Cautious Support for Bluetooth in Windows

Windows XP SP1 will be Microsoft’s first PC operating system to support the Bluetooth wireless networking protocol. Designed for low cost and minimal power requirements, Bluetooth can help consumers and mobile workers reduce the number of cables snaking through their work areas, and can help mobile devices, such as wireless phones and laptops, work better together. However, while Microsoft supports Bluetooth for simplifying physical connections, it favors other protocols for more complex networking tasks, such as data synchronization.

Windows Support for Three Device Types

Bluetooth is a suite of wireless networking protocols that enable devices to exchange data over distances of up to 30 feet at rates of up to 723Kbps. Ericsson and Bluetooth’s other leading backers view it as an enabler for “spontaneous networking,” in which devices such as wireless phones, headsets, printers, PCs, and handhelds all exchange data without any prior setup by the user. The goal of these proponents is to make devices more useful by combining device capabilities in new ways: enabling a user to wirelessly connect a laptop to a dial-up Internet account over a mobile phone, for instance.