One of the things that has been bothering me about the “Bridge” connection between the BlackBerry PlayBook and BlackBerry Smartphones is the Bluetooth connection itself. Current BlackBerry devices, and practically all smartphones as far as I know, only allow one Bluetooth device to connect at a time. For BlackBerry users that means you will have to choose between your PlayBook bridge and other accessories like a Bluetooth headset or headphones. I use my Plantronics BackBeat Bluetooth headphones every day and I would rather not have to juggle the connection between the two. We have seen Bluetooth headphones in the past that are capable of “multipoint” connections which allow it to be paired to multiple devices at the same time but I have yet to see a smartphone with this feature. Maybe RIM plans on building it into future devices?
Personally I think what would really make the PlayBook huge would be if it could connect to your BlackBerry over Wi-Fi turning your BlackBerry into a mobile hotspot. This could perform both as a “Bridge” while also allowing the PlayBook to access the internet through the BlackBerry’s cellular connection. It kind of boggles my mind that RIM has not done this already but there may be battery life concerns compared to Bluetooth.
I am really curious to know how RIM plans on overcoming this Bluetooth dilemma. I like my Wi-Fi solution and we already have rumors of upcoming BlackBerry devices including a mobile hotspot on board. Even more so QNX has been showing off car connections allowing you to connect the PlayBook or a BlackBerry to your QNX powered car over Bluetooth which would tie up the Bluetooth connection and would not let you connect to your BlackBerry for the “Bridge.”
Anybody have any ideas on how RIM is planning to overcome this dilemma? Personally I think the mobile hotspot route is the way to go! 🙂
barrist ( View Profile) - Posts: