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Bluetooth devices are increasingly common and present in our day, but what do you know about it?
Where the name comes from, what it is, how it came about, what are the differences between the different versions, are some of the curiosities related to Bluetooth and that we will clarify in today’s post.
What is Bluetooth?
Briefly, it is a technology to establish wireless communication – therefore, a wireless standard – between different devices and that makes use of radio waves, but with short range and low energy consumption.
The radio frequency used is typically in the 2.4 gigahertz range, more specifically within the range from 2400 megahertz to 2483.5 megahertz.
In terms of consumption and taking a cell phone as an example, keeping Bluetooth on all the time represents an average additional consumption of around 2% of the battery charge.
But it was not always so. Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) was adopted in 2010 and consists of an implementation that consumes 10% less energy compared to the original Bluetooth.
The type of wireless network formed by bluetooth, unlike the wireless network we use to connect to the Internet, via a Wi-Fi router for example, is what is known as a WPAN network, which means Wireless Personal Area Networks. )
What is the difference between Wi-Fi and Bluetooth?
Although Wi-Fi connections also do not use cables or wires to communicate between two or more devices, there are more differences than similarities between Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
Without delving into technical aspects, there are important differences between the two:
- Wi-Fi is generally intended for transmitting larger volumes of data, with greater bandwidth and higher speed than Bluetooth;
- Security and authentication protocols between devices are different;
- Compared to bluetooth, the power consumption of Wi-Fi is higher;
- The hardware required for the two types of communication is distinct from each other;
- Wi-Fi networks, depending on the operating frequency, can have a range 200% greater than bluetooth;
- Despite the emergence and expansion of mesh networks for bluetooth, Wi-Fi networks allow a much higher number of connected devices;
- Even though it is possible to have a computer network using bluetooth, Wi-Fi or even wired networks are faster and safer.
When did Bluetooth appear?
In the mid-1990s, the idea of creating a wireless communication standard for connecting devices emerged at some of the leading technology companies of the time, which was not yet common at the time.
Each maintained its own research and development teams. Ericsson had one type of program, Nokia had another, Intel, Toshiba and IBM, too.
What they had in common is that they all thought of creating a standard, that is, something accepted and used by everyone, so that what has always been common in the sector would not happen later, with each one using their own technology and generating incompatibilities to users depending on which brand he used.
It was then that to avoid this possible confusion, Ericsson, Nokia, Intel and IBM decided to create an association, which they called the Bluetooth SIG and which stood for Special Interest Group, or Bluetooth Special Interest Group.
But it was in 1998, with Toshiba joining the first four, that the joint development effectively started, and in the following year (1999) the first version resulting from this joint work was released, as well as the first device using the technology – a headset and which won an award from COMDEX of that year.
The birth of bluetooth technology under the organization and supervision of GIS standards, favored the rapid emergence of several developments. From the following year (2000), the first cell phone with bluetooth support was launched, the first PC card allowing connection with other devices, the first mouse, the first notebook, headset, webcam and even a printer, the which opened the doors to the possibilities of the new standard.
Success seemed assured and since then, the list of devices has only grown, proving that the initiative proved correct.
Where does the name Bluetooth come from?
For those who know the least English, you should ask yourself where the name comes from, after all, in direct translation, it means “blue tooth”, which is reinforced by the fact that the icon has the color blue and on devices where there is an associated led, be the same color.
It was Intel that proposed using the Bluetooth codename for this technology and that should be a provisional name, until the group’s Marketing team creates a name to be used in the market.
The initial proposal came as a tribute to Harald Blåtand, king of Denmark and who in the 10th century was responsible for the unification of several Scandinavian tribes and clans, among which some that corresponded to the region that today is Sweden, Ericsson’s home country. and one of the members of the Bluetooth SIG.
And the purpose of the Bluetooth SIG was exactly to unify all the technologies that were being developed at the time, as did King Blåtand, whose name translated into English would be Bluetooth or “blue tooth”.
Despite the temporary nature of the name, there was no agreement and consensus on a more appropriate name, so that even on a temporary basis, they launched it under the Bluetooth name. But it must be remembered that the specialized press needed to refer to itself by a name in its articles and articles and began to use the term, albeit provisionally.
The name “got” and ended up being made official for that reason.
What is bluetooth 5?
Launched in 2016, it is the fifth generation of bluetooth technology and which briefly promises to double the speed, increase data transmission capacity by 8 times and 4 times the range of the previous version, 4.2.
That is, virtually all modern devices and that use the fifth generation standard, theoretically have a better functioning.
This means the possibility that you can use your cell phone as a source for two different speakers, for example. But it’s not just. In the case of Bluetooth 4.2, the maximum transfer rate of your data is 25 megabits per second, while using Bluetooth 5.0, you can transfer up to 50 megabits in the same time interval.
The practical effects of this type of limitation appear when you watch a movie and use a bluetooth headset, but from previous generations and you notice a lag or delay, that is, a small delay between the image and the sound.
But it’s not just on issues like these that the fifth generation brings benefits.
These improvements are also oriented towards the Internet of Things (IoT), which is when different objects are connected to the Internet, allowing them to be accessed remotely, as well as having extra functionality.
In 2017 another advent of the standard was implemented, which was the addition of the mesh networking capability of the standard or bluetooth mesh network, which until then only had common point-to-point connection standards.
It should be noted that at the time of its creation and throughout the first few years, its purpose was to connect one device directly to the other, through so-called point-to-point connections and not multiple or more than one simultaneously.
With the mesh pattern, several connections are made, point-to-point, where each terminal is connected to all the others, thus forming a mesh network and a network with a mesh topology.
What are Bluetooth classes?
When we talk about the standard classes, we are referring to technical characteristics and range and power, which in turn is closely related to the energy consumption of the device operating in the respective class.
- Class 1 – connection range of up to 100 m with a maximum power of 100 mW (milliwatt);
- Class 2 – range of up to 10 meters of connection and power of 2.5 mW (milliwatt);
- Class 3 – range up to 1 meter, connection up to 1 mW (milliwatt);
- Class 4 – maximum range of 0.5 meters and maximum consumption power of 0.5 mW (milliwatt).
That is, the higher the class, the smaller the distance that two devices can be to be able to perform and maintain the pairing, but also the lower the energy consumption to do so.
It is important to highlight two important points. The first is that the maximum distance or reach is only possible in an open environment or without physical obstacles, such as walls, furniture and even people, that is, your apartment or office. The second is that in the case of bluetooth 5, in which it is possible to operate in class 1, as the distance increases, the speed and data transmission capacity decreases and that, close to the limit, the characteristics are very close to version 4.2. .
What are Bluetooth versions?
There are many versions of bluetooth, the first being naturally 1.0.
In 2004, version 2.0 was officially launched, whose main advantage was the increase in data transfer rate to a maximum of 3 Mbps, which was significant compared to the first version, whose speed was only 721 kbps. . This version also contemplated lower energy consumption.
Three years later, in 2007, we had version 2.1, which basically provided better security aspects.
2009 was the year in which version 3.0 appeared and a new leap in terms of performance, this time to a maximum of up to 24 Mbps, but at the expense of instabilities and difficulties in pairing and high energy consumption, compared to the previous version.
Given the complaints, version 4.0 was released in the same year, improving the problems of the previous one and, in particular, largely due to the implementation of idle mode, which contributed to reducing energy consumption and which had in cell phones, its main representatives and biggest complaints.
From the fourth version onwards, in which sub versions appeared, it became common for manufacturers to generically specify the version present on the device.
For example, version 4 actually has version 4.0, 4.1, and 4.2. However, except for a few cases and generally only in the product manual or in a more detailed technical sheet, the more specific version appears, which can end up causing mistakes to the user.
It is important to note that version updates may contain differences that are significant, such as higher speed or data transfer rate, and which are decisive factors for certain applications.
Thus, Bluetooth 5.1 and which is an evolution of 5, improves aspects of location, allowing a device to be able to identify a compatible device nearby, its proximity with precision in the house of centimeters and the direction in which it is.
Another example of this evolution and the importance that the accuracy of the version has, is that its 5.2 protocol, LE Power Control (LEPC) was implemented and which aims to optimize energy consumption, in such a way that the paired devices are capable of to dynamically adjust the transmission power, both for better data transmission and to save energy.
The most significant set of improvements, which is present from 5.3 onwards and which was presented by the Bluetooth SIG in 2021, is aimed at optimizing operation for Internet of Things applications and devices, dynamically changing transmission power, performance, channels and frequency bands to avoid interference and improvements related to encryption and therefore security.
Although currently most devices are already bluetooth 5 and its sub versions, it is necessary to remember that there are still many old devices, such as notebooks, for example.
Is bluetooth secure?
This is a question whose answer is not unique.
Generally speaking, and especially starting with version 5, security protocols and policies have a reasonable security standard. Which means earlier versions are more susceptible to certain exploit attempts.
But as in many situations in the digital world, security issues are closely related to the behavior of users. In other words, keeping the device with the option that allows other users and devices to find your device is not a best practice if it is not absolutely necessary.
Conclusion
So present in our daily lives, bluetooth has been a technology that allows us to quickly and easily integrate and enjoy different devices.
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