Utron

The changes that took place in the way MLB games were broadcast on television made many think that the same will happen to radio soon enough. Today, local television stations only broadcast 23% of the MLB games. Also, 7 of the major league team games are only available on cable, an exclusivity factor that seems to work well for them. In an interview to WSJ, Edison Media Research’s President Larry Rosin declared that “it is probably inevitable that baseball radio broadcasts will go to a 100% subscription model… It will happen because there’s too much money in it not to do it.” This is an interesting perspective for the two main digital satellite radio providers, XM Satellite Radio and Sirius. This potential development sounds excellent for XM especially, as they would hold the exclusive rights to all major-league baseball games. Of course, that would be an important step forward for XM, as the MLB generates huge interest in the US, and it would mean that another building block has been added to the development of satellite radio.

MLB Radio and XM Radio

MLB also has its own subscription paid online radio channel, and if the same thing happens to radio as it did to television they would definitely enjoy the situation. Since experts in the communication field consider that satellite radio is still in its infancy, the trend of moving broadcasts of such games to a subscription paid environment would take digital radio broadcasting to the next level of development. The earnings from XM Radio and MLB Radio are split between the 30 MLB teams, but they are divided equally. This means that the MLB teams interests would be high and the economical and financial factors could speed up the process of making MLB games exclusive to satellite radio. The statistics we have today tell an interesting story: presently around 23% of XM subscribers have signed up to receive the MLB transmission, so there is a lot of potential for growth. Terrestrial radio can already start to feel the danger of loosing MLB broadcasts to satellite radio as this revenue driven model is more attractive for the MLB teams.
Implications of such a transfer
As with anything that reaches such a controversial topic, the opinions are shared among experts and the general public. Some people are convinced that this whole movement is nothing more than a bubble of soap. Baseball is mostly a TV favorite and although there is still a lot of interest in MLB radio broadcasts, most people will not feel the transfer to digital radio as a major change. Although radio was the initial growing medium for baseball, television is king today, and they say that the transfer from terrestrial radio to satellite radio is not something that will have a significant impact. Other opinions say that MLB would loose more audience then it would gain from the exclusive fees. Since the format of the terrestrial radio stations is more flexible it also allows them to broadcast more games than broadcast TV. The same people say that the MLB would alienate a lot of local fans if they took baseball off AM radio. For other people, there is another comparison to be made that between the impact this would have on MLB and the impact it had on NFL, where a similar process has already started. The Sirius NFL broadcasts brought the company some new listeners, but the changes were not extreme and since NFL is more popular than MLB, some expect the same trend to be followed in MLBs case as well. Of course, there are voices that say this change would have a significant impact on the way baseball is perceived. Since watching a game on TV can take away a few hours, many prefer to listen to the game on radio while they are doing something else. This is especially true during summer months, when many prefer to spend time in the yard or on the porch, not inside the room in front of a TV set. Of course, comparisons between the various major sport types in the US can be made from many perspectives, but most will agree that baseball is a game that can be followed on radio. For now, al the signs point at a transfer of broadcasts from terrestrial radio towards satellite radio, but this may change depending on the response companies and MLB receive from the public.

Bluetooth is easily the best in wireless handheld technology. When it comes to learning, Bluetooth can get quite complicated. To help you, you’ll find the key learning points of Bluetooth below:

1. Bluetooth is an energy efficient, low overhead communication protocol that’s ideal for interdevice communications.
2. Unlike infrared, Bluetooth doesn’t require a line of sight.
3. Depending on the implementation, Bluetooth can have a range of up to 100 meters.
4. The specification of Bluetooth consists of a Foundation Profile Document and a Foundation Core Document.
5. The protocol stack for Bluetooth consists of core protocols, cable protocols, and even adapted protocols.
6. The transmitter operates around the 2.4 GHz frequency band.
7. The data channel will change frequency, or hops, 1,600 times in a second, between the 79 allocated channels in the ISM band.
8. Bluetooth utilizes a spread spectrum frequency hopping RF characteristic to ensure that independant networking operates when the other devices are in range.
9. A piconet is formed when one or more devices open up a channel of communication.
10. A piconet can have a master and up to seven slaves.
11. Communication of the interdevice is based on the concepts of channels.
12. All Bluetooth devices are capable of transmitting voice.
13. The channel has a total capacity of 1 MB per second.
14. There are two types of channels with Bluetooth – SCO (Synchronous Connection Oriented) and ACL (Asynchronous Connectionless).
15. The SCO channels are time oriented, and are therefore primarily used for transferring time critical data such as voice.
16. ACL channels are normally used for communicating data.
17. Data contained in a packet can be up to 2,745 bits in length.
18. In a single piconet, there can be up to three SCO links containing 64,000 bits a second each.
19. To avoid collision and timing problems, SCO links are reserved slots that are set up by the master.
20. The masters can support up to three SCO links with either one, two, or three slaves.
21. The slots that aren’t reserved for SCO links can be used as ACL links.
22. The LMP (Link Management Protocol) will handle link level security, error corrections, and the establishment of communications links.
23. The LMP packets will have priority over user packets that originate and form the L2CAP layer.
24. The L2CAP layer will ensure an acceptable quality of service.
25. No more than one ACL link can exist at the L2CAP layer.

The satellite radio world is divided among the two major broadcasters, XM Radio and Sirius. Since they work on different frequencies and need specific equipment to broadcast, Sirius and XM Radio have divided the market into two groups. While some are fans of the Sirius channels others prefer XM Radio, and the debate regarding which of the two is the best could go on forever. Some however are subscribers to both services, since they love some of the Sirius programs but also enjoy XM Radio broadcasting. For them and for more people interested in satellite radio, there are some potential good news. Interoperable satellite radios are one of the things most of the major players in the satellite radio industry are talking about. What are they? Basically they are receivers that can work both with Sirius and XM Radio and everything is enclosed in a single unit.

Interoperable Technologies when Sirius and XM work together

Interoperable Technologies is the name of a joint effort funded by both Sirius and XM Radio, with the declared purpose of bringing dual-subscription satellite radios to the general market. Founded in 2003, Interoperable Technologies has started developing the dual-mode satellite radios ever since and progress is being made with each passing month. Interoperable Technologies gets help from consultants from both XM and Sirius and their 2005 success of developing a singe unit that can receive both transmissions was a notable one. Today, Interoperable Technologies ha a deadline of bringing the developed receiver unit to the market. The monthly subscription price is estimated to be around $26 for which you get over 300 channels from the combined broadcasting list of the two satellite radio operators.

What the people say

The news of the interoperable satellite radio development has triggered interesting responses among XM and Sirius satellite radio subscribers. Here are some of the things people left on forums and discussion boards regarding this development:

$26/month? A hell of a lot cheaper than cable TV. Says one of the forum posters. He is right, but, of course, many will question the need to pay $26 for over 300 radio channels out of which 80% will probably never get listened to.
Oh man! As a dual subscriber, this would be SO cool to have. Where do I sign up? on the other hand, of course, there are those people that dont mind spending a little extra when they can get so much more.
Cool idea if it ever comes to pass. Even though I only subscribe to Sirius, I would consider buying this with an eye on the future… for people such as this forum poster, the interoperable satellite radio system is the natural evolutionary step forward, so it is definitely worth looking into.
Implications of the interoperable satellite radio system
As you can see from the response of the potential customers, the interoperable satellite radio system is an interesting development. While Sirius and XM are lucky enough to be the only major players in this field, for now, it seems they are also ready to work together in order to consolidate their future. Of course, offering twice the programs on a single unit is a major step forward, and from the early stages it seems that the target audience is ready to receive the single receiver unit with applause. On the other hand, is this an initial enthusiastic response or is it genuine interest? Wont 300+ channels become too much and wont people start to feel like they are paying for something they are rarely using? There will also be some interesting things to follow as far as exclusivity rights go, because each of the two broadcasters have their own original approaches to common things. Another interesting aspect to follow will be how the sales for individual Sirius and XM units will go after the dual receiver hits the market. For many, the combined efforts of Sirius and XM tend to look like a first step towards a large scale joint venture that will lead to an absolute monopoly of the satellite radio market.

Satellite radio is one of the biggest improvements in broadcasting since the introduction of FM. Satellite radio signal can be broadcasted for more than 35,000 kilometers (22,000 miles) with complete clarity and high quality sound. You will never get static interferences while listening to over 100 radio channels. The idea behind satellite radio has appeared in 1992, when the United States Federal Communications Commission granted a spectrum of the S band (the 2.3 GHz frequency) for Digital Audio Radio Service. The license to broadcast in that band was allocated to Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio in 1997. Now there are three companies that provide satellite radio in the world: Sirius and XM in Northern America and WorldSpace in Asia, Europe and Africa.

Each of these companies offer different broadcasting systems, since the radio signal of each is proprietary. This means that you will have to buy different hardware depending on your subscription to one of these companies. However, there are three components common to all satellite radio services: the satellites, the ground repeaters and the radio receivers. Different satellite radio companies broadcast the radio signal in different ways. For instance, XM satellite radio uses geostationary satellites which have orbits that are synchronized with the movement of Earth. These satellites are located above the equator. In order to allow subscribers to receive crystal-clear signal despite obstacles such as buildings, hills or bridges, XM satellite radio service has installed a network of repeaters antennas that receive the radio signal from the satellites and retransmit it to the subscribers receiver Sirius, on the other hand, uses satellites that have unique elliptical orbits around Earth. These kinds of orbits allow satellites to get higher in the sky than geostationary satellites and this prevents loss of signal. This is the reason why Sirius has fewer terrestrial repeaters than XM.

Satellite radio services have digital broadcast centers where a huge amount of music in digital format as well as CD format is stored. Radio programmers have the task of selecting which song has to be played at which time. There are also a lot of studios managed by digital radio companies where artists perform live. All songs and material are transmitted to the satellites in digital format so that the signal contains very high quality sound. The signal is encoded by the satellite and then retransmitted to the repeaters antennas, which then transmit it to the radio receiver which decodes it and plays the sound. The entire process is very quick and reliable. Satellite radio would not be possible without digital compression. Digital compression is a technique that uses sophisticated algorithms to compress as much material as possible on the available bandwidth. Once you make a subscription to a satellite radio provider you will need the appropriate radio equipment. Traditional radios cannot decode the signal received from satellites so you will need special equipment.

The popularity of satellite radio has exploded due to many technological advancements that enabled manufacturers to offer the receivers at very attractive prices. The fact that satellite radio is commercial free for many of its channels is also a major selling point.

Bluetooth devices will normally operate at 2.4 GHZ
in the license free, globally available ISM radio
band. The advantage to this band includes worldwide
availability and compatibility. A disadvantage to
this however, is that the devices must share this
band with other RF emitters. This includes
automobile security systems, other wireless devices,
and other noise sources, such as microwaves.

To overcome this challenge, Bluetooth employs a
fast frequency hopping scheme and therefore uses
shorter packets than other standards within the
ISM band. This scheme helps to make Bluetooth
communication more robust and more secure.

Frequency hopping
Frequency hopping is basically jumping from frequency
to frequency within the ISM radio band. After a
bluetooth device sends or receives a packet, it
and the device (or devices) it’s communicating with
hop to another frequency before the next packet is
sent. This scheme offers three advantages:
1. Allows Bluetooth devices to use the
entirety of the available ISM band, while never
transmitting from a fixed frequency for more than a
short period of time. This helps insure that
Bluetooth conforms to the ISM restrictions on the
transmission quantity per frequency.
2. Ensures that any interference won’t
last long. Any packet that doesn’t arrive safely
to its destination can be resent to the next
frequency.
3. Provides a base level of security as
it’s very hard for an eavesdropping device to predict
which frequency the Bluetooth devices will use
next.

The connected devices however, must agree upon the
frequency they will use next. The specification
in Bluetooth ensures this in two ways. First, it
defines a master and slave type relationship between
bluetooth devices. Next, it specifies an algorithm
that uses device specific information when
calculating the frequency hop sequences.

A Bluetooth device that operates in master mode can
communicate with up to seven devices that are set in
slave mode. To each of the slaves, the master
Bluetooth device will send its own unique address
and the value of its own internal clock. The
information sent is then used to calculate the
frequency hop sequences.

Because the master device and each of the slave
devices use the same algorithm with the same initial
input, the connected devices will always arrive
together at the next frequency that they have agreed
upon.

As a replacement for cable technology, it’s no
wonder that Bluetooth devices are usually battery
powered, such as wireless mice and battery powered
cell phones. To conserve the power, most devices
operate in low power. This helps to give Bluetooth
devices a range of around 5 – 10 meters.

This range is far enough for wireless communication
but close enough to avoid drawing too much power
from the power source of the device.

XM Radio provides over 150 programs that include music, sports and entertainment, traffic and weather channels.

The music area has the largest number of channels. Here are 68 music channels that you can enjoy and where you can listen to your favorite music whether is from the 60s, the 90s or its the new released music. There are music-by-the-decade channels that include the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s songs which are mostly pop/rock outlets, the Top 20 channel, Love Songs, Movie Soundtracks, Show Tunes, MTV, VH1, and a Global hits channel. For those you prefer new music there is the Unsigned channel and the XMU channel. The last one can be compared to a college station. If you are a jazz fan, XM offers you live music from the Blue Note club and the B.B. King Club in New York City.

There are entertainment shows on XM radio hosted by Tom Perry, Snoop Dog or Quincy Jones. Comedy shows may be found on the High Voltage channel where shock jocks Opie and Anthony do their job now uncensored. In totally, XM has three comedy channels including a family comedy channel. Beside these, there are more radio channels like Playboy Radio and Public Radio hosted by Bob Edwards which includes a line of NPR shows that you can enjoy whenever you like.

If you are a sports fanatic you can choose from a good variety of channel dedicated to sports that are provided by XM radio. This includes college football and basketball, NASCAR and Major League Baseball. You can easily listen to the Bowl Championship Series to find out which team is going to the next level, the NCAA Division I football champion.

With a subscription from XM, you will have 38 channels of sports, news and talk channels. For example, ABC News & Talk, BBC World Service, CNBC, Court TV, C-Span, CNN, CNN Headline News, Discovery Channel, E Entertainment, two ESPN channels, Fox News, NASCAR Racing are a few talk station to which you can listen. Local weather and traffic channels are provided too and in totally, they are 22 channels.

Sound clearance depends on the subscription you have. If you have satellite radio from XM, the sound has more quality than the one from Sirius, but still you cant say that is the same as a CD. You can say that the sound is somewhere between the sound of a CD and AM radio. Hopefully, in the years that will come, the sound quality will improve.

As this technology appeared so did a new line of hardware that can match peoples desires.
And XM has new things to offer like the Delphi XM MyFi which is a small receiver, actually the smallest in the world that can include up to five yours of XM content to which you can listen anywhere you like. Another is the Delphi SkyFi2 which has a TiVo-like 30-Minute Replay feature so, you can rewind, push the pause button or just play it forward to hear music, news or anything else you stored on the it. This equipments are also produced by Sony, Alpine, Pioneer and of course others.

The Delphi XM Roady Radio Receiver is the smallest radio receiver available on the market. Its the next generation of radio, not only for being Americas most popular satellite radio service but for its power of choice, giving the listener the pleasure of choosing what kind of songs he wants to hear wherever, whenever he wants. In short terms, you can listen to more than 170 digital channels, live concerts, daily news, live commentary on sports, etc. Plus, listening to music on your radio without any commercial is like a dream come true. The receiver is somehow smaller than SkiFi XM Receiver but it has a sharper look. Being able to use it with no major problems. The interface is user-friendly and the installation of additional accessories lie the Roady FM Modulator or the power adaptor is very easy. As for the price, where you can use it and on which system, you can take a look below:

Price: $119.95
Use: Car or Home
System: XM Satellite Radio

The features of the Delphi XM Roady Radio are plenty:
– plug and play: you can easily connect to your home kits, car or audio systems, whenever you want
– you can search for channel, presets or category
– seven color displays
– smallest radio available on the market, together with the smallest antenna
– optional home audio
– the possibility of saving a total of 15 songs information

When buying a full kit, you will find in the box the following: receiver, micro-antenna, three faceplates, cigarette lighter power adaptor, cassette adaptor, universal mounting bracket and manual. It is told that the Delphi XM Roady is the direct competitor of Terk XM Commander, being slightly less expensive if you buy the Commander without the FM Modulator. As for the receiver, well.. how small can it be? It is very small. Like I said, it is the smallest receiver you can find out there to buy. The colors are quite brilliant, so that we could spoil our looks by watching red, green, sky blue, orange, night blue, purple and pink. If youre really a fashion maniac, you can combine the colors with the three colored faceplates for a dazzling look. A very nice option on the Delphi XM Radio is the TuneSelect, where you can save a total of 15 songs, with detailed information upon them.

As for accessories, you can buy an additional home kit (base, antenna, power adaptor, mini-stereo to RCA output cable), Power / FM Modulator (rebroadcasting on the following frequencies: 88.1, 88.3, 88.5, 88.7, 107.1, 107.3, 107.5, 107.7, being available on the market since December 2003), FM Modulator (which can be found at a price of $49.99) or Mini Stereo to dual RCA Cable (with that you can connect your Delphi XM Roady to your stereo CD, in case that you dont have a CD player).
As a conclusion, I can say that the Delphi XM Radio Receiver is a pretty good gadget to buy, the reviews being generally positive. That doesnt mean you cant buy something that wont work as you would expect, but, if you choose the right place to buy (where customer service is a really important thing to notice), you would be very pleased of the acquisition. Overall, for its price it is an extraordinary unit.

Constantly evolving, the technology of Bluetooth
started off as a basic wireless connection standard
but has since then been adapted and proven with many
different uses and functions.

A good example is Bluetooth for cell phones. It
enables mobile users to connect to their hands free
headset without using wires. Bluetooth technology
will also allow mobile phone users to connect
with their hands free kit as well.

Another handy use of Bluetooth is file sharing. It
allows the sharing of files between two cell phones,
between a cell phone and computer, which makes the
sharing of files a snap. If you have a cell phone
and computer, you can easily transfer data between
the two.

Say for example you wanted to put an MP3 on your
phone from your computer you could do it easily
with Bluetooth. All you would need is a Bluetooth
adapter for your computer. It doesn’t stop with the
swapping of files either,as you can use your computer
and phone to synchronise phone books, send SMS messages,
and much more.

Although Bluetooth may be dandy for cell phones,
it also comes in handy for the home office as well.
Utilizing Bluetooth is a great way to set up a
home office – two computers, a printer, and even a
scanner. They all can be connected using Bluetooth
technology with effective ranges of up to 10 meters.

The technology and devices of Bluetooth will be
around for years and years to come. As years go
by, Bluetooth will provide even better wireless
solutions for different applications. Even though
Bluetooth has a short range, it has that short
range for a reason. Bluetooth is easily the best
in wireless technology – which it continues to
prove time and time again.

Creating a good wireless headset for Bluetooth is actually difficult to do. The regular wired headsets are easy to design – with ranging styles.

Bluetooth headsets can never be as small or as light as wired headsets, simply because it needs to include the battery and extra functions. This extra size will impact how the headset mounts on or around your ears.

Comfort
There seems to be two main styles of headsets for Bluetooth. Some are held into place with a loop around the ear. These styles are normally more comfortable, although they may be less secure. The others are held in place by being jammed into your ear – and usually prove to be less comfortable.

Factors to consider

Cost
The cost is an obvious issue, something that you really need to think about.

Ergonomics
1. Check to see if the device is easy to quickly and conveniently put on your ear then take it off again.
2. Are the control buttons on the headset easy to use?
3. The headset should be comfortable to wear for long phone calls.
4. Can you use it with a pair of glasses?
5. Check to see if you can wear it with either ear.
6. When you aren’t wearing it, you’ll need to se how you would carry it with you.
7. The weight is important as well, as you don’t want something that has the risk of falling off.

Ease of use.
1. The commands and controls should be easy to remember.
2. The volume level should be easy to adjust.
3. The unit should turn on quickly.
4. The manual should be very well written and easy for you to understand.
5. There should be a support number for you to call if you should experience any types of problems.

Features
1. You’ll need to know about the battery, the talk time, type, and how to tell when it is going dead or fully charged.
2. How many devices can the unit be paired with?
3. Compatability is also important, as well as the warranty period.
4. Check the sound quality for both sending and receiving audio.
5. What type of range does the headset offer you?

Other important capabilities include voice tags, last number redial, tranfer calls, 3 way calling, link to other phones, call reject, and mute. You’ll also want to note if it looks attractive, and if it’s too big or too small.

While the United States initiated the satellite radio evolution, Canada is now hot on their trails. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) began hearings in 2004 for applicants ready to develop Canadas first satellite radio broadcasting. The Canadian satellite radio industry received quite a lot of interest and in the end three main applications were filed: XM filed one in partnership with Canadian Satellite Radio and Sirius filed an application with Standard Broadcasting and the CBC. The third application belongs to CHUM Limited and Astral Media and to many came as a surprise. That was mostly because CHUM Limited and Astral Media came up with a different solution that that proposed by Sirius and XM Radio. CHUM applied for a subscription radio service that is to be delivered through the already existing terrestrial DAB transmitters. In other words, the transmitters would be the ones receiving the satellite transmission, from where they would continue the broadcast to consumer owned receivers. While the CHUM Limited and Astral Media proposal offers an entirely Canadian approach, the first two bring in a blend of US based technology and Canadian broadcasting channels. XM Radio and Sirius had a slight advantage in the fact that the coverage area of their satellites already existed in parts of Canada, so a small audience was already using their services.
Three satellite radio services for Canada

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) approved all three applications in June 2005, but with a series of conditions imposed to the three solicitants. Here they are as required by the CRTC:
A minimum of 8 channels must be produced in Canada and for each Canadian channel 9 foreign channels can be broadcast.
At least 85% of the content on the Canadian-produced channels (whether musical or spoken word) must be Canadian.
At least 25% of the Canadian channels must be French-language stations.
At least 25% of the music aired on the Canadian channels must be new Canadian music.
At least 25% of the music played on the Canadian channels must be from up-and-coming Canadian artists.

The three companies had to accept these conditions as they are part of the Canadian broadcasting regulations. The US companies and their Canadian partners began negotiations for tilting the rules in their favor. One of the main offers of both the Sirius and XM Radio partnerships was that they would play 50% French content as opposed to the 25% required by the CRTC. AS a results of the negotiations, XM Radio received 5 channels of National Hockey League Play-by-Play in addition to the channels they already had XMs part of the deal was to cover the Canadian National Hockey League games. The fact that the US satellite industry giants were both allowed to broadcast on Canadian territory determined CHUM to appeal the decision. They motivated their action by saying that the two US companies would simply suffocate CHUM with their presence in Canada, not allowing any room for development for the all-Canadian company. CHUM also complained about the deals that were cut with the two US companies. As a response, Canadian Satellite Radio and Sirius Canada said that CHUM is in fact trying to obtain monopoly over the Canadian satellite radio market for themselves.
Todays Canadian satellite radio
One of the main complaints of the people of Canada was that the CRTC decision did not require sufficient Canadian content. This made the broadcasters come out with promises of additional French and Canadian content. The Canadian Federal Cabinet accepted the CRTC decision on September 10, 2005. XM satellite radio was launched on the 29th of November 2005 and Sirius was next on December 1. Monthly subscription rates are $12.99 for XM with a one time activation fee of $19.99 and $14.99 for Sirius, without any activation fees. Both companies are expecting rapid increases in the numbers o subscribers, although, in spite of the extra Canadian content they added to their air time, there are still quite a few voices protesting against the potential monopoly the two companies may get to in the near future.

Bluetooth technology offers three different types
of defined ranges, based on output ranges. Class
1 devices are the most powerful, as they can have
up to 100 mW of power, with a regular antenna
giving them a range of around 130 – 330 feet.

The class 2 devices are lower power, offering up
to 2.5 mW of power. A regular antenna will give
them a range of around 50 – 100 feet. Class 3
devices use even less power, up to 1 mW of power
to be exact. With a regular antenna, they will
have a range of around 16 – 33 feet.

Even though you may not realize it, Bluetooth
wireless technology has never been intended for
anything other than short distance types of
communication. With Bluetooth wireless, the short
range is actually a benefit.

For one, the short range will reduce the change of
interference between your devices and those that
belong to others who are nearby. Overall, this
is a basic type of security, designed to protect
you and your devices.

Secondly, the lower power used for short range
means a longer battery life. Most Bluetooth
devices will get their power from a battery,
meaning that anything you can do to lengthen the
battery life is very important.

The wireless networking offered by Bluetooth is
actually among the best, even though it uses
short range communication. Bluetooth is used
with wireless controllers, the internet, and
even wireless headsets.

For the best in short range technology, Bluetooth
is extremely hard to beat. If you’ve never tried
Bluetooth before, now is the time. It’s the best
with wireless networking, especially for those
who enjoy hands free talking on their cell phone.

Version 1.1 and earlier
Since the technology of Bluetooth was introduced in
1998, several specification versions have been
released. Versions 1.0 and 1.0B had too many issues
and problems for manufacturers to develop devices
for Bluetooth. The main issue was the lack of
communication among the devices.

The core specification version 1.1 is the first
successful operating version of Bluetooth. Version
1.1 corrected a majority of the bugs and problems
found in earlier versions.

Version 1.2
Many of the newer Bluetooth devices, such as the
newer cell phones are being sold with the newer
Bluetooth version 1.2. This version offers backward
compatability with Bluetooth 1.1, faster transmission
speeds, received signal strength, and a host
controller interface (HCI) support for 3 wire UART.

Bluetooth version 2.0
It’s true that there may be multiple communication
technologies, although they all share one common
trait – faster is better. Bluetooth specialists
realized this, and therefore worked on improving
the speeds of version 1.2. The newest version,
version 2.0 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate) was
accounced in 2004 and became available in late
2005.

Version 2.0 delivers data transfer rates of up
to three times that of the original version of
Bluetooth. Version 2.0 also provides enhanced
connectivity. With Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR, you’ll
be able to run more devices at the same time -
with more efficiency.

Computers and even computer related devices are
expected to be some of the first devices to
encorporate Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR, followed of
course by audio and imaging devices.

Version 2.0 is backward compatible with previous
versions, three times faster, and offers an
enhanced data rate of 2.1 MB a second. It also
offers broadcast and multicast support, along
with a further enhanced bit error rate
performance, making it the best Bluetooth has
ever seen.

Below, you’ll find several specifications for the
well known Bluetooth:

1. Throughout the United States and even Europe,
the range of frequency is 2,400 – 2,483.5 MHZ, with
79 1-MHz RF (radio frequency) channels. The
frequency range in Japan is 2,472 to 2,497 MHz with
23 1-MHz RF channels.

2. A data channel of Bluetooth randomly hops 1,600
times per second between the 79 RF channels.

3. Each Bluetooth channel is divided into time
slots, with each one being 625 microseconds long.

4. A Bluetooth piconet has one master and up to
seven slaves. The master will transmit in even
time slots, while the slaves will transmit in odd
time slots.

5. The data in a single packet can be up to 2,745
bits in length.

6. Currently, there are two types of data transfer
between devices – SCO (synchronous connection
oriented) and ACL (asynchronous connectionless).

7. In a Bluetooth piconet, there can be up to
three SCO links containing 64,000 bits per second
with each one. To help avoid collision and timing
problems, the links of the SCO will use reserved
slots set up by the master.

8. A master can support up to three SCO links
with either one, two, or even three slaves.

9. The slots not reserved for the SCO links can
be used for ACL links.

10. A single master and slave can have one ACL
link.

11. ACL is either master to one slave (point to
point) or it broadcasts to all of the slaves.

12. The ACL slaves will only transmit when it has
been requested by the master. If the master doesn’t
make the request, the ACL slaves won’t transmit
anything at all.

These days, all communication technology faces the
issue of privacy and identity theft, with Bluetooth
being no exception. Almost everyone knows that email
services and networks require security. What users
of Bluetooth need to realize is that Bluetooth also
requires security measures as well.

The good news for Bluetooth users is that the
security scares, like most scares, are normally over
dramatized and blown entirely out of proportion. The
truth being told, these issues are easy to manage,
with various measures already in place to provide
security for Bluetooth technology.

It’s true that there has been some Bluetooth phones
that have been hacked into. Most devices that are
hacked into are normally those that don’t have any
type of security at all.

According to Bluetooth specialists, in order to hack
into a Bluetooth device, the hacker must:
1. Force two paired devices to break their
connection.
2. Steal the packets that are used to
resend the pin.
3. Decode the pin.

Of course, the hacker must also be within range of
the device, and using very expensive developer type
equipment. Most specialists recommend that you
have a longer pin, with 8 digits being recommended.

Fundamentals of security
The “pairing process” is one of the most basic levels
of security for Bluetooth devices. Pairing, is
two or more Bluetooth devices that recognize each
other by the profiles they share – in most cases
they both must enter the same pin.

The core specifications for Bluetooth use an
encryption algorithm, which is completely and entirely
secure. Once the devices pair with each other,
they too become entirely secure.

Until they have successfully paired, the Bluetooth
devices won’t communicate with each other. Due to
this pairing process and the fact that it is short
range – Bluetooth technology is considered to be
secure.

As the news has indicated, experienced hackers
have developed ways to get around this level of
basic security. There are ways to get around this
threat, as you can install software to prevent
hackers from getting in.

With Bluetooth becoming more and more popular, it’s
really no wonder that security is always in
question. As Bluetooth gets bigger and better,
security will always be something that no one
really takes lightly.

If you’ve been concerned about Bluetooth security
in the past, rest assured that newer devices will
offer bigger and better security. Preventing
hackers from getting in is something every owner
is concerned about – and the manufacturer’s are
very aware.

The networking standards of Bluetooth will transmit
data via low power radio frequency. Bluetooth
communicates on a 2.45 GHz frequency. This very
band of frequency has been set aside by international
agreement for the use of industrial and medical
devices.

Many devices that you already known and use take
advantage of this frequency band. Garage door
openers, baby monitors, and the next generation of
mobile phones all use this frequency within the ISM
band. Ensuring that Bluetooth and the other
devices don’t interfere with each other is a crucial
part of the design process.

One of the ways Bluetooth will avoid interfering
with other electronic devices is by sending out
weak signals of around 1 mw. In comparison, even
the most powerful of cell phones can transmit a
signal of 3 watts.

The low power signals will limit the range of a
Bluetooth device to around 32 feet, which cut the
chances of interference between your computer and
other electronic devices. Even though it has low
power, Bluetooth doesn’t require a line of sight
between the communicating devices. The walls in
your home won’t stop the signal, making it great
for rooms throughout the house.

Bluetooth can connect 8 devices at the same time.
With each of those devices on the same radius,
you may think they would interfere with each
other, although it’s very unlikely. Bluetooth
utilizes a technique known as low frequency
hopping, which makes it harder for more than
one device to transmit on the same frequency
at the same time.

With this technique, a device will use 79
individual, randomly chosen frequencies within
a designated range, which change from one another
on a regular basis.

In the case of Bluetooth, the transmitters will
change frequency 1,600 times or more every
second, meaning that more devices can make full
use of the radio spectrum. Since every
transmitter of Bluetooth will use spread spectrum
automatically, it’s very unlikely that two
transmitters will be on the same frequency at the
exact same time.

When the Bluetooth devices come within close range
of each other, an electronic conversation will
occur to determine whether or not they have
data to share or whether one needs to take total
control. The user doesn’t have any buttons to
press or commands to give – as the conversation
will occur automatically.

Once the conversation has occured, the devices
will form a network. Bluetooth devices will
create a PAN (Personal Area Network) or piconet
that may fill a room. Once the piconet has been
established, the devices will randomly hop in
frequencies.

In the United States, Bluetooth gets absolutely no
respect. It is however, becoming more and more
common in notebooks, PDAs, and especially cell
phones. Bluetooth will provide wireless users a
way to transmit small amounts of data over short
distances.

Now, Bluetooth is facing stiff competition from
new wireless technology. Referred to as UWB or
Ultra Wideband, it promises data transfer of up
to 480 MB a second – while most current Bluetooth
devices transfer data up to 721 KB a second.

For the time being, Bluetooth devices are surely
cropping up. Below, we will look at some of
the accessories offered with Bluetooth technology.

Talking to the dashboard
When pairing it with a cell phone, the CCM Blue
Warrior car kit becomes a great speaker phone that
plugs into the power adapter of your vehicle. The
noise cancelling microphone will reduce background
noise efficiently, with the large buttons making
adjusting the speaker volume a snap. Although
the Blue Warrior is far from sexy or sleek, it’s
very practical.

Tiny tuning box
Part MP3 player and part hands free phone, the
compact and lightweight Sony HBM-30 is an attractive
gadget that lets you accept calls with minimal
interruption of your tunes. When you get an incoming
call it will automatically pause your music, then
you speak into the built in microphone that you
can wear around your neck or clip to your clothes.

The pen
With Nokia’s SU-1B digital pen, you can doodle and
make hand written notes in ink on a special pad
then transmit them from the pad to your Bluetooth
phone. Being an alternative to typing on a cell
phone keypad, the pen is very handy, although a
pricey tool from MMS fans.

Snapshots
If you want to make slide shows with your camera
photos, the Nokia SU-2 image viewer will let you
disply your pictures on a TV or projector. Simply
hook this square gray device to your TV’s input
with the built in cable, then beam the pictures
to the SU-2 from your Bluetooth enabled phone and
the photo fest will begin.

This device is a snap to set up and use, although
it displays resolutions of up to 640 by 480. If
you have a newer phone that takes high resolution
photos, you won’t be able to use the Nokia SU-2
image viewer.

Keep in mind, the 640 by 480 pixel photos will
appear blocky on TV screens, no matter what you
do. If your phone can send batches of photos, you
can create a slide show – although Nokia claims
you can use sequentially beamed shots as well.

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
infared device somewhere on the phone.

Upcoming devices are utilizing Bluetooth as well,
such as PS3 and the Nintendo Revolution. The
wireless controllers will be Bluetooth enabled,
which will give players the cutting edge.

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.

With Bluetooth being very popular with wireless, it’s
no wonder there are many applications available for
the technology. Below, you’ll find the applications
for Bluetooth.

1. Wireless networking between laptops and desktop
computers, or desktops that are in a confined space
and little bandwidth is needed.

2. Peripherals such as mice, keyboards, and printers.

3. Cell phones with Bluetooth technology have been
sold in large numbers, as they are able to connect to
computers, PDAs (Personal Data Assistant), and various
other devices. The standard also includes the
support for more powerful and longer range devices.

4. The transfer of files, images and MP3, between
mobile phones.

5. Certain MP3 players and digital cameras to
transfer files to and from computers.

6. Bluetooth technology headsets for smart phones
and cell phones.

7. Data logging equipment that transmits data to
a computer via Bluetooth technology.

8. Sony Playstation 3 and Nintendo Revolution will
both use Bluetooth technology for their wireless
controllers.

For Bluetooth, there are literally hundreds of
different applications and devices available for you
to use or purchase. As you may already know,
Bluetooth is the most popular wireless technology
in the world. It’s very reliable, very dependable,
and very hard to crack into.

There are many other applications for Bluetooth in
development now, many of which plan to take the
wireless age to the next level. Video game systems
are using Bluetooth technology as well, for their
wireless controllers. This is great news for gaming
fans, as Bluetooth offers the best in wireless
data transmission.

If your curious about applications for Bluetooth
that are still in development, you can search on
the internet. You can find all sorts of information,
especially when it comes to Bluetooth. As the
future arrives, you can expect Bluetooth to bring
bigger and better things.

The new Apple powerbook G4 are among the first
computers to offer Bluetooth technology 2.0+EDR.
The 2.0+EDR technology, which still backwards
compatible with 1.0, is up to three times faster
than previous versions, offering maximum data rate
transfers of up to 3 MBps. Being the first company
to certify a system with 2.0+EDR, Apple continues
to make great use of the Bluetooth technology.

Full support
In addition to the powerbook G4 portables, there
are other Bluetooth enabled computers available
from Apple, including the iBook, iMac G5, eMac,
and the Power Mac G5.

Making life easier
When you turn the Bluetooth feature on, your Mac
can easily perform a file transfer or even a
synchronization. From the Bluetooth selection
menu, you can choose to either send a file or
browse devices, quickly and easily. Or, you can
click the sync button in iSync to update your
cell phone or Palm OS handheld.

The Mac and GSM/GPRS mobile phone with Bluetooth
work to make each other more useful. By using
iSync, you can keep your phone updated without
having to type any info, as you can keep the
information in the more manageable address book
on your Mac instead.

You can also use your Bluetooth enabled Mac to
print documents and digital images to select a
printer that also supports the technology of
Bluetooth. Or, you can also use a headset to
talk to your friends during an iChat session.

Your Mac also has the ability to use Bluetooth
technology to communicate with your Palm OS
handheld. This way, you can perform a HotSync
operation without using any cables. You can also
send your business card or calendar events directly
to someone else’s handheld usingthe technology of
Bluetooth.

The implementation of Bluetooth by Apple is the
latest in a series of moves that have caused
great shift in the computer industry. Apple
established USB as the standard interface with
the launching of the first Mac back in 1998.

Since then, Apple established the 802.11 wireless
standard of networking with the launch of the
iBook and AirPort in 1999. During 2003, Apple
launched AirPort Extreme, which was based on
the new 802.11g high speed technology of wireless.

Now, Bluetooth helps to further strengthen the
dominant position of the Mac in wireless
communications, helping to preserve Apple’s
reputation for being the first to market with
innovative technology that integrates right into
the operating system.

One of the great advantages of satellite radio is the fact that the programs are not interrupted by commercials. This is because the providers income comes from listeners and not from advertisers. Satellite radio services offer around 70 programs of commercial fee music channels each and you have a great variety of choices, from mainstream rock, hip-hop and dance music to folk music, opera, blues and many more.
Another great thing about satellite radio is the absence of static. You can be driving from the West Coast to the East Coast in the United States of America and you will not get any static at all on the way. The satellite radio signal is digital, which means that you will get crystal-clear sound wherever you go.

Satellite radio tuners receive, along with the actual radio programs, an influx of metadata that consists of information regarding song title, artist, radio program and radio channel. This means that your satellite radio receiver will display all the necessary information about what you are listening to. For instance, if you hear a great song and you want to know which artist sings it, you just look at the receivers display.
All satellite radio programs are uncensored. This is one of the reasons why artists like Howard Stern chose to move their shows on satellite radio. You can also listen to your favorite hip-hop songs without the interruption of those annoying beep sounds.
Satellite radio programs also offer information about local traffic and weather conditions. The information is very detailed especially for those who live in big cities. If there is a major national calamity and other terrestrial radio stations will not work, you can always count on getting accurate information from satellite radio program. You can also listen to satellite radio online on your computer.

If you still are not convinced on why you should pay money for something that you can get for free, think about how much time you have wasted listening to commercials and all kinds of other boring stuff on terrestrial radio programs. Traditional radio is not free, despite the popular belief. It is time-consuming and irritating because you have to listen to five minutes or more of commercials so that you can finally hear a song you like. The satellite radio subscriptions are very affordable and, for around 13 dollars per month, you get exactly the programs you want, which you can listen to wherever you are, at the best sound quality.

Satellite radio is great for you especially if you travel a lot. If you are traveling across the United States of America, for example, you can listen to the channel or channels you want during your whole trip, without losing signal or getting static. If you have a traditional radio, you will have to keep changing channels every hundred miles, but if you are using satellite radio you do not have to do that because the geographically availability of programs is not a problem. Satellite radio subscribers will soon get the chance to watch video programs as well. Both Sirius and XM services have announced their intention of introducing in the near future a variety of video satellite channels that will have some of the great advantages that are currently available to satellite radio: commercial free programs, great quality of sound and vast geographical availability.

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.

Below, are 10 benefits and reasons to use Bluetooth technology.

1. Wireless
As you probably already know, there are many benefits and advantages to using wireless devices. Along with improving safety as a result of eliminating wires you don’t need, wireless also offers you plenty of other advantages. When traveling with your laptop or other wireless devices, you’ll no longer have to worry about bringing connection cables.

2. Bluetooth is actually inexpensive
The technology of Bluetooth is cheap for companies to implement, which results in lower costs for the company. These savings are then passed from the company on to you.

3. Bluetooth is automatic
Bluetooth doesn’t have you set up a connection or push any buttons. When two or more devices enter a range of up to 30 feet of each other, they will automatically begin to communicate without you having to do anything.

4. Standardized protocol
Bluetooth is standardized wireless, meaning that a high level of compatibility among devices is guaranteed. Bluetooth will connect devices to each other, even if they aren’t the same model.

5. Low interference
Bluetooth devices almost always avoid interference from other wireless devices. Bluetooth uses a technique known as frequency hopping, and also low power wireless signals.

6. Low energy consumption
As a result of Bluetooth using low power signals, the technology requires very little energy and will use less battery or electrical power as a result. This is an excellent benefit for mobile devices, as Bluetooth won’t drain the battery.

7. Sharing voice and data
The standard for Bluetooth will allow compatible devices to share data and voice communications. This is great for mobile phones and headsets, as Bluetooth simplifies driving and talking on your cell phone.

8. Instant PAN (Personal Area Network)
You can connect up to seven Bluetooth devices to each other within a range of up to 30 feet, forming a piconet or PAN. For a single room, you can also set up multiple piconets.

9. Upgradeable
Upgradeable is the standard for Bluetooth. There are newer versions of Bluetooth in the works, which offer many new advantages and backward compatible with older versions.

10. The technology stays
Bluetooth technology is a world wide, universal wireless standard. With it being as popular as it is, you can count on it being around for years to come. As more and more devices start to use Bluetooth technology, more manufacturers will be eager to make their products compatible. A chain reaction will occur, making Bluetooth the standard for cutting edge wireless.