The Wireless Future: Bluetooth and HomeRF in depth

Common Threads

As you can tell, both Bluetooth and HomeRF wireless technologies share more in common than just their radio frequency. Since both devices serve to cut the cables we have become accustomed to, many of the issues with the devices are similar. Perhaps this is why some experts expect HomeRF and Bluetooth technologies to merge in the future. For now, let's take a look at what issues the two wireless technologies have in common and what each plans to do about them.

Health

As with every new technology that seems to come along, the public is concerned with the safety of HomeRF and Bluetooth. Although in some cases the health concerns with products may be validated (asbestos, for example), the vast majority of products turn out to be completely harmless. Both Bluetooth and HomeRF claim that they, along with the government, have investigated the safety of radio frequency broadcasts in the 2.4 GHz range and all three sources promise that they are safe.

Although this is almost certainly the case, public perception may be different upon the time of the technologies release. Both companies plan to support the safety claims with medical research, hoping to alleviate some of the concerns associated with wireless transmissions. Rest assured that both technologies note safety as their number one priority.

Transmission Laws

Each country has its own governing body that essentially regulates the air waves, meaning that this body acts to say what can be transmitted where and when. In the case of the Untied States, this body is known as the Federal Communications Commission, or more affectionately, the FCC.

The FCC has a world wide reputation as being very strict on what can be broadcast and when. In some instances this is a very good thing, in others it inhibits the development of technology. Take Bluetooth and HomeRF devices, for instance. Both of these devices are known to the FCC as "radiators," as they emit radio frequencies in all directions. As a result of this classification, the restrictions on HomeRF and Bluetooth devices will be rather strict.

Although this should not prove to be a problem for home users of this technology, travelers may experience some headaches from the strict FCC regulations. This is due to the fact that FCC regulations strictly prohibit any "radiators" from being used on airplanes. Luckily there are ways of getting fixed radiators onto airplanes, as one airline carrier currently uses a radiator in a fixed location to provide the duty free cart with information. Both Bluetooth and HomeRF developers hope to find a way to mount their respective systems on airplanes to allow for wireless web surfing and more at 31,000 feet. Don't expect to see this any time soon, as the current regulations have been in place since the 1970's and have barely budged. The risk of interference due to the use of either HomeRF of Bluetooth systems is extremely small, if nonexistent.

Ease of use

Perhaps one of the biggest things that both technologies are pushing, besides all of the applications, is ease of use. Companies producing Bluetooth and HomeRF devices want to make them as user friendly as possible, as ease of use usually equates to profit. Wanting to stay as far away from the techie only crowd as possible, HomeRF and Bluetooth devices want to be as user friendly as they can make it.

This is because companies understand that in order for HomeRF and Bluetooth technologies to become popular, they must be accessible. As a result of this, both technologies promise full integration into Windows 98 and above, including Windows 2000. By supporting very intuitive shell extensions, such as a "find remote devices" button, both technologies hope to make the user's experience as painless as possible, much like USB strived to do a few years back.

Security

As with all wireless technologies, there can always be someone listening. Since privacy is a primary concern for many wireless technology users, both Bluetooth and HomeRF hope to put the user at rest by making their information as secure as possible.

While we did not get the full scoop on the security of Bluetooth, we did get quite an extensive rundown on how HomeRF deals with security issues. The first form of security in HomeRF devices is a 24-bit network IP that is specific to each personal area network. This key prevents devices that are outside a users PAN from intercepting and using the information sent from a remote PAN. In addition to this network IP, data is sent with a 56-bit encryption algorithm, keeping out the neighborhood hackers. Expect the next generation of products to implement 128-bit encryption, a feature that was left off of this specification due to the fact it was written before the government decided to allow its use. The final protection method is against denial of service attacks. Due to the fact that HomeRF devices are constantly switching frequencies, a denial of service attack on a specific device would be very difficult, if not impossible. Dr. Negus at Proxim suspects that denial of service attacks will continue to grow and thrive as the hacker's tool of choice.