Cellular provider for the Kolkata region, Command is
adopting the Bluetooth technology to provide radio solutions to its customers.
Bluetooth is a means of providing wireless communication between devices and is
a low-cost, low-power and short-range radio solution that communicates data and
voice between 10 cm and 100 meters. This wireless technology after Wireless
Application Protocol (WAP) and General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) made its
appearance in cellular devices and other wireless devices and applications.
Bluetooth sends information or voice or data across
devices at about 721-kilobits per second that facilitates fast and secure
transmission of voice and data with very flexible network topography. A tiny
microchip incorporated with a radio transceiver is built into digital devices or
handsets/headsets. The radio operates in a globally available frequency band.
Command is the brand of Kolkata based Usha Martin
Telekom Ltd, which is a Hutchison joint venture. The product is being targeted
to top executives of big corporates, consultancy houses and software development
companies where users will benefit without having to use wires while connecting
within the office premise.
The low-power solution will permit up to eight Bluetooth
enabled devices to function with each other without-line-of sight restriction
even through walls unlike Infrared data link. As it operates between 1/100th and
1/500th of the power of other systems, the potential for interference is high.
However it has great potential to increase connectivity of every day objects by
a tremendous amount. The current prototype circuits are contained on a circuit
board 0.9-cm square and smaller.
Bluetooth standard was launched in May 1998 and the
technology was the result of the joint achievements of Ericsson, Intel, Nokia
and Toshiba. It is considered the fastest growing industry standard today with
over 2,000 manufacturers having joined the Bluetooth Special Interest Group
(SIG) since then. The technology will first appear for data links between
phones, mobile computers, digital computers, printers and Internet and telephony
access points. Typical applications include hands-free handsets, e-mail delivery
to laptops via phones and cable free connection to the Internet in public areas
among others. No license fees will be charged for Bluetooth products.
Several consumer devices that will be using the
Bluetooth technology in the near future will be devices like the NetTV (a
TV-centric device that will provide Internet access), Internet screen phones
(high-end telephones with LCD screens that offer Internet access) and e-mail
terminals (nonportal devices dedicated to e-mail access).
Motorola has developed a Bluetooth car kit that will
enable a hands free wireless car phone to transfer calls to a near by cellular
handset. In the early 2001 Intel and Microsoft announced that Windows based
personal computers will soon come with built-in support for Bluetooth. Ericsson
is launching its Bluetooth enabled handsets in India while Nokia will be
introducing its Bluetooth handset 6210 Cyber Silver in the second quarter of
2001.
Bluetooth headset that can be used with an Ericsson's
handset is a lightweight wireless mobile headset with a built-in radio chip that
acts as a connector between the headset and the Bluetooth plug. It appears that
such an adoption of the technology will soon pave the way for mass adoption of
the wireless technology. The success of this technology in India will be
dependent largely the availability of customized applications and costing that
are not as steep as they are today.
A research indicates that Bluetooth's market potential
will not emerge until laptops, handheld devices and mobile phones reach a
critical mass. But industry analysts are confident that Bluetooth will be a
success although much of its success will depend on how well these products will
be received by the Indian public. IDC forecasts that in the year 2004 there
would be 452 million Bluetooth enabled devices worldwide.
Radhika Bhuyan (CNS)