THE BLUETOOTH 5: THE GOOD, NO BAD, AND NO UGLY

Technology is always seeking advancement with the turn of a new calendar year, and we are already used to seeing a lot of numbers flying around to depict the latest step in the line of technology. Apple is known for trying to get a new chipset every year and steadily, we have seen them climb from the days of the A4 chipset to the next A11 which is set to feature in their next iPhone 7S. Oh! We nearly forgot, even the iPhone has numbers to describe each advancement. Going over to their rivals, Google has been in the game of developing different operating systems for the Android and every year; they try to spice up the name with a nice dessert. We have walked through the valleys of Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich, KitKat, Jellybean, Lollipop, Marshmallow, and now, we have the Nougat 7.0 serving. Although not as big as the aforementioned companies, Bluetooth also has a good thing running for them and well, they are not left out of the numbers game at all.

Having been a pioneer in the business file sharing technology over the years, they have always sought to improve what users can get from the Bluetooth service and we have seen it advance. Gone are the days when the only thing the Bluetooth feature would do is make your device unique, special and separate from the pack that still rocked infrared. We left that level and started to see the use of Bluetooth for syncing devices, enabling audio capabilities and supporting call functions. Of recent, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (Bluetooth SIG) rolled out the Bluetooth 5 and like you; we have a question to ask of them. What is the fuss all about?

1 OVERVIEW

This year, Bluetooth SIG has it in mind to simplify the way it communicates its ideas and products to the general public, leading to some decisions made on the naming of the latest version. If you are conversant with the software releases by Bluetooth, you would know that they come in decimals, and there is usually a small ‘v’ added to the front. For example, the last version before this upgrade was the Bluetooth v4.2. Maybe they found out that this naming was not cool anymore, or they figured out that they could speak their language in much simpler terms, but we do love what they have done with the place. ‘Bluetooth 5’ does sound and look sexy.

2 FEEL THE SPEED

It would neither be an update nor would it be worth talking about, if they didn’t increase the transfer speed that this new rollout offered. According to the claims that have been made by the company, this new one would see you attain twice the speed in the previous version. The capacity of your broadcasts would also be increased by a massive 800%, meaning that sharing files just got better. If all of these pans out to be very true (trust us, we’ve seen developers overplay their inventions), sending large files just got better.

3 EVEN MORE DISTANCE

Bluetooth understands that you get pissed off when your connected devices go out of sync because of distance and range problems, and they have included a little something in the package to solve that headache for you. If their word is to be taken for it, this new one offers you four times the range that you got on the v4.2. You might not know how good you got it till you got to move away for a while, and some friends are jamming to music on your Bluetooth speakers. The concept of increasing the range is also backed by the need to start preparing for the takeover of IoT, which brings us to the next slide.

4 IoT, HERE WE COME!

Yeah, we’re sorry. We shouldn’t have spoiled the fact that IoT is to be supported in the previous number, but we just couldn’t help it. The increase in the range and broadcast capacity of the Bluetooth 5 means that intelligent things can be placed at different, convenient regions of the home and they would still be able to talk to themselves. This would reduce having to claim all of your smart gadgets within a small space to ensure that they are properly connected.

5 OUT WITH THE OLD

…and in with the new. It is painful, but Bluetooth SIG is telling you that if you want to enjoy the full functionality of the Bluetooth 5, you would have to get rid of your old devices and buy a new one which comes with support for the new platform. Unlike smartphone manufacturers, Bluetooth cannot just create and roll out a software update to devices to get them ready for the 5th generation technology it has just outed, meaning a total replacement of such units is the only viable option.

6 WHEN DO WE GET THE BIG 5?

From an official statement, it was revealed that this new technology would be unveiled either late this year or early next year. It is, therefore, our joy to announce to you that it has already made its debut in the market, but you can’t have it yet. Apparently, next year is when manufacturers and OEMs start to build devices with support for the new technology. In the other but related news, the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S8 flagship has been billed to be the first smartphone to feature the Bluetooth 5. For now, we just have to keep our fingers crossed.