second, which avoids interference with other devices. But when two wireless devices are communicating, they form a mini-network and hop frequencies together, which means that their contact remains constant.

Effectively, Bluetooth is a wirefree technological standard developed for machines to communicate. You can even go online with an Internet connection with Bluetooth connectivity. The version currently used by the majority of products is 1.1. The latest upgrade is 1.2, and 2.0 will possibly be released soon. The companies that produce Bluetooth devices all belong to a group called the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, which is making efforts to help the technology take over from wires.

Bluetooth has many advantages:

It is completely wirefree, which means it isn’t messy at all
Anyone can use it. Bluetooth-enabled devices communicate with each other automatically, and the user has to do nothing at all
Bluetooth devices don’t interfere with each other, due to the frequency hopping

Bluetooth does have some minor technological security concerns like:

Bluebugging (access of a phone’s commands by a hacker)
Bluesnarfing (access of a phone’s data)
Bluejacking (sending text messages to another Bluetooth-enabled phone nearby)

But these are not major concerns as they can be combated by locking the phone with a code, or turning it off when not in use.

Some of the machines currently using Bluetooth are:

Cell phones
PCs
Handheld devices
Cameras
Cars

The profusion of products in the market can confuse the consumer, and the technological aspect of Bluetooth bewilders most of us, but the truth is that Bluetooth is here, and it is here to stay.

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About The Author:

David Anthony is a successful author and publisher of http://www.a1-cell-phones.com. A great source of cellular phone information which includes cell phone accessories, cell phone plans, and cell phone services.

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