Bluetooth 5 is a major upgrade over the current Bluetooth 4 found in most modern smartphones and accessory products. The headline figures are impressive, promising up to four times the range and twice the speed of current Bluetooth devices. Bandwidth has also been dramatically increased so eight times more data can now be sent in each broadcast.
The specification is supposed to iron out problems in Bluetooth 4 that have restricted its usefulness in smart home environments. Devices will now be able to communicate more quickly and efficiently, keeping connected products running smoothly. This will drive new developments in the Internet of Things.
Bluetooth 5 is also designed to be a response to the increasing number of new Wi-Fi based technologies that are beginning to threaten it. Bluetooth’s current limitations when used for the Internet of Things have led to the creation of low-power Wi-Fi standards that are a feasible alternative to Bluetooth. Bluetooth 5 does away with the most pressing shortcomings of the existing technology, lessening the need to use Wi-Fi instead.
Besides benefiting the Internet of Things, Bluetooth 5 will also lead to improvements in wearables such as smartwatches and fitness trackers. Data will transfer from phones more quickly, enabling apps to open faster and screens to refresh more reliably. The new spec is also meant to make beacons run more smoothly. These devices are commonly placed in stores and automatically push adverts and information to your phone as you walk in.
“Bluetooth is revolutionizing how people experience the IoT,” said Mark Powell, Executive Director of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG). “Bluetooth 5 continues to drive this revolution by delivering reliable IoT connections and mobilizing the adoption of beacons, which in turn will decrease connection barriers and enable a seamless IoT experience.”
Bluetooth 5’s official approval comes as the industry prepares for a sudden influx in the number of smart products being connected. The Bluetooth SIG cited an ABI Research report that suggests 48 billion internet-enabled devices will be in use by 2021. Around one-third of these are expected to connect using Bluetooth.
The acceptance of the Bluetooth 5 spec doesn’t mean products are available today. It will be some time before manufacturers begin to actively use the technology. As with previous Bluetooth advances, the new version is backwards-compatible with older standards. Best performance will be obtained when using only Bluetooth 5-compatible products though. The first Bluetooth 5 devices are expected to appear in the next two to six months.
“With the launch of Bluetooth 5, we continue to evolve to meet the needs of IoT developers and consumers while staying true to what Bluetooth is at its core: the global wireless standard for simple, secure, connectivity,” said the Bluetooth SIG.
