Bluetooth
The World’s First Water-Resistant Bluetooth Headset (with 3 weeks standby time)
February 26, 2006 Sometimes it takes a breakthrough to recognise what you’ve been missing. Would you buy a car that you couldn’t get wet? You don’t need to be a red-blooded, its-only-a-flesh-wound kinda guy to find yourself caught in the rain occasionally … and wanting to talk on the phone at the same time. Well the announcement by French Bluetooth specialist Bluetrek of a Bluetooth headset for extreme conditions makes so much sense that the rest of the headset world must surely follow suit – at least with water-resistant models. The X2 is designed for active outdoor use and its makers claim it has the ability to function in extreme conditions, but in some circumstances, the work and home environments can be just as hostile as the great outdoors. Indeed, the specs of the X2 make so much sense that it immediately becomes the headset to have, partly due to the no-brainer waterproof functionality and partly due to its extended battery power that offers up to 14 hours of talk time and 500 hours (three weeks) of standby time. The X2 will be available inside a few weeks for UKP59 or 79 Euros. Read More
Single-Chip Bluetooth and FM Radio Device will allow FM radio to become standard on Bluetooth-enabled phones
February 14, 2006 Broadcom used the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona to today announce a new device that integrates a complete Bluetooth radio and baseband along with a high-performance FM stereo radio receiver into a single chip. Makers of multimedia cell phones and digital media players enabled with Bluetooth can now conveniently add FM radio functionality to their products with significant power, size and cost savings versus other solutions, offering a more complete stereo audio experience to their customers. New generations of mobile phone handsets are integrating increasingly diverse entertainment and media functionality, from digital photography to MP3 music playback. Bluetooth, the short-range wireless technology, has been incorporated widely into these devices as a convenient way to enhance the user experience, providing cord-free headset and stereo headphone capabilities. FM radio is one of the multimedia features currently gaining momentum with manufacturers and carriers with market researcher iSuppli projecting that 332 million handsets will include FM radio by 2009. The Broadcom BCM2048 solution enables these manufacturers to easily add FM radio and wireless stereo capabilities with a single-chip, providing cost savings of up to 40% and requiring only about one third the board space of existing solutions based on discrete components. Read More
Bluetooth VoIP Phone for Skype users
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February 10, 2006 Here's a nice implementation of a good idea. TRENDnet yesterday announced the ClearSky VoIP Bluetooth Phone with Bluetooth Adapter (TVP-SP1BK) for Skype. The new handset kit allows Skype users to chat at home, in their office or on the road without having to stay in front of their computer. The kit includes a wireless handset and Bluetooth adapter to ensure compatibility and seamless voice clarity. The handset follows the traditional button behavior of a traditional handset, but also supports all of the popular Skype standard functions such as Contacts, Call List, SkypeOut, Conference Call, etc. Furthermore, the TVP-SP1BK comes with a long-life rechargeable Lithium-ion battery able to sustain up to 6 hours talk time and over 60 hours on standby. Read More
Bluetooth-enabled Audex jacket with inbuilt speakers
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January 23, 2006 UPDATED IMAGE LIBRARY Motorola and Burton Snowboards have announced the commercial availability of the Bluetooth-enabled Audex Jacket Series. Jointly developed by Motorola and Burton to bring wearable technology to active consumers, the new Audex jacket allows winter sports enthusiasts to experience seamless connectivity -- at the touch of a button -- from one environment to the next. At the center of the Audex jacket is a control panel located on the left-hand sleeve, allowing for simple and easy access to your incoming and outgoing calls, and music selections. Connect a compatible Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone to the panel wirelessly, while hooking up your iPod player via hidden, unobtrusive wires within the jacket. Speakers and a microphone are located in the hood for taking and making calls as well as listening to music. Read More
CES 2006: BlueTooth innovations abound - Inner-ear headset, bluetooth keyboard and wireless iPod companion
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January 5, 2006 Motorola has unveiled a ground-breaking product that sets a new standard in miniaturization for Bluetooth headset form and function - the Motorola H5 Miniblue Bluetooth Headset. Miniblue is equipped with an in-ear speaker and microphone that picks up your voice through your ear canal. The design greatly reduces ambient noise and enables crystal-clear communications in noisy environments. Weighing only 0.26 ounces and measuring 33 x 41 mm in diameter, the H5 Miniblue headset is small enough to ensure a comfortable in-ear fit. Motorola also unveiled several other Bluetooth enabled innovations including the Motorola TXTR (a full QWERTY wireless keyboard that to a Bluetooth-enabled phone so you can type messages with convenience and ease) and the Music Duo ( which lets you stream music from your iPod to your Motorola Bluetooth Stereo headphones). Read More
CES 2006: business-card sized, Bluetooth-enabled mouse that stores and recharges inside your laptop’s PC card slot
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January 4, 2005 The MoGo is designed for road warriors who don’t like bulky, full-sized, mice, but also hate laptop trackpads and trackpoints. Now we all know that a mouse is a very personal thing, so this may not be a solution for everyone, but it’s a very good idea and one which is worthy of every road warrior’s attention. The mouse which fits snugly in your palm when you’re using a desktop often takes on quite different proportions and becomes a pain in the butt when you’re on the road, never seeming to fit nicely in your bag, and constantly getting tangled. So having a PCMCIA-card sized mouse that stores and recharges neatly inside your laptop computer’s PC card slot when it’s not being used is very useful on the road. For us, the Bluetooth-enabled functionality is a clincher. Whatsmore, the MoGo Mouse recharges in less than an hour so there are no batteries to be replaced. Read More
Bluetooth Shipments Double in Four Months
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December 2, 2005 For a long time, BlueTooth's most notable feature was its marketplace absence that was in direct contrast to the hype, but after a very slow start, it is gathering momentum like a runaway train. The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has announced that the Bluetooth market has passed the impressive milestone of 9.5 million Bluetooth units shipping per week. In May, the shipment figures were 4.75 million per week according to IMS Research and in September -- only four months later -- this figure had doubled, exceeding even the most optimistic analyst projections. Serving as an advocate to the industry as well as the consumer, the Bluetooth SIG has designed a number of consumer programs in order to satisfy the needs of the booming market and further secure a first-class user experience of Bluetooth wireless technology.
GN Mobile Qualifies World's First Bluetooth 2.0 Headset
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August 11, 2005 GN Mobile, a division in GN Store Nord and the global leader of hands-free communication products for the mobile consumer market, today announced that the company has qualified the world's first Bluetooth headset to Bluetooth version 2.0. This achievement marks the fourth consecutive time for GN to qualify a Bluetooth headset to the latest version of the Bluetooth standard. GN was also first to qualify a Bluetooth headset to versions 1.0, 1.1 and 1.2. The qualification confirms GN's leadership in Bluetooth technology development and widely recognized Bluetooth technology expertise. Read More
RAZRWIRE Bluetooth enabled sunglasses redefines hands-free mobility
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July 26, 2005 Motorola and Oakley have announced that the much-awaited RAZRWIRE Bluetooth eyewear will be available in the US in early August at US$300. RAZRWIRE combines Oakley optics with Bluetooth wireless technology so you can listen to a Bluetooth MP3 player or carry on phone conversations while up to 30 feet away from your compatible Bluetooth-enabled cell phone. It also means you can hike, run, row, play or ride a bike, as Lance Armstrong regularly demonstrated over the last month during the Tour de France when he was regularly seen wearing his RAZRWIRE species. Read More
Bluetooth Headset with vibrator alert, built-in ring tones and caller ID
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April 22, 2005 Take your eye off the consumer electronics ball for a moment and it has moved a long way. We realised that this week when we saw one of the new Jabra BT800 Bluetooth headsets. Claimed by Jabra to be the most advanced Bluetooth headset in the world right now, it has caller ID display, built-in ring tones, vibrator alert and DSP technology. The Bluetooth headset market exceeded 15 million headsets worldwide in 2004, so it makes sense that headsets incorporate many of the standard features normally accessed through a mobile phone directly into the headset. Read More
Bluetooth Pen Tablet from Wacom
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April 16, 2005 Wacom has announced its first pen tablet to incorporate Bluetooth wireless technology will be a member of Graphire pen tablet family. Mobile office workers, educators and aspiring digital artists will also appreciate the new device and the ability to work where and when they want. The new model, named Graphire Bluetooth, incorporates Wacom's cordless, battery-free pen and mouse and is available immediately, offering a 6" x 8" active area and is priced at US$249.99. Read More
New Bluetooth controlled camera - a camera on wheels which roves about and captures images
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March 11, 2005 Taking pictures with your mobile phone is no longer confined to what is visible through the view finder on the phone. Sony Ericsson’s new Bluetooth controlled camera, ROB-1, can move around freely, steered wirelessly by the joy-stick or keypad on your mobile phone or as for P900/P910 with the touch screen, enabling you to see on your phone screen exactly what ROB-1 is looking at. You can then capture these images using your phone just as you would a normal photo. Read More
RAZRWire - fashion sunglasses with a built-in BlueTooth headset
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Fusing high-fashion and high-technology, the new RazrWire sunglasses from Oakley take active-wear to a new level. By embedding a Motorola Bluetooth wireless headset into Oakley sunglasses, RazrWire lets image conscious consumers experience hands-free, cable-free connections to Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones or other compatible devices. Hot on the heels of other Motorola Bluetooth technology announcements adding intelligence to motorcycle helmets, skiiing jackets and beanies, the wireless BlueTooth world is fast approaching. Read More
Bluetooth-enabled proximity dating service
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February 12, 2005 The world of computer-mediated matching services looks set to blossom as wireless technologies become all-pervasive. We've covered two such ingenious matchmaking services in the last twelve months and now a third with enormous potential has emerged. Proxidating's software enables you to recognise potential partners in any environment - if your preferences match and you come within Bluetooth distance (15 metres), your mobile will introduce you. The third new such matchmaking service was introduced this week - the Proxidating locality-based matchmaking service for Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone users, offers an interesting new way for people to get together. Created in France (where else?), the Proxidating service uses Bluetooth connectivity to make the initial contact and with mobile phone usage now universal in many countries, particularly among the young, socially mobile and technology-savvy group, we think it has anormous potential.
Motorola and Burton unveil Bluetooth Snowboarding Jacket, Helmet and Beanie
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LAS VEGAS 9 January 2005 Next winter, the world's snowboarders will add another "trick" to their repertoire with the ability to switch between their iPOD playlist and incoming calls in mid-air thanks to three new products from Motorola and Burton Snowboards. Launched at the 2005 Consumer Electronics Show, these Bluetooth-enabled jackets, helmets and beanies will provide wireless, high-performance connectivity and playability on the slopes for the 2006 winter season. Read More
Ingenious Bluetooth Luggage Tag
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November 2, 2004 The folks at idfuel, one of the best design resources on the web, had an ideas contest recently for clever ways to use technology to make summer more fun.
The winner was a Bluetooth travel accessory and luggage tag which attaches to your baggage and beeps and notifies you when it is within range so you'll know when your bag is coming down the conveyor belt at the airport.
Known as the BlueBird, the tag also flashes to draw your attention... Read More
Portable Bluetooth One Handed Keyboard from iFrog
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Data entry innovator FrogPad has announced the global release of iFrog, a portable one-handed keyboard with Bluetooth connectivity, and is sure to grab a share of the global market searching for efficient means of using their mobile devices on the fly. Read More
The Bluetooth shopping centre
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October 12, 2004 A new location-based Bluetooth customer service system will begin operation later this week in Sydney. The bluepulse system enables people within the shopping centre to use their mobile phones to get useful information they want about their surroundings.
Broadway Shopping Centre in central Sydney will become the first Bluetooth-enabled shopping centre on Friday, October 22, allowing retail outlets in the Broadway Centre to communicate with 'bluepulse' subscribers as they walk through the centre by giving consumers access to relevant and valuable information and offers through their mobile phone. Read More
Bluetooth Enabled Motorcycle Helmet
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Motorola and MOMODESIGN have announced their first Bluetooth enabled motorcycle helmet that will make it possible for motorcycle riders to scoot around town and stay connected. Built on the award-winning design of Motorola's popular HS810, the wireless helmet headset is the latest addition to Motorola's portfolio of Bluetooth products. The helmet is unfortunately only available in an open-face helmet at this stage, with the design drawing inspiration from air force pilots helmets, with carbon fibre detailing a prominent design element.
According to the information available at this point, taking and making calls will be easy as all functions (answer, end, redial, voice dial and volume) can be made from the cover on the helmet. Read More
Bluetooth MP3 Snowboarding Jacket from O'Neill
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Infineon Technologies and O'Neill Europe unveiled the result of a joint product development project on January 14 - their first 'wearable electronics' snowboard jacket with functions such as an MP3 player and mobile telephony by Bluetooth.The jacket will be known as "THE HUB" and technologically clued-in snowboarders will be able to purchase the jacket when O'Neill's 2004/05 winter collection goes on sale later this year. Read More
Lexus introduces Bluetooth technology
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Sunday October 26, 2003: Luxury car-maker Lexus has introduced Bluetooth technology on the latest Lexus LS430 flagship sedan and the marque's luxury four wheel drive LX470. The system shown at the 2003 Sydney Motor Show enables drivers to make and receive calls via a button on the steering wheel or through the dashboard-mounted satellite navigation screen... Read More
Bluetooth enabled Micro-robot
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The World's smallest and thinnest Bluetooth-equipped micro-robot prototype will be unveiled at ROBODEX 2003 next month in Yokohama, Japan. Epson's Monsieur II has a volume of just 7.8cm3 and weighs 12.5g Read More
Telephony Only the Beginning for Bluetooth In the Vehicle
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The Paris Motor Show highlighted one of the coming trends in automotive design - the significant implementation of communications technologies such as Bluetooth allowing portable devices to communicate over 10 meters without physical connections. Read More
