B luetooth has held a lot of promise for many years now, but until recently, that promise has remained largely un-met. Bluetooth was suppose to be the alternative to wires for device to device data transfer, like computer to printer or PDA to PDA. No longer would you have to deal with connecting an earphone, for instance, to your mobile phone. With Bluetooth, your phone could be in your briefcase, several feet away and you could make a receive calls via a wireless earpiece. Bluetooth printers would only require a power cable, and all Bluetooth capable computers would be able to wirelessly connect to the printer the instant you turned it on.
Only recently are we starting to see the Bluetooth effort bare some fruit, with cell phones and printers among the first devices to appear with Bluetooth technology built in. Our computer maker of choice, Apple, has started including Bluetooth technology in its computers and laptops, and just like the iMac did with USB devices, Appleis use of Bluetooth has helped boost interest in Bluetooth, and a few devices have since come to market.
These applications, however, are so far largely pedestrian. Even iSync enabled Bluetooth on Macs is still rather boring if one lets his imagination run wild with the possibilities of what Bluetooth could do. One company seems to have done just that, and has produced something that may revolutionize several facets of the consumer tech industry.
Nokia has created a device platform called N-Gage that combines Bluetooth with several technologies, and promises to kick them all up to a whole new level. N-Gage is a personal game unit, a cell phone, a PDA, an MP3 player, and more.
With N-Gage, you could play a game, using itis large high-resolution color screen, against other N-Gage players in your house or on the other side of the globe. Bluetooth connects local players and can provide internet connectivity via locally connected Bluetooth enabled computers, Or you could connect via the cell phone.
Would you rather listen to music? How about tuning in an Internet radio station and enjoying CD quality music whether you are at home or on the road? No need to depend on your cell phone connection either. N-Gage has a MultiMedia Card slot, so you can load MP3s onto a separate MMC card and enjoy hours of music. Hereis the scoop from the Nokia press release:
Nokia today showcased its new mobile games, the Nokia N-Gage game deck, at "Get Ready to N-Gage" events in London, UK and Sydney, Australia. The Nokia N-Gage mobile game deck offers a new gameplay experience, bringing top titles from the biggest names in the games industry into the palm of your hand and out onto the mobile network. With its multi-player action via Bluetooth and WAP over GPRS, the game deck opens up new possibilities for both local and remote multiplayer gaming.
The high performance games for Nokia N-Gage game deck are sold separately on game cards (using the MultiMediaCard standard). Game cards allow for a new kind of mobile gameplay experience with richer graphics, enhanced sound, and more extensive game worlds in which to play. Nokia will also act as a game publisher to create branded N-Gage game titles and develop an evolving games portfolio.
Nokia N-Gage game deck devices and game titles will be available in major retail outlets, game-specific and video game retail outlets, as well as in regular mobile phone delivery channels in all major markets.
Get more information about Bluetooth at the Bluetooth SIG site. More info about Nokiais N-Gage device can be found at Nokiais N-Gage Web site.