Thursday, September 20, 2007

Wireless USB Vs. Bluetooth: Battle Royale


As the release date for Wireless USB draws ever closer, discussion is heating up around the emerging standard. In particular, there has been a lot of debate concerning the pros and cons of Bluetooth versus Wireless USB. Both of these standards offer particular benefits as well as particular challenges, and it appears that both standards will be competing with each other for the same manufacturer and consumer base. Let’s examine how the lines are being drawn.


Bluetooth came onto the wireless scene in May of 1999. Initially developed by Ericsson, it was quickly adopted by such companies as Microsoft, Apple, Motorola, and Toshiba. It has since become a major standard for wireless device connectivity. Using wide-band, low-power radio waves to transmit data over short distances, Bluetooth has been used for wireless keyboards, mice, and other peripherals, cellular phones, PDAs, MP3 players, and some digital cameras. Concerning Bluetooth’s popularity with cell phone manufacturers in particular, one of the benefits of Bluetooth is that it has a very low power consumption rate, especially when it comes to audio transmission. This has made Bluetooth the technology of choice for cell phone manufacturers looking to pair wireless headsets to their phones.


Despite widespread adoption by many manufacturers, Bluetooth has been plagued by some nagging problems. A major complaint has been the lack of interoperability between different manufacturers’ Bluetooth devices. For example, using a Motorola Bluetooth headset has difficulty being connected with an LG cell phone. Security has been another major issue with Bluetooth-enabled devices. There have been documented instances of device “hijackings” where a third party has taken control of the device through the Bluetooth link. Issues with eavesdropping, data theft, and Bluetooth-spread viruses for PDAs, cellphones, and computers have also been reported. These problems are being dealt with as new revisions of Bluetooth are released.


The creation of the Wireless USB Promoters Group was announced in February of 2004 at the Intel Developer Forum. This group, composed of such companies as Intel, Microsoft, NEC, HP and Samsung, is tasked with creating a wireless standard based on the exceptionally popular USB standard with the same type of interoperability and simplicity of use. Should the forum succeed in their goal, Wireless USB could easily become the wireless de facto standard for UWB (ultra wideband) connectivity. The completion of the standard was announced in May of 2005 and the first Wireless USB products are slated to begin appearing in early 2006, with a strong ramp in 2007.


There is no doubt that the Wireless USB Promoters Group has examined Bluetooth and done its best to address the issues that have been problematic, such as interoperability and security. While there have been delays due to testing and certification, Wireless USB looks to be superior in both security and ease of connectivity. Where Bluetooth had compatibility issues between different developers’ products, Wireless USB’s adherence to the previous USB standards should serve to prevent similar problems. As far as security is concerned, Bluetooth depends on a four-digit pin number to ensure that the correct device is being connected to, while Wireless USB is looking at using a USB cable to make the initial connection, after which point the device can be used wirelessly.


If Wireless USB can deliver everything it promises, especially with the popularity of the other USB standards that it is based on and connected with, it will easily become the primary connectivity standard in the PC, consumer electronic, and mobile communication industries. Bluetooth users should not give up hope, however. Freescale Semiconducter, a UWB developer, has been able to use Bluetooth stacks to interpret UWB signals, demonstrating that a merging of the two technologies is possible. Until the Wireless USB standard officially releases and products appear on shelves, all we can do is speculate, but for all intents and purposes, Wireless USB appears to be the next major step in the evolution of connectivity technology, and it may alter the way we use technology forever.








Nathan Kartchner works in Product Development for Sewell Direct, an online retailer specializing in connectivity products. Sewell Direct will be providing Wireless USB updates and devices as soon as they become available.

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