Motorola S9-HD Bluetooth Headphones

Motorola have this month announced the S9-HD Bluetooth Headphones, an upgraded version of the award-winning MOTOROKR S9 Bluetooth stereo headphones.

The Motorola S9-HD Headphones feature earbuds that reduce background noise and high-definition audio from SRS WOW HD technology. SRS WOW HD technology enhances audio performance, especially from compressed audio files, by expanding the size of the perceived sound image and creating a deep, rich bass response.

All of the features that made the MOTOROKR S9 headphones so popular, are included in the upgraded, S9-HD model. They are lighter than the average pair of sunglasses (1 ounce) and feature the unique behind-the-head design for a secure, stable fit. Easy to use controls for volume, play/pause, track selection and send/end are provided near the ear pieces.

Devices that are compatible with the Motorola S9-HD Headphones include any brand of Bluetooth enabled phone or music device that supports the Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) and Audio Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP). The S9-HD Headphones can also be paired with most iPods using the Motorola D650 Bluetooth stereo adapter (sold separately).

The Motorola S9-HD is expected to be available in the second quarter of 2008.

Follow the link below for information about the existing, MOTOROKR S9 model.
Motorola MOTOROKR S9 Headphones

Philips SHB9000 headphones

The Philips SHB9000 headphones are the latest and most sophisticated Bluetooth headphones announced by Philips to date. They will take advantage of features in modern handsets to give pitch-perfect sound quality and all of the benefits of hands free operation.

The SHB9000 Bluetooth headphones will feature FullSound, a digital audio algorithm patented by Philips that refines audio output by performing 10 million operations per second to analyze and re-compute the music signal before it is sent to the speaker. This is claimed to dynamically enhance treble, stereo effects and bass to reveal richer and more natural music details.

Philips SwitchStream technology will also be supported. With SwitchStream you will hear a ring tone in your headphones when you are receiving a call on your Bluetooth enabled phone. You can then pick up the call from your headphones and return to your music after ending the call.

The Philips SHB9000 Bluetooth headphones will be available in the second quarter of 2008 for between US$99 and $129.

Bluetooth Power Classes

A question that I frequently hear people asking when it comes to purchasing a Bluetooth product is "do I need Bluetooth Class 1 or Class 2?". In this this post I will describe the different Bluetooth power classes and what class you should select when you next purchase a Bluetooth product.

For a start, I should make it clear that Bluetooth class 1, class 2 and class 3 all refer to Bluetooth power classes, not to be confused with Bluetooth device classes.

The following table compares the available Bluetooth power classes:

Class	Maximum Power	Operating Range
Class 1	100mW (20dBm)	100 meters
Class 2	2.5mW (4dBm)	10 meters
Class 3	1mW (0dBm)	1 meter

The actual range for each power class may vary depending upon environmental factors where the Bluetooth device is used. Class 3 devices have a very limited range and not very common, hence, they will be ignored for the rest of this discussion

So which power class should you choose for your new Bluetooth product? The two most important question that should be asked here are: "over what distance do I need my Bluetooth devices to operate?" and "what is the power class of the other Bluetooth device I want to communicate with?" Here are the two important pieces of information that you need to understand:

• If you wish to communicate over the 100m range, you will need a class 1 Bluetooth device at both ends.
  
• If you wish to communicate over the 10m range, you can have a class 1 or class 2 device at both ends.
  

Many people make the mistake of believing that they can extend the range of their class 2 device to 100m by purchasing a class 1 device for the other end. This is simply not true. Consider two people standing 100m apart, if person A yells loud enough for their voice to travel over 100m, person B will be able to hear what person A is saying, but if when person B replies they only yell loud enough for their voice to travel over 10m, person A will obviously not hear the response.

Hopefully this post has cleared up any confusion regarding Bluetooth power classes.

Sony Ericsson HBH-PV712 headset

Sony Ericsson have announced the HBH-712, a high performance Bluetooth headset with a female touch.

This Bluetooth headset comes as the result of extensive research by the Sony Ericsson team to find out what the active, modern woman wants. The requirements were an easy to use Bluetooth headset that looks great and fits in a handbag.

The HBH-PV712 features Style-up covers that can be easily detached and are available in silver with detail, black with silver, purple and red detail and purple plated.

Other fashion focused features include a silver-plated, necklace carrying solution and a styled carrying puch.

The HBH-PV712 will be available globally in February 2008.

Sony Ericsson website

Bluetooth SIG Best of CES 2008 Winners

The Bluetooth Special Interest Group have just announced five category winners and one overall winner for the organizations third annual "Best of CES" contest.

There were forty eight new Bluetooth products submitted in the 2008 contest in categories focusing on what consumers can do with the technology. The categories were - talk on a headset, input information, listen to music, transfer information, or use in an industrial or other vertical environment.

Products that complied with the Experience Icon requirements were awarded bonus points. Bluetooth Experience Icons help the user easily identify what a Bluetooth enabled device can do and how it will interact with other Bluetooth devices.

Winners of the Bluetooth SIG Best of CES contest:

• Overall - Samsung P2 Widescreen Music Player
• Headset - Plantronics Voyager 855 Bluetooth Stereo Headset
• Input - Logitech Cordless Desktop MX5500 Revolution Keyboard
• Music - Parrot DS1120 Bluetooth Speakers
• Transfer - Motorola T815
• Vertical - Ford SYNC, powered by Microsoft Auto
  

All winners will receive national exposure for their winning products as part of an in-studio broadcast tour to "top 20" media markets across the US, paid for by the Bluetooth SIG.

Logitech diNovo Mini keyboard

Logitech have just announced the diNovo Mini - a compact palm-sized wireless keyboard for people who have their PC connected to their TV. The diNovo Mini will allow the user to easily access music, videos and other media content from anywhere in the living room.

The mini keyboard features Bluetooth 2.0, backlighting for ease of navigation and an innovative ClickPad with touch pad to point, scroll and click or as a bi-directional pad to navigate menus and make selections.

The keyboard also features hotkeys for media players and Web browsers and page up and down buttons that may be used for surfing the web or zooming in and out of documents.

The ClickPad features two backlight modes. When in touch-pad mode, the ClickPad is backlighted in orange and when in media-remote mode, the ClickPads directional buttons are backlighted in green. The keyboard is always backlighted in orange.

The diNovo Mini is expected to be released to the Eurpose and US markes late in January 2008 for US149.99.

Specifications:

• System Requirements - PC with Windows XP or Vista and a spare USB port
  
• Keyboard - 63 backlighted keys, thumb operated design
• Range - up to 10m
  
• Connectivity - Bluetooth 2.0
• Power and Battery - 30 days, 4 hours for full charge
• Other features - Compatible with PLAYSTATION 3

Logitech website