Bluetooth and infrared technology is the key to moving files effortlessly off and on to mobile phones. Today more and more phones are being released that incorporate this technology, yet few people are actually using it to its full potential. For most, the reason is they just don’t know how – something that we will remedy immediately.

January 2005

The entry level wireless transfer technology, infrared differs from Bluetooth in that it is a straight line-of-sight technology. In order for infrared to work, you must point your phone’s infrared ‘port’ directly at the infrared port of the device you wish to connect to. This is quite different to Bluetooth phones, which only have to be in the general vicinity (within 10 metres usually) of the object they are connecting to. Infrared would therefore not be a useable technology for things like connecting a mobile phone head set, but is still perfectly appropriate for getting photos or sound files off a phone, for example.

So join me now as I install and operate both solutions. Like most readers, my PC was not equipped for either Bluetooth or infrared. This wasn’t a problem, however, as both can be purchased as USB plug-in devices from electronic stores such as Dick Smith Electronics (DSE). Thus, my first purchase in this connectivity process was a USB infrared kit from Dick Smiths for $68. The official name for it is a DSE Adaptor Serial/MB/USB to IrDA. The installation manual was very concise about how to install the device, and specifically, how to install it with different Windows operating systems. That is; Windows 95, 98, ME, 2000 and XP.

I first plugged the infrared device into a spare USB port. Windows XP immediately advised it had found new hardware and began to configure it. After a minute it said it had installed and configured the new hardware and it was ready to use. So far so good, although I had yet to run the installation CD.

I inserted it and followed the screen shot instructions for Windows XP from the DSE installation guide. There were full instructions included for all other likely operating systems. Apparently the CD was mostly drivers. It is at this stage I became a little confused. There was nothing on the CD home page that said ‘install drivers’. Instead there were prompts to install OpenOffice.org, Oxygen Phone Manager 2 Trial Version, Logo Rama, a PDF manual and Adobe Acrobat reader.

I decided to do none of this, and removed the CD – after all, hadn’t my PC already said it had configured the hardware and was ready to use? Perhaps the fact that I constantly run Windows Update would mean that I was already fully equipped with the right drivers and could run the system straight away. Time would tell. I checked the Windows Program menu to see if there was an infrared device installed there. No such luck.

I grabbed my Sony Ericsson F500i infrared phone and decided to see if it was actually ‘plug and play’ – could it send by infrared now? The short answer was almost. I selected a video from the phone, pointed the infrared port at the USB infrared device, and hit the ‘send via infrared’ button. A message immediately popped up on my PC saying the computer had found the K500i, and was it ok to accept a file from the phone? I said yes. It was only then that the reason for the drivers CD became apparent, as Windows asked for related software from the CD. I reinserted it and Windows quickly searched it and began installing the correct driver files. As soon as it had done that, the video transfer began.

Above: Windows recognises infrared connection

It took about a minute to transfer a 30 second video clip. Although the F500i prompts the user to activate and align devices, the transfer will start automatically if it detects the devices are aligned. After the transfers had gone I was advised with a ‘close’ prompt that the transfer had been made successfully. But where would the files be on my PC? A quick search found them stored on the desktop. All transferred successfully in a matter of seconds. Infrared installation successful.

Installing Bluetooth was a little different. From Dick Smith’s I had a choice of the USB XH6834 Bluetooth adapter class 2 with a range of about 10 metres, or the USB XH6829 Bluetooth adapter class 1 with a range of up to 100 meters. I opted for the XH6834. First major difference? Don’t plug in the adapter before you start the install – load the software first. I inserted the disk and followed the set up programme. As with the infrared set up, it was fairly painless and the instruction manual had easy to follow step by step install instructions. About half way through it asks you to plug in your Bluetooth USB device, which Windows XP then installs and configures from a hardware perspective. Once Bluetooth is installed correctly, the Bluetooth icon should appear on your desktop down in the bottom right hand corner.

Then scrolled to ‘My Devices’ and selected ‘Add’. The K700i then scanned the surrounding area looking for a Bluetooth device. It quickly found my computer (you have to name your computer as part of the Bluetooth software’s installation process. That name then appears in your phone).

At about this stage one (or both) devices will advise you that the other device is trying to communicate with them. You click to accept this communication and may have to put in a passcode for either the phone or the PC. I have paired numerous devices and the pass-code has always been ‘0000’.

It probably will be for you too. If not check your manual. Once paired a Bluetooth icon should appear on your phone’s screen. As part of the install process a folder is created on your PC called ‘Bluetooth Exchange Folder’. It is here that any files you send from your phone to your computer will be stored. As with infrared, as soon as the PC and the phone were paired, I was easily able to transfer files to and from the phone – although with Bluetooth I was able to do it from a different room, as being aligned is not necessary.

Relevant Reading

• Synchronising Devices
  Once you have connected your phone to your computer via USB cable, Bluetooth or infrared, it’s time to synchronise...
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