Bluetooth Players

Bluetooth Chip ManufacturersBluetooth chips are being manufactured by the likes of VLSI, owned since June 2nd1999 by Philips. In October 1999, Motorola acquired Digianswer, an early Bluetooth adopter, to boost its Bluetooth and HomeRF portfolio. VLSI has supplied Bluetooth chips to Ericsson for its wirefree Headset reviewed below Lucent Technologies Microelectronics Group (see below), Cambridge Silicon Radio (CSR) and others also manufacture Bluetooth chip solutions.   Ericsson Bluetooth HeadsetEricsson has unveiled the Bluetooth Headset (available on the market in mid 2000), a headset that connects to a mobile phone by a radio...

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What is Bluetooth?

Bluetooth is an alliance between mobile communications and mobile computing companies to develop a short-range communications standard allowing wireless data communications at ranges of about 10 meters. Bluetooth will encompass both a standard communications interface and a low-cost computer chip. It is a cross between the DECT (Digital European Cordless Telephone) and iRDA (infra Red Data Association) technologies. Bluetooth was conceived by Ericsson, but founded by Nokia, Ericsson, IBM, Intel and Toshiba. The Bluetooth Interest Group has since been joined by hundreds of companies including One2One; a UK mobile network operator, Motorola,...

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The battle for 4G advantage

The race to the next of mobile standards is gathering pace in Japan. "If you ask DoCoMo, they will tell you they have a 4G lab," says Bengt Nordstrom, chief strategy officer at inCode. But research is still in the very early stages.Specification work for 3G LTE(long-term evolution) - also known as Super 3G- is under way, says Nordstrom. That will deliver a new core network architecture and air interface. "[Japanese operators] are investing heavily in that," DoCoMo in particular."DoCoMo is currently at the stage of testing the components and technologies that will constitute the 4G system," says spokesperson Miki Nakajima McCants. "DoCoMo is...

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What is 4G?

In a Cutt Newsletter (2004) issue it is mentioned that while current 3G services are working to enable transactional wireless communications like location-based services, wireless shopping, personal services, email and multimedia data transfer, these are at much lower speeds compared to the 100 MBPS to 1 GBPS of 4G. As demand builds for high-quality, streaming video and audio, only 4G systems will be able to accommodate growing consumer and business expectations. Japan, China and South Korea plan to work together with developing new technologies like fourth-generation mobile phones says Japanese local papers.Ongoing talks have been underway...

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Wi-Fi Security tips for Home networks

Hopefully we've scared you into resolving to do something about security on your wireless network (and on the wired one too!). To make the process as painless as possible, we've created a list of steps to follow. No network is completely secure, but after you've implemented the recommendations here, wireless hackers will likely choose an easier target. These steps apply to both home and small office networks that have a standard wireless router, and possibly one or more roaming access points. Top 10 Security Tips for Home Wi-Fi NetworksChange your router's access name and password. Don't let users piggyback onto your Wi-Fi net -- turn off peer-to-peer...

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Wi-Fi Security tips for public hotspots

Wi-Fi hotspots present a special set of security issues, notably unknown computers sharing the same local network with you. Unlike home or office networks, most public hotspots in hotels and cafes broadcast their SSIDs, lack WEP or WPA encryption, and don't bother with MAC address filtering. After all, turning on any of these functions would negate the "public" aspect of hotspots.That said, even if they used closed networks and encryption, making customers go through hoops to get connected, there would still be no way to tell a "legitimate" client from a "malicious" one out to hack other customers' data. Anyone with a credit card can sign up...

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What is WiFi?

If you have a network in your home or office, there are several different ways to connect the computers on your network together. The article How Home Networking Works covers all of the basic networking principles. WiFi is the wireless way to handle networking. It is also known as 802.11 networking and wireless networking. The big advantage of WiFi is its simplicity. You can connect computers anywhere in your home or office without the need for wires. The computers connect to the network using radio signals, and computers can be up to 100 feet or so apart.In this article, we will discuss two different aspects of WiFi. First we will discuss...

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How To Steal Wi-Fi

When I moved into a new neighborhood last week, I expected the usual hassles. Then I found out I'd have to wait more than a month for a DSL line. I started convulsing. If I don't have Net access for even one day, I can't do my job. So, what was I supposed to do? There's an Internet café on the next block, but they close early. I had no choice—it was time to start sneaking on to my neighbors' home networks.Every techie I know says that you shouldn't use other people's networks without permission. Every techie I know does it anyway. If you're going to steal—no, let's say borrow—your neighbor's Wi-Fi access, you might as well do it right....

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