Bluetooth

Mac 101: Bluetooth basics

Leopard’s Bluetooth feature is one of those things that’s easy to forget about until you need it, then you’re glad you have it. Let’s take a look at some ways to get the most out of this under-utilized tool.

In order to use your Mac with another Bluetooth gadget like a mobile phone or headset, you’ll need to pair it with that specific device. Locate the Bluetooth settings under System Preferences and turn the Bluetooth power on. Then also check the box marked “Discoverable.” This will allow other devices in range to see your Mac.

Make sure the device you want to pair with the Mac is powered on and also discoverable (check the owner’s manual for specifics on how to manage the Bluetooth settings on your mobile phone or headset). Next, click the Bluetooth icon found near your clock on the toolbar at the top of your screen and select “Set Up Bluetooth Device.” Follow the Mac’s onscreen steps that explain how to add the eight-digit passcode that will allow your two devices to talk to each other.

Once you’ve established a connection between your Mac and another gadget, your computer stores the info until you delete it — there’s no need to add a new passcode each time. When you’re done using a Bluetooth device with your Mac, be sure to uncheck the “Discoverable” option to prevent anyone else from pairing a device with your computer. When you’re ready to re-pair a device, just click on the Bluetooth icon, and select the gadget from the dropdown list.

One last thing: If you’re not using Bluetooth on your laptop, make sure it’s turned off to preserve battery life.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Leopard, Bluetooth and my new Pantech Breeze

It may be a personal preference, but I try not to use or abuse phones that can’t survive a 3-foot drop onto concrete. That’s why last week I ordered myself a sweet little Pantech Breeze.It offers one killer feature that I refuse to live without: a dedicated speakerphone button. I have this on my beloved Kyocera Slider and I demanded it on any new phone that I would buy. The Breeze brings that to the table along with a video camera and full Bluetooth support. After rebates, the phone cost about $70 and works perfectly with my iPhone SIM.

So after unboxing my new toy, I enabled Bluetooth on the phone and opened Leopard’s Bluetooth File Exchange.

BFE isn’t some super-spiffy CoverFlow all-dancing all-singing phone interface. It’s a simple little utility program (with the emphasis on “utility”) that allows you to browse your BT connected devices and use its drag-and-drop interface to transfer data to and from the unit.

Leopard recognized my phone without incident and opened the browsing window shown here. It took just a few clicks to offload my latest pictures from the phone and drag them into iPhoto. Going the other direction, I threw a few mp3 files into my Download > Audio folder and they instantly appeared onboard, ready to play.

Obviously the Pantech Breeze isn’t the iPhone (even as I end up tapping its screen and wondering why it’s not responding) but in some ways, it should have been. Why does Leopard offer this fantastic Bluetooth interaction between phone and Macintosh for an also-ran third party phone, while balking at any iPhone interactions? This is the interaction that should have been on my iPhone, using functionality already built into Leopard. I wonder why it wasn’t baked into the flagship Apple product of the century. [Read]

Popularity: 6% [?]

Jawbone: Get ticketed, get a discount

Who says crime doesn’t pay?

Aliph, makers of the ultra-cool noise-reducing Jawbone Bluetooth headset, have come up with a great marketing scheme. If you live in California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, New York, or Washington — all states with laws requiring hands-free use of mobile phones — and receive a ticket for yapping with your iPhone plastered to your ear, Jawbone will deduct $20 off the purchase price of one of their headsets.

You can’t get a discount on the Silver Tongue model, but the prices for the Goldy Lips and Blah Blah Black versions end up at $129.99 and $109.99 respectively. All you need to do is go to the Jawbone website, look for the Hands Free Ticket Processor, and enter your state and ticket number. $20 is taken off the original purchase price, and you’re ready to go.

This is one case where I wish I did live in a nanny state that was forcing me to use a hands-free kit! [jawbone]

Popularity: 9% [?]

Brando offers A2DP adapter for iPhone & iPod touch

A lot of folks had been hoping for support for the A2DP Bluetooth audio stack in the 3G iPhone. (A2DP allows for stereo music over Bluetooth in addition to the standard mono Bluetooth headset audio.) Unfortunately, Apple did not gratify this particular wish, but now Hong Kong-based accessory maker Brando is stepping to the gap with the INFINXX AP23.

Basically, it’s a small dongle that plugs into the iPhone or iPod touch Dock port. You can then sync a pair of Bluetooth headphones (with microphone) to both the dongle and the iPhone allowing for phone as well as music support. While the INFINIXX is far from the first A2DP Bluetooth dongle, it is one of the smallest (~5 grams) and clearly takes its design cues from the iPhone.

The Brando INFINXX AP23 is $62. Standard shipping is $3 (7-20 working days) while express shipping (2-7 working days) is $39.

[via Gizmodo]

Popularity: 8% [?]

Get Address Book Bluetooth dialing back with Nova Media Phone plugins

One of the the stranger changes in Leopard was the loss of the ability to dial (and send text messages) from the Address Book to a Bluetooth paired cell phone. Fortunately, however, Nova Media has released its Phone plugins to return this functionality to the Leopard Address Book and other applications through a system-wide Service.

When installed it allows you to call a number or send a text message just by right-clicking on the number in the Address Book (or selecting it elsewhere and invoking Phone plugins from the Services menu). It works with a number of phones from Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, and Sony Ericsson; check the compatibility list for details. Annoyingly the iPhone is not compatible.

Nova Media Phone plugins is $9.95 and a demo is available.

[via Hawk Wings]

Popularity: 16% [?]