How does Bluetooth relate to IrDA?
The Infrared Data Association’s IrDA is a widely deployed short-range wireless technology. Like Bluetooth technology, it operates over short ranges without wires and is especially useful in mobile devices. But there are differences between Bluetooth and IrDA communication, such as RF’s capability to penetrate many obstacles, while infrared light generally requires “line of sight” for connectivity. There are other differences as well, including cost, range, and data rate (many of these are discussed in our aforementioned book, Bluetooth Revealed; in addition, an excellent paper by David Suvak of Extended Systems compares these two technologies (“IrDA and Bluetooth: A Complementary Comparison,” found at http://www.extendedsystems.com/prodinfo/white/bt%5vsFir.html). One important thing to note about the relationship between Bluetooth and IrDA wireless communication is that the SIG has adopted some middleware layers of the IrDA protocol stack and has incorporated them into the Bluetooth pr
