Bluetooth: Advantages And Disadvantages

Advantages

Bluetooth has a lot to offer with an increasingly difficult market place. Bluetooth helps to bring with it the promise of freedom from the cables and simplicity in networking that has yet to be matched by LAN (Local Area Network).

In the key marketplace, of wireless and handheld devices, the closest competitor to Bluetooth is infrared. Infrared holds many key features, although the line of sight it provides doesn’t go through walls or through obstacles like that of the Bluetooth technology.

Unlike infrared, Bluetooth isn’t a line of sight and it provides ranges of up to 100 meters. Bluetooth is also low power and low processing with an overhead protocol. What this means, is that it’s ideal for integration into small battery powered devices. To put it short, the applications with Bluetooth are virtually endless.

Disadvantages

Bluetooth has several positive features and one would be extremely hard pressed to find downsides when given the current competition. The only real downsides are the data rate and security. Infrared can have data rates of up to 4 MBps, which provides very fast rates for data transfer, while Bluetooth only offers 1 MBps.

For this very reason, infrared has yet to be dispensed with completely and is considered by many to be the complimentary technology to that of Bluetooth. Infrared has inherent security due to its line of sight.

The greater range and radio frequency (RF) of Bluetooth make it much more open to interception and attack. For this reason, security is a very key aspect to the Bluetooth specification.

Although there are very few disadvantages, Bluetooth still remains the best for short range wireless technology. Those who have tried it love it, and they know for a fact that Bluetooth will be around for years to come.

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Bluetooth Profiles

The profile found in Bluetooth will describe how the technology is used. Profiles can be best described as vertical slices through the protocol stack. It will define options in each protocol that are mandatory for the profile.

The profile will also define the parameter ranges for each protocol. The concept of the profile is used to decrease the risk of interoperability problems between the different products. These profiles won’t normally define any additions to the Bluetooth specification, which is why you can add new profiles where you need them. The Bluetooth underlying technology is the same, only the specific method that it’s used is defined.

Generally speaking, all profiles of Bluetooth are based on the GAP (Generic Access Profile). There are 9 profiles that fall in the GAP category, and they are below:

1. AVRCP – Audio/Video Remote Control

Profile

2. ESDP – Extended Service Discovery Profile

3. CIP – Common ISDN Access Profile

4. PAN – Public Area Network Profile

5. HCRP – Hardcopy Cable Replacement

Profile

6. GAVDP – Generic Audio/Visual Distribution

Profile

7. A2DP – Advanced Audio Distribution Profile

8. VDP – Video Distribution Profile

9. HID – Human Interface Device Profile

To put it another way, usage models will describe Bluetooth device applications and the associated profiles that are used. The usage model focuses mainly on three categories – voice/data access points, peripheral interconnects, and PAN (Personal Area Networking).

The voice and data access points involve connecting computing devices to communicating devices through a wireless link. This way, data can be transferred in a wireless manor, without the need of cables or other types of connectivity.

PAN is another very important usage model with strong appeal to business customers. Bluetooth networks are easy to set up in virtually any type of environment. An example would be meeting others at a trade show.

Instead of having contact information beamed via infrared, business cards can quickly and easily be transferred via Bluetooth wireless. The fact is that many documents can be exchanged this very same way – making the uses and possibilities virtually endless.

The Bluetooth profile is very important to the specification, as it enables you to do so much more. You can use peripherals and devices with the profiles, and virtually anything else that you decide.

As Bluetooth expands and gets bigger and better, you can count on the profiles to expand and get even more functions. If you have experience with Bluetooth profiles, you should know exactly what they are and what you can do with them. If not, all you need is a Bluetooth device – and a vivid imagination.

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Battery Sizes And Types

In both science and in technology, a battery is used as a type of device that is used to store energy, making it available for use in an electrical form. They consist of electrochemical devices, including one or even more galvanic cells.

Baghdad Batteries are thought to be the first known in history. The modern battery began with the Voltaic pile, which was developed by Alessandro Volta, an italian physicist.

Batteries can be divided into two main categories, rechargeable batteries and non-rechargeable, or disposable, batteries.

Disposable batteries are also known as primary cells. They are intended for a one time use only, to be used until the chemical changes used to induce its electrical current supply have been finished. Their common usages include smaller, more portable devices that have either a low current drain or are used away from any alternative power source.

Rechargeable batteries, also known as secondary cells, have a longer usage life since they can be recharged after their power has been drained. You can do so by applying an externally supplied electrical current. This causes a reversal in the chemical changes that occur during the battery’s use. These devices used to do this are commonly known as rechargers or chargers.

The ‘wet cell,’ or lead-acid, battery is the oldest form of the rechargeable battery. This battery contains a liquid found in an unsealed container that requires the battery to be kept in an upright position. The area in which it is used must be well-ventilated so as not to cause the ventilated, hydrogen gas to display its explosive qualities.

The lead-acid battery is quite heavy, although its cost to manufacture is low and the high surge content levels allow it to be a commonly used battery in places where its weight and handling ease are not of any concern.

The most common form of a lead-acid battery is the car battery.

A gel battery is known to be an expensive lead-acid battery type, containing a semi-solid electrolyte that is used to prevent spillage.

The portable types are considered to be ‘dry cells.’ They are sealed units that are useful in appliances such as cell phones and laptop computers. These types of cells also include, nickel-cadmium or NiCd, nickel metal hydride or NiMH, and lithium-ion or Li-Ion.

Both disposable batteries and rechargeable batteries come in various standard sizes. This is so they can easily be used in a wider amount of appliances. The most commonly known types of batteries are the A-series, including A, AA, AAA, and AAAA. Also known are B, C, D, F, G, J, and N. Other variants include 3R12, 4R25, PP3, PP9, and the 996 and PC926 that are used in lanterns. There are many, many more less common battery types, and their usages vary greatly.

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Bluetooth Definition

Bluetooth is a specification for the use of low power radio communications to wireless phones, computers, and other network wireless devices over short distances. The name Bluetooth is actually borrowed from harald bluetooth, a denmark king more than 1,000 years ago.

The technology of Bluetooth was primarily designed to support simple wireless networking of devices and peripherals, which includes cell phones, PDAs, and wireless headsets. The wireless signals that are transmitted by Bluetooth cover short distances of up to 30 feet, generally communicating less than 1 MPps (Mega Byte per second).

The networks of Bluetooth feature dynamic topology called PAN or a piconet. The piconets contain a minumum of two and a maximum of eight peer devices.

The devices will communicate using protocols that are part of the specification.

Even though the Bluetooth standard will utilize the same 2.4 GHz range as 802.11b and 802.11g, the technology isn’t suitable for a Wi-Fi replacement. When compared to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth is much slower, limited in range, and actually supports less devices.

For short range devices, Bluetooth is rapidly becoming the best. The technology is more popular with cell phones, as Bluetooth headsets are the way to go these days. To use Bluetooth, your cell phone will need to have it enabled, or an infrared device somewhere on the phone.

If you own a cell phone or other wireless device, you should look into Bluetooth. The technology is nothing short of spectacular, making it something that will be around for years and years to come. As technology gets bigger and bigger, you can expect Bluetooth to advance as well.

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