Bluetooth / Infared?

valor

Can someone point me to a good page re bluetooth? I dont even know if my comp has bluetooth or infared capability! is it standard or what?

Cheers

Sandwich

Point yourself to website of your phone maker and check the specs. Neither are 'standard'.

valor

my phone has both - im wondering if PC's usually have this capability or is it like wireless where u ahve to buy a card and install it?

Owen

As Sandwich said, a very vague post. You need to find what featurs your phone has, and what features your PC has. If you have a laptop, there's a good chance it at least has IR, and if it's a recent enough Laptop, it may just have Bluetooth too.

IR works with line of sight over a short distance. Bluetooth works using packet radio, meaning you don't have to have the devices facing each other, or even near each other. The standard power version of bluetooth works over 10 metres distance, which is very very cool indeed.

Tom Dunne

valor wrote:

is it like wireless where u ahve to buy a card and install it?

Generally speaking, yes.

Most bog-standard PCs and laptops do not have bluetooth/IR as standard so you would have to buy a card for them.

TBH, IR is old technology, bluetooth is more versatile.

Sandwich

Dont bother with IR if you can avoid it - used to use it but much slower than bluetooth. I guess IR adapters for PC might be hard to get these days also, but bought a serial port one from Komplett about 3 yrs ago.

Bluetooth much easier, can get a USB adaptor quite cheaply (looks like a USB memory plug). An you can just leav it in the back of your PC. With the IR it will be on a cable, you have to have it lined up with you phone on your desk etc. Not worth the effort and no cheaper than BT.

valor

Thanks guys. ended up just buying a plain old USB cable.

JohnnieM

Pity...Bluetooth or even infra red would have future proofed you to some degree..