Difference between Bluetooth and Wireless
Wireless, as the name suggests, is the technology of transferring information without the use of wires. It is a widely used term and can be used when referring to a technology commonly applied to a large number of devices from a remote control for your television to signals used to communicate with satellites in orbit. We use some sort of energy in all forms of wireless communication such as infra red rays, laser light, radio frequency acoustic energy and so on. Bluetooth is a wireless technology that creates a PAN (Personal Area Network) in a short range using short wavelength radio transmission. While we compare wireless with Bluetooth it’s generally the Wireless LAN (Local Area Network). Here are some differences between these two technologies.
Range
The range within which one can communicate using Bluetooth technology is generally shorter distanced than that of Wireless LAN. Using Bluetooth you are limited to a maximum of thirty feet whereas a Wireless connection can be reached at up to two hundred feet. Hence if you are planning to cover an area under a network you would require twenty to fifty times more access points in case of Bluetooth. This doesn’t mean Wireless is better than Bluetooth as both have their own benefits and are used according to the requirements of users.
Technology
Wireless adapters can be used in two modes: infrastructure and ad-hoc. In case of infrastructure all the information goes through access points. It’s just like a wired network without the wires. It is generally used to share resources like printers for a network of computers. In contrast to this, when using the ad-hoc mode there is no access point in the network. Computers connect directly to each other as and when such connection is required. Bluetooth is also kind of an ad-hoc network. It is interesting to note that a maximum of eight devices can be connected in an ad-hoc network.
Other Issues
Bluetoothconnections transfer at lower speeds than wireless. Bluetooth adapters are cheaper than wireless adapters and consume less power. Bluetooth technology is relatively new and less mature when compared with wireless. Looking towards the future expectations from Bluetooth technology are high and over two thousand vendors signed up members of the Bluetooth forum which was created by Ericsson in 1994 and is currently managed by a Bluetooth special interest group.
Similarities and Differences
Bluetooth
- Bluetooth is a wireless technology that creates a PAN (Personal Area Network) in a short range using short wavelength radio transmission.
- Communicates within a thirty foot range.
- Its kind of an ad-hoc network.
- Bluetoothconnections transfer at lower speeds than wireless.
- The Bluetooth forum was created by Ericsson in 1994 and is currently managed by Bluetooth special interest group.
Wireless
- Using wireless LAN one can communicate up to 200 feet.
- Infra Red rays, Laser light and Radio frequency acoustic energy are used in wireless connections.
- Wireless adapter can be used in two modes: infrastructure and ad-hoc.
- Bluetooth adapters are cheaper than wireless adapters.
