Epson C1200BT Technical Brief (Bluetooth Wireless Technology) - Page 2

Technical Brief-Bluetooth wireless technology Page 2 L L L L Specifications Bluetooth technology offers a maximum range of 10 meters with a maximum speed of 721Kbits per second. Bluetooth uses low-powered radio waves (with output levels lower than those used by cellular phones) in order to transmit data on a frequency-hopping system where signals "hop" around a channel to send data. Expected Product Applications The EPSON Printer adapter will be available Fall 2000 and is targeted at several of EPSON's ink jet printers. Bluetooth will be built-in to some next-generation cellular phones, PDAs, 2-way pagers, notebook computers, MP3 players, digital still cameras, desktop printers, desktop computers, video projectors, etc. Aftermarket PCMCIA cards will be developed for notebook computers. Issues Some Bluetooth products may suffer from potential RF interference from microwave ovens, which could limit range and effective data transfers. Since Bluetooth operates in the same frequency band as some cordless phones and 802.11b wireless devices there could be potential interference with these products as well. Encryption is not available in version 1.0, so some people see security as a concern. Bluetooth, while very flexible as a wireless transmitter, is much slower than many other types of connection. Its bandwidth is 1/16th the speed of USB (721Kbps vs. 12Mbps). L L L LL Product Comparison Bluetooth Connection Wireless Maximum Speed 721Kbps Operating Range 10 meters Products first Introduced 2000 Parallel Cable 3Mbps 5 meters 1978 USB Cable 12Mbps 3 meters FireWire® Cable 400Mbps 14 feet 802.11b Wireless 11Mbps 150 - 300 feet 1997 1998 1999 L LL More information For more information on Bluetooth technology check out these sites: http://www.intel.com/mobile/bluetooth/ http://www.bluetooth.com/ http://bluetooth.ericsson.se EPSON Sales Training EPSON is a registered trademark of Seiko Epson Corporation. Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 11/00