Broadcom, a fabless semiconductor company, has demonstrated a working implementation of next-generation Bluetooth featuring alternative MAC and PHY (AMP) technology at 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES (News - Alert)).

 

The technology demonstration, which Broadcom claims as the industry’s first, enables Bluetooth to support data rates of up to 24 Megabits per second (Mbps) and a significant increase in range by using other wireless radio technologies, such as 802.11, as its transport medium.

 

The demonstration displayed the ability of fast file transfers between two Broadcom (News - Alert) AMP-enabled devices (PC to PC, PC to mobile phone, mobile phone to mobile phone) and highlighted the extended versatility for Bluetooth. The ability to connect Bluetooth at data rates up to 24 Mbps dramatically increases its applicability in file transfer and data synchronization between electronic devices, Broadcom said.

 

"Our unique position as a leader in both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth has enabled us to take leadership in applications that require multiple technologies to work well together in the same device, such as Bluetooth AMP," said Robert Rango, senior vice president and general manager of Broadcom's Wireless Connectivity Group, in a statement. "We look forward to our continued collaboration with the Bluetooth SIG in moving Bluetooth forward."

 

With AMP technology, Broadcom immediately targets the 802.11g wireless LAN - a radio technology that could increase Bluetooth transfer rates by up to 10 times when compared to standard or enhanced data rate (EDR) Bluetooth.

 

According to Mike Foley, executive director of the Bluetooth SIG, Broadcom’s demonstration of Bluetooth running over an 802.11 link highlights the new opportunities for expansion of the consumer electronics applications being driven by the evolving Bluetooth standard.

 

Broadcom's Bluetooth AMP technology was also demonstrated on Broadcom’s wireless solutions including the Broadcom BCM4325 single-chip Bluetooth + Wireless Fidelity (WiFi (News - Alert)) combo device, as well as modules that integrate the BCM2046 single-chip Bluetooth solution and BCM4312 single-chip WiFi device.

 

Bluetooth has emerged as one of the most pervasive wireless technologies in the market, because of its ease-of-use and applicability to a wide array of devices. It is now expanding into new classes of consumer electronics devices supporting remote control and file transfer functions.

 

Broadcom AMP technology increases the speed at which Bluetooth can communicate, and thereby expands potential applications of the technology by adding the ability to operate with other standards-based radio technologies, the company said.