Between Bluetooth, wifi in flavors a, b, g, and now n, plus new players like WiMax and Zigbee, there was bound to be some combining of things. After all, as electronics get ever smaller, there isn't room for so many antennas.
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group is expected to announce Wednesday that it will work with ultrawideband developers to make their wireless networking technologies compatible. The move will allow developers and eventually consumers to take advantage of the high transfer rates of the ultrawideband technology--between 100 megabits and 200 megabits over a 10- to 20-foot range--on the broad array of devices that now include Bluetooth technology. Such devices include cell phones, other handhelds and cars.
There are a number of incompatible networking technologies, such as Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Bluetooth, ultrawideband and Near Field Communications, which have some similar uses but are better tuned for different situations. For example, Wi-Fi has a good range and throughput and can be used in most wireless networking situations, but it can consume a significant amount of battery life in portable devices. Bluetooth has low power consumption and is viewed as a better networking fit in devices such as cell phones.
Combining the efforts of Bluetooth and ultrawideband supporters is a natural evolution for the wireless networking market, analysts say.
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