Ten or so years have passed, since the launch of Bluetooth wireless technology – a technology touted, as an alternative to the cumbersome snake-like cables. The name ‘Bluetooth’ was derived from the Danish King (Harald Bluetooth son of King Gorm the Old and of Queen Thyra) who was responsible for uniting the kingdoms of Scandinavia and introducing his countries’ conversion to Christianity (VikingWorld.dk).

However, in its early days Bluetooth suffered misleading marketing purporting the technology’s readiness somewhat prematurely and consumers were confused. Most fundamentally, the technology suffered from the lack of interoperability, a process which allows other products from a number of manufacturers to work successfully together. Furthermore, this was compounded by the consumers’ lack of experience with wireless technology – after all connecting a cable was normally fool-proof. Consumers would have to understand new techniques and technology-specific terminology.

In one such instance the consumer endured a cumbersome connection set-up procedure, which is now commonly referred to as ‘pairing’. A technique, which assures the consumer of a secure and private connection – two or more consumers would agree upon a passcode or Personal Identification Number (PIN), typically comprising four to eight numbers. Once securely connected the consumer(s) could confidently exchange personal information between a pair (or group) of trusted users.

Nowadays, Bluetooth wireless enjoys a number of applications, which offer simplicity for synchronising cellular phones with a notebook and a host of other feature-rich applications. With ten years experience hitherto, consumers have become acquainted with the notion of pairing and other wireless-specific terminologies. Most consumers readily identify the most obvious application – the headset and cellular phone enabling vehicle owners to operate their cellular phone whilst not compromising their own safety and the safety of others.

Bluetooth wireless is not alone in the short-range connectivity space – it has some serious competition from other short-range technologies, to include Ultra-wideband (or UWB) and Wibree (formerly Nokia). The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) have been proactively ensuring their King continues to reign over his kingdom, by establishing key relationships. In a number of logistical moves, the Bluetooth SIG have engineered key relationships with the Ultra-wideband industry group, affording Bluetooth an increased application-base.

Likewise, the Bluetooth SIG additionally offered to incorporate Wibree technology into the System of the Bluetooth Specification, a comprehensive guide for developers and manufacturers who build key Bluetooth products. The incorporation of UWB and Wibree allows Bluetooth to cover two extremes of the wireless spectrums. At one end of the spectrum, Bluetooth wireless technology can confidently support more data demanding and faster applications, such as video and audio.

At the other, the inclusion of Wibree allows Bluetooth to tread on an eco-friendly application space where the technology can target products for the low energy sector, like home automation. Naturally, the Bluetooth SIG, a purveyor of the technology’s future and success, have certainly guaranteed the technology’s longevity within a very competitive domain. As such, with the SIG’s incredible foresight, the industry, developers and manufacturers can all confidently exclaim ‘Long Live the King.’