Bluetooth Adapter

There are numerous ways in transferring data from one source to another. One would be traditional, or through portable storage devices. Another is through infrared signals. And during the early 90s, along with the boom of the mobile industry, data transfer via Bluetooth signal has been introduced.

Bluetooth does not have any direct relation to the color or the body part. In fact, it came from Blatand, an anglicized label of King Harald I of Denmark, who united Norway and some Danish tribes to build one kingdom. Bluetooth was termed such because of its aim to unite communication protocols into one universal standard just like that of King Harald's.

On a technical note, Bluetooth is also the term given to the wireless technology used for Personal Area Network (PAN), a setup of connections in close ranges. It was introduced to the market in 1994 by Ericsson, a telecommunications provider. This technology was provided initially as a mobile phone feature. Compared to infrared, this offered a much faster data exchange capability.

So how exactly does it work? In order for Bluetooth enabled devices to communicate with each other, a Bluetooth adapter is needed. Bluetooth adapters can be purchased easily at any local computer store. The most common type is the Bluetooth USB adapter. The chip is inside the small casing, almost the same as the size of a portable USB key used for data storage. The adapter can connect to any USB port, making it usable not only for desktop computers and laptops, but also to other USB capable gadgets.

Bluetooth 1.0 can transfer at 1 megabit per second (Mbps) while Bluetooth 2.0 adapter can make it at 3 Mbps. When these devices come at close range, they can send electronic signal to each other. This electronic signal will be the bridge to connect the data from one device to another. A maximum of eight (8) devices can be connected via this wireless signal. Some devices, like mobile phones, simply need to enable the Bluetooth chip while some older devices, such as laptop computer, may need a Bluetooth dongle adapter. Each device will have its unique identifier and another device will be allowed to transfer information to that device by detecting its label or ID. The cost of data transmission is free.