Tag Archives: bluetooth

How Bluetooth Works: Exploring the Invisible Symphony of Wireless Communication

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Wireless connectivity has become an invisible thread woven into the fabric of our daily lives. From streaming music to our earbuds to connecting keyboards and printers, Bluetooth technology has replaced a tangle of wires with seamless, invisible magic. Sure, we all lamented the day Apple killed the headphone jack (it’s been 8 long years since that day), but try and imagine a life without Bluetooth. Wires wires everywhere, data cables to transfer files between machines, and requiring to load all your songs on USB drives to play on your car stereo or home theater. Sounds like a pretty awful life, doesn’t it?? But how exactly does this magical thing called Bluetooth work? Let’s take a closer look at the fascinating world of wireless Bluetooth communication and explore the science behind its seemingly effortless operation.

Bluetooth’s roots trace back to 1994, when Ericsson’s Jaap Haartsen aimed to create a short-range wireless connection for mobile phones, booming in popularity at the time. This technology, using low-power UHF radio waves, would eliminate the need for bulky cables. The name, inspired by 10th-century Viking king Harald Bluetooth, aimed to reflect how the technology would unite devices like those once-warring kingdoms. The Bluetooth Special Interest Group, formed in 1998 by Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Nokia, and Toshiba, ensured standardization and widespread adoption.

Bluetooth utilizes radio waves for communication, but unlike the visible light we perceive, it operates on a specific and invisible range of the electromagnetic spectrum. This range falls between 121mm and 124mm in wavelength, significantly longer than the radio waves used for Wi-Fi. This longer wavelength allows Bluetooth signals to pass through walls, making it suitable for short-range data transfer within a room or a few meters.

The magic of transforming these radio waves into music or data streams lies in a clever manipulation of their properties. Bluetooth transmits information by altering the radio waves themselves. To send a binary 1, the Bluetooth antenna emits a specific radio wave with a particular wavelength. Conversely, to send a 0, it transmits a different wavelength within the designated range. This seemingly simple approach allows for incredibly rapid data transmission. In fact, Bluetooth can send and receive information at a million times per second, ensuring smooth audio streaming or data transfer without any noticeable lag.

But with so many Bluetooth devices around us, how do our earbuds differentiate between our phone’s signal and everyone else’s in a crowded space? This is where Bluetooth’s genius truly shines. It doesn’t rely on a single channel for communication. Within the designated wavelength range, there are actually 79 individual channels available. To avoid interference and ensure smooth communication, Bluetooth devices constantly hop between these channels at a staggering rate of 1,600 times per second. Imagine a crowded room filled with people having multiple conversations simultaneously, each conversation happening on a different frequency – that’s the essence of how Bluetooth avoids interference and ensures clear communication even in environments saturated with Bluetooth signals.

An additional layer of security is implemented through a process called pairing. When you connect your phone to your earbuds for the first time, they exchange a unique encryption key. This key acts like a secret handshake between the two devices. Only the phone’s signal with the matching encryption key can be decrypted by your earbuds. Even if someone intercepts the data stream being transmitted via Bluetooth, they wouldn’t be able to decipher it without the specific key, protecting the privacy of your communication.

But what if multiple devices in close proximity try to use the same channel at the same time? This is where Bluetooth prioritizes established connections. Your earbuds will recognize your phone’s unique encryption key and prioritize its signal, effectively filtering out unwanted audio or data from nearby devices attempting to connect. This ensures a clear and uninterrupted connection, even in crowded environments.

Beyond music streaming and connecting peripherals, Bluetooth continues to evolve and expand its capabilities. Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is a newer iteration of the technology specifically designed for internet-of-things (IoT) applications. BLE offers lower power consumption compared to traditional Bluetooth, making it ideal for battery-powered devices like smartwatches and fitness trackers. Additionally, advancements in Bluetooth technology have led to the development of Bluetooth mesh networks, which enable a network of devices to communicate with each other, opening doors for innovative applications in smart homes and industrial automation.

So next time you lose yourself in music with your wireless earbuds, take a moment to appreciate the invisible symphony of radio waves, hopping frequencies, and clever encryption that keeps the magic of Bluetooth alive. It’s truly a marvel of science and a major pat on the back for the engineers who have harnessed the invisible forces of the electromagnetic spectrum and transformed them into a ubiquitous technology that shapes the way we interact with our devices and the world around us. After all, we wouldn’t want to be stuck in the dark ages of the 2000s with infrared-based data-transfer capabilities… do you remember those times?!

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Donut-shaped Bluetooth speaker concept inspires a more playful way to enjoy music

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Wireless speakers have become all too common now thanks to multiple factors, from the rise of voice-activated smart home assistants to the popularity of streaming services to the demise of the headphone jack from smartphones. These audio devices have also outgrown their initial designs which seemed to be limited to blocks or cylinders, adopting more fluid forms that are almost artful than technical. Of course, there is no need to go to opposite extremes to have a good speaker design, as this concept proves with a simple and clean shape that immediately strikes one as something that isn’t your regular wireless speaker while, at the same time, clearly tries to deliver the basics of an omnidirectional audio source.

Designer: Fran Rossi, Javier Bianchi

Many wireless speakers today try to deliver sound in 360 degrees to cover the entire room, which is especially needed if it’s meant to respond to voice commands coming from anywhere in the area. Thanks to the likes of the Amazon Echo, Google Home, and Apple HomePod, cylindrical shapes seem to have become the most common design for wireless speakers. Of course, there are conical or even spherical speakers, but these aren’t the only round objects that can be used to the same effect.

Orbit adopts a lesser-used shape that, along with a sphere or ball, is immediately associated with fun things. A torus can be a donut, a wheel, a piece of candy, or even a floatation device, and the way it can roll on a floor and wiggle and spin before falling down flat is often a game played by children. That playful charm is further emphasized the by concept’s choice of colors and materials, with a bright orange accent against a cool white body, and reflective plastic instead of fabric. It looks almost like a toy, though its functionality is far from being child’s play.

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Thanks to its ring shape, it can also transmit audio 360 degrees, though it also has more freedom on where the sound is sent. When standing, it can bounce the sound off the ceiling, though it can also be placed down on its back for a more conventional horizontal output. The Orbit is almost a perfect torus, so it requires a stand to, well stand up. Its other functions, however, are all built into the device itself, like the large backlit power button in front and the embossed playback controls on top.

Despite the playful nature of its shape, small variations to the design can result in a totally different character. Covering the entire ring with dark gray fabric and switching the accents to wood or gold gives it a more luxurious appeal that could proudly stand as an art object in your living room. Switching up the colors and materials also generates different imagery, turning what looks like a simple design into a highly flexible and customizable one.

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Unreleased Beats Pill Speaker spotted with LeBron could be announced at the Apple Keynote

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Hot on the heels of the new Beats Solo 4 headphones and Solo Buds earbuds, eagle-eyed fans spotted F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo and basketball star LeBron James carrying what appears to be a brand new Beats Pill speaker. This has ignited speculation about a potential revival of the popular portable speaker line, discontinued in early 2022.

The original Beats Pill, launched in 2012, quickly gained a loyal following for its compact size, bold design, and surprisingly good sound quality. After Apple acquired Beats in 2014, they introduced the slightly larger Pill+ in 2015, addressing some sound quality concerns and adding a Lightning port for charging (likely to be replaced with USB-C in the new iteration).

These celebrity sightings with the new Pill come across as a calculated marketing strategy, similar to how the Beats Pill gained traction in the past. The new Beats Pill maintains the familiar pill-shaped design of its predecessors, measuring roughly 8 inches long and 2.5 inches wide. It retains the clean look with just the Beats logo adorning the front grille. A continuous rubberized strip separates the front and back speaker grilles, and rubber feet on the bottom keep it from rolling around.

For reference, the discontinued Pill+ earned praise for its significantly improved sound quality thanks to an internal redesign. It also sported a Lightning port for charging, which will likely be swapped for USB-C in this new iteration. The Pill+ offered a respectable battery life of 12 hours. While details remain scarce, the leaked images show a design that stays true to the classic Beats Pill silhouette. A lanyard attachment hints at portability remaining a key feature.

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Pebblebee trackers can find items with the new Google Find My Device network

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Although Bluetooth item trackers existed long before, Apple really took things up a notch with the AirTags. Of course, what made these small discs really valuable wasn’t just their minimalist design but their use of Apple’s crowd-sourced Find My network. This system basically utilized the large number of iOS devices spread throughout the world to pinpoint the tracker’s location accurately and quickly. It was a long time coming, but Google finally launched its own version of that network, unsurprisingly dubbed “Find My Device,” and soon Android phone owners will also be able to locate lost wallets, misplaced remote controls, stolen bags, or any other items with these upcoming “item finders” designed for every need and purpose.

Designer: Pebblebee

It’s almost a meme about how remote controls tend to get sucked into the black hole that is the living room couch, but having no way to control a TV or entertainment system is no laughing matter. The new Pebblebee Tag for Android makes that problem a thing of the past by letting you stick a thin 40mm x 26mm (1.57in x 1.02in) black rectangle on the remote so that you can easily locate it later, even if it’s buried under cushions and pillows. Given its small size, it’s also trivial to slip this tracker in pockets, bags, and suitcases so that you’ll never accidentally forget them in the coffee shop ever again.

That Tag might be a tad too thick for your wallet, but the Pebblebee Card has you covered on that front. No larger than a credit card, this 2.8mm (0.11in) super-thin tracker promises to save you from the stress and fear of losing one of the most important objects in your life. And just like the Tag, it can be easily used for bags, laptop sleeves, and other slim spaces to give you that same peace of mind.

Keys are also often misplaced even at home, turning late mornings into frantic searchers for the small objects that give access to the car or, worse, the door. With a whole that’s perfect for a keyring or carabiner, the Pebblebee Clip makes sure that no item will ever be permanently lost. That includes anything with a hook, a zipper, or a hole that this small circle can attach to without getting in your way, like suitcase zippers or handles, bag straps, and bicycle handlebars.

All three Pebblebee trackers can be charged wirelessly and their batteries can last from 8 to 18 months before you actually need to put it down on the magnetic wireless charger again. With a bright LED and a loud melody, you can easily pinpoint the tracker’s location if it’s nearby, while Google’s new Find My Device network gives you global coverage if it is out of the 300ft Bluetooth range. All trackers are IPX6 water resistant, so you don’t have worry to too much about exposing them to the weather, and their minimalist design makes them fit with almost any object. The trackers also work with Pebblebee’s own mobile app, though they aren’t compatible with Apple’s Find My system.

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Origami-inspired Bluetooth mouse turns a mundane device into a fashion statement

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As odd and unnatural as the computer mouse might be, it has become the standard input device second only to the keyboard. For decades, however, the design of the mouse has changed very little except when modified in the name of ergonomics. There has been a recent spate of concepts that try to breathe new life into mouse design, but many of those remain in the conceptual realm only. This peculiar design almost looks like one of those, but it’s surprisingly a product you can really get your hands on, figuratively and literally. It’s definitely unlike any Bluetooth mouse you’ve ever laid eyes on because when it’s not in use, it can fold so perfectly flat that you can even slip it into your pocket and make it look like a part of your fashionable attire.

Designer: Horace Lam

We’ve actually seen quite a few mice that can fold or lay completely flat, but few have ever made it into production because of the surprising complexity of mouse design. Origami, the ancient Japanese art of paper folding, might be great for paper, but not for something that needs to withstand the wear and tear of daily use, not to mention being carried around in bags or even pockets. That’s the rather impressive feat that the myAir.0 OriMouse claims to have achieved, offering a wireless mouse that is flat, functional, and fashionable.

In its flat and deactivated state, the OriMouse has a “V” shape with a faceted surface. Covered in vegan leather or textile, it doesn’t even look anything like a mouse. Weighing only 40g and less than 5mm thin, it looks and feels more like an art object that you carry in your pocket or in your bag. But with a simple pinching gesture that joins the two divergent ends together, the OriMouse rises to the occasion, literally, to become an essential tool for productivity.

Using the same principles that give origami designs innate stability, this foldable mouse can withstand a lot of pressure from your hand without buckling from the weight. At the same time, however, a simple push at a specific and strategic spot disengages the two neodymium magnets and collapses the structure back to its flat state. In addition to this shape-shifting trick, the OriMouse promises a more ergonomic design thanks to the polygonal structure inspired by the folds and facets of an origami object.

Although the various options available make use of textured materials to give the mouse an even more tactile experience, the OriMouse’s foldable design also lends itself perfectly to more artistic expressions. In fact, one model even has a graffiti graphic printed on its surface, and it’s not hard to imagine branding opportunities for such a design. Granted, the actual ergonomics of such a mouse will probably be a matter of debate, but if you are looking for a highly portable Bluetooth mouse, it won’t hurt to take a hard look at something that’s also so unique and beautiful that you will easily become the envy of the crowd around you.

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LG’s new Bluetooth speaker will sync with battery-powered StanbyMe lifestyle TV for immersive sound

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LG placed battery in a television set and the StanbyMe was born. The portable, touchscreen display, Korean tech giant sells for $1,000, is completely wireless and comes on a height-adjustable stand so it can swivel in landscape and portrait orientation to facilitate viewing angle depending on the content you are watching. Adding to the versatility of this battery-powered TV, LG has launched StanbyMe Speaker. A soundbar that works standalone or can hook up to the StandbyMe stand using its own mounting cradle.

The cylindrical portable Bluetooth speaker wirelessly syncs with the StanbyMe display offering it a powerful sound without compromising the quality of the internal volume. The speaker weighs roughly 2.2 pounds making it extremely lightweight and portable to take anywhere you like. It comes with an IPX5 rating, so you can carry it to the poolside, but don’t take it further from there. An accidental splash is doable but it won’t survive being submerged in water.

Designer: LG

Connected to the StanbyMe, and using LG’s Wow Orchestra feature, the audio is delivered in harmony through the StanbyMe Speaker and the display’s internal speaker. When the two are linked, the display’s remote can be used to control the onboard speakers and the immersive audio output of the external speaker.

LG claims, the StanbyMe Speaker can provide 16 hours of playtime under normal usage. The Bluetooth speaker can be recharged using USB-C. The impressive run-time means you can use the speaker for viewing a series on OTT, game for hours without a stop, to join friends at home for a house party playing music all night. For the latter, the speaker has LED lights customizable (via app) to the vibe of the music you’re playing and create the desired atmosphere.

Taking care of the most integral aspects, the stereo sound of the StanbyMe Speaker is two 20mm tweeters paired with a single woofer. The dual passive radiator on the speaker helps deliver a deeper and more compelling bass, LG notes. LG StanbyME Speaker is now available in the U.S. and Korea. Through the website, LG.com the speaker is retailing for $200 in the US. The company has a plan to roll out the speaker in other markets globally, but when, is not clear at the time of writing.

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“Smart” feng shui devices will release positive qi for this new year

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Feng shui has become popular in the Western world during the 20th century and beyond. Sometimes though, just like with a lot of things in our world, it has been commodified too much to the point that people are just buying things as an easier way to practice this ancient system. A new project is a satirical criticism of this commodification, although it has actually created products that will bring feng shui objects into your home and bring a “smart” aspect to it.

Designer: Yoojin Chung

Capturing Qi is a project that brings three feng-shui objects into the digital age by making them smart devices that you can control through an app to bring energy into your home. You get a crystal ball, a wind chime, and a water fountain were designed to look like scientific equipment and was inspired by the 18th century vacuum chambers. The crystal ball and water fountain have castor stands while the wind chime is a hanging piece.

All three have Arduino circuit boards that turns them into smart devices. You connect them to the smartphone app through Bluetooth and you use the ap to “activate” and release the qi into yuor home. So while the project is a commentary on the commercialism of feng shui, it can still be used to release the energy that you want especially now that it’s a new year.

Any of these three items would also be good conversation starters if you have them in your home. You either look like a mad scientist or someone with cool art pieces at home. Either way, if you believe in feng shui, you can have these smart versions in your home for all the good juju you need.

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Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 design brings many quality-of-life improvements

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Humans seem to have an innate talent for losing things, especially keys and remote controls. There have been various attempts to help improve remembering such objects, but, truth be told, not everyone has the capacity or the patience to learn those tricks. Thankfully, we have technology at our disposal to help nudge us when we’re about to leave something behind unintentionally, or, in the worst-case scenario, recover something we have lost. Object trackers have existed since the time of Tile and were recently popularized by the Apple AirTag. The Samsung Galaxy SmartTag introduced a design that solved those two’s biggest shortcoming, and its second-gen tracker takes things to the next level with an upgrade and, more importantly, an important redesign.

Designer: Samsung

The earliest trackers from Tile as well as the AirTags tried to be as small as possible so you could insert them anywhere. The problem was that they had no built-in way to attach to things like keys, bags, umbrellas, and more. You’d end up having to place them inside tracker holders or other accessories that you had to purchase separately, just so that they could track the very things that get lost or misplaced most often. Samsung’s first stab at this market put a tiny hole just enough to slip in a key ring without having to buy another product.

Now the Galaxy SmartTag2 arrives with a completely new look that sets aside the traditional square and circle designs of most trackers. It comes as a small flat capsule with a very large hole that occupies almost half of its body. This ring has a metal lining to improve its durability, given how it would experience a lot of wear and tear from the ring it holds. The tracker is now also IP67 rated, up from the previous generation’s basic IP53.

What this significant design change means is that the Galaxy SmartTag2 is now more flexible, durable, and reliable. You can attach it to more things, including carabiners and pet collars. It can also withstand more environments and weather conditions, which makes it more usable in various scenarios, like pet care, outdoor equipment management, and more.

The Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 also gets some hardware upgrades, particularly the combination of Bluetooth and UWB to make locating the tracker easier and more precise. This also removes the need to have separate “Base” and “Plus” models, so buyers won’t have a hard time choosing between features. It’s a much-needed upgrade, considering it has been two years since the first-gen SmartTag launched, and one that Samsung hopes will put it on the map when it comes to these wireless trackers.

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Shelly BLU Button1 automates your life with a single click

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We are becoming more and more dependent on electronic devices and products, but while each of them brings convenience to our lives, they can collectively become a mess when left unchecked. Making smart home devices work together is, fortunately, easier these days, even if they come from different brands, but corralling traditional “non-smart” appliances is no walk in the park. The good news is that there is a class of devices that make these conventional appliances a bit smarter, such as smart switches and intelligent sockets. The new Shelly BLU Button1 puts all this power literally at your fingertips, allowing you to get the party started or tuck in for the night with a single click of a button.

Designer: Shelly

It might be tempting to replace all your lights, speakers, door locks, curtains, and appliances with Internet-connected models, but it is neither advisable nor practical. If all you really need is a way to turn these on or off without touching a switch or plugging them in, there’s almost no reason to replace your working possessions, especially if they’ve become your favorites. There are plenty of ways to make them just a little bit smarter, like retrofitting normal wall sockets with smart switches inside, like the Shelly Plus and Shelly Pro.

That, however, only makes the appliance smarter, but you might still live your life at the mercy of turning these things on and off individually, often through a smartphone that you have to pull out from your pocket, unlock, and tap multiple times. It’s not exactly a smarter way to live, which is why this tiny button puts all that convenience in a single device that you can attach to your keyring or bag. With just a click or a series of clicks, you can start your mourning routine, lock up the house, get ready for movie night, or do anything else that you need to automate in your life.

Shelly BLU Button1 is a small, almost nondescript square that has a single button that simplifies all the actions you need into a click. Using Shelly Cloud, you can connect actions or grouped scenes to four gestures of single, double, and triple clicks as well as a long press of the button. The BLU Button1 works over Bluetooth, so you don’t have to worry about unstable Wi-Fi connections when you need to open the garage door as you get near the house. You don’t even need to have your smartphone with you to use it! More advanced users can even write small scripts that can handle more complex conditions and situations.

The Shelly BLU Button1 is also compatible with devices that support the BTHome protocol, but it is best used together with Shelly Plus and Pro smart switches. Sure, that does involve a bit of rewiring that might require the help of a professional, but that is still a lot cheaper than buying a new smart home appliance, especially if your old one is working perfectly fine.

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