VisorCentral.com - Has Bluetooth arrived?

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Posted by VisorCentral on 11-06-2001 01:55 AM:

Has Bluetooth arrived?

Are you sitting down? Bluetooth is finally here.

http://www.visorcentral.com/content/Stories/1308-1.htm

Posted by michaelwatkins on 11-06-2001 04:56 AM:

The long wait draws close to an end. Howeve I wonder how many Handspring early adopters are out there, who like me have Handspring Visor Deluxe models...?

I've been watching Red-M every day for news on the release of their product, despite seeing this in their specifications:

Red-M
http://www.red-m.com/products/blade/Default.asp#

Supported Visor platforms
Edge, Prism, Platinum, Pro & Neo

It has been a long wait and the promise of the Springboard has been there but not as quickly met as we all would have liked. As my bosses at Data General always used to say, Commodity Economics Always Win -- can Springboard compete in the long run with CF and other standards? Please no technical flames, I'm not that clued into the details on each.

Almost a side note - I must admit I am drawn powerfully to the Handera 330 -- what a great mix of features.

If a Bluetooth module is available for it - soon - I might well buy a HE330 and module rather than replacing my VDX (unless in fact I can run the Red-M or other Bluetooth interface in this 'old' platform).

Or horrors, I've even contemplated going back to Palm units. If Palm came out with a HE330-like device and networking options straight away, I would probably buy one.

Either way, I have a Bluetooth phone; and a GSM service provider offering reasonably priced unlimited GPRS packet data; and I want to use it with a Palm device.

NOW!

Posted by Eug on 11-06-2001 12:31 PM:

It's an interesting technology, but I've gone with 802.11b instead for extended wireless. (That's for my laptops, not my Visor.) For synching the Visor (something that Bluetooth could potentially handle), I just plug it in.

I guess I'll have to see BlueTooth in action before I make any more comments.

Posted by michaelwatkins on 11-06-2001 03:36 PM:

quote:
It's an interesting technology, but I've gone with 802.11b instead for extended wireless. (That's for my laptops, not my Visor.) For synching the Visor (something that Bluetooth could potentially handle), I just plug it in.

I think both technologies have their place. My interest in Bluetooth for Palm devices is centred around 'personal' wide area networking.

With a Bluetood adapter in the palm device, and my Ericsson bluetooth-equipped GSM cell phone, I can take full advantage of the GPRS data capabilities (always on, true IP, 56Kbps) that two national wireless phone providers offer here in Canada. [Rogers and Fido]

Sure, I could just run a cable from my phone to the Palm device. But that's not an 'always-on' solution and less than ideal IMO.

Unlimited, fixed price access from the service providers suggests to me that a wireless connection between Palm device and the phone is about the only way for me extract maximum value from the service plan.

After all, the 'instant on' capability of Palm OS devices is one of the reasons many of us prefer the platform. When I have a sudden need or inspiration, I do not have to whip out the Handspring, my phone, and a cable, and hook it all up. I just take out my Handspring, turn it on, and as long as my phone is nearby (almost always is...) I'm on the internet - instantly.

There are other options but none quite as flexible.

I balked at buying a seperate data only device & service, such as Omnisky, Go America, or Palm.Net itself. First, no integration with phone devices; second, these are proprietary schemes and if you don't like what the provide, you are potentially stuck with the hardware.

Then there is the Treo - this solution indeed has a lot of advantages. If / when they have GPRS capabilities, it will be a terrific voice/data integrated solution. Hopefully the Treo is 'unlocked' i.e. you can buy one and sign up with any GSM provider. About the only downside to this, I feel, is that there are trade offs in the Treo due to the high level of integration.

Battery life is one. Current generation phones have many times the battery life of the Treo.

Functionality is another. Buy a Treo - suddenly you have locked yourself into a specific Palm device for an extended period of time. Want color today? Sorry. Want the capabilities of a Handera 330? sorry.

In summary - I think Bluetooth is an ideal technology for connecting mobile, personal, technologies such as PDA's and Phones.

That's my thought process. Others mileage may vary!

ps: Bell Mobility in Canada will role out 1xRTT service in the new year. Its not GSM, another reason to seperate telecom function from the PDA - Treo users will not be able to take advantage of this until a CDMA Treo comes out.

quote:

Toronto - Bell Mobility, the wireless division of Bell Canada, today announced that it has deployed its next generation wireless data network (CDMA 1xRTT) in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is making it available to partners and a group of corporate customers seeking to use a variety of advanced mobile solutions. For the first time in Canada, customers will experience for themselves the benefits of a 1xRTT network -- the first phase implementation of 3G (Third Generation) wireless.

CDMA 1xRTT technology provides a solid platform for the delivery of innovative mobile services. 1xRTT employs packet data transmission speeds of up to 144Kbps, the fastest on the market today, and with always-on connectivity, users have real-time access to time-sensitive information and to each other via e-mail, instant messaging, corporate data and the Internet.

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