The End of Bluetooth

The next generation of wireless connectivity is a thousand times faster.

The Next Frontier for Wireless Connectivity 

Bluetooth technology, the technology that enables the exchange of data between devices within a short amount of distance without cables or wires, that is ubiquitous in our lives, is being replaced this decade. It’s time to usher in a new era of wireless connectivity with a technology known as Ultra-Wideband (UWB). This new technology is similar to Bluetooth, but it’s a thousand times faster and necessary for a true smart home, lossless audio, and AR/VR headsets. 

Ultra-Wideband vs. Bluetooth 

Bluetooth has a maximum transfer speed of about 2Mbps (megabits per second). Lossless audio requires at least 9.2Mbps. UWB can hit a top speed of 675Mbps because it connects to 500MHz-wide radio channels, while Bluetooth only uses 2MHz channels. This gives UWB a much lower latency and is more energy-efficient than Bluetooth. It’s much more secure than Bluetooth, making it difficult for hackers to steal data. UWB has a range of nearly 80 feet compared to 30 feet with Bluetooth. It’s simply better technology for wireless connectivity. 

UWB has been included in all iPhones since the iPhone 11 and Apple Watches since the Series 6. Apple refers to it as the U1 chip, which also powers their AirTags that have precision finding not possible with Bluetooth technology. The current uses for UWB are limited, but as this technology evolves, it could lead to a world depicted in futuristic sci-fi movies where your gadgets, homes, cars, and appliances recognize you by simply carrying a phone or wearing a watch/glasses. 

The Smart Home 

This new technology enables a true smart home experience. A world where you leave the house and the doors automatically lock, while your car automatically unlocks. After running some errands, you forget where the car is parked, but don’t worry, you can accurately navigate your car in the parking garage with precision finding. Then you return home, where the lights in the house automatically turn on to your preferred settings. There’s an email you need to send off, and your computer unlocks automatically without the need for a password. You sit down and watch some TV that is already signed in to your profile. 

Lossless Audio: The Ultimate Wireless Listening Experience 

Lossless Audio uses a form of compression that preserves all of the original data. This allows listeners to hear music in its original form the way the artist intended. Audio compression techniques currently used by streaming services lose some amounts of data in the original source file. 

Music streaming services Apple Music and Tidal support lossless audio, but listeners must use a wired connection since Bluetooth doesn’t have the sophistication to transmit vast amounts of data at such high speeds. The Apple AirPods Pro 2 is expected to include UWB, the first wireless headphones to support lossless audio and predicted to change wireless audio forever. Not only will this provide an excellent listening experience for subscribers and significantly improve spatial audio, but it also opens up the doors for audio engineers to reliably mix on wireless headphones. 

The Race for Ultra-Wideband Connectivity 

The chip to support UWB in Airpods Pro 2 and other devices is expected to be manufactured by Qualcomm. However, it’s possible Apple and other companies are secretly working on an in-house chip. Oddly, the new MacBook Pro lacks UWB. Perhaps that will be one of the main selling points of the next generation MacBooks. 

Other consumer electronics companies like Samsung and Sony and car companies such as Hyundai, Jaguar Land Rover, and Volkswagen are racing to get UWB into their product lines.