WIFI Direct: The Terminator of Bluetooth?

Realize interconnection without network   WIFI Alliance disclosed recently, a new standard WIFI Direct will be finished soon, which will make WIFI equipment installed in traditional families, offices or hotspot network and realize interconnection.   In the live demo of WIFI Alliance senior marketing manager Sarah Morris, audiences could experience the meaning of this new application. Sarah Morris used a common camera with WIFI function to take a photo on the spot, and then transferred it to the media server. Besides, the spot WIFI mobile phones can obtain the picture through inputting passwords.   Remarkably, the spot camera and mobile phones merely equipped with WIFI function.   Executive director of WIFI Alliance Edgar Figueroa told the reporter, WIFI Direct has no extra requirements of hardware. As for some merchandises, merchants can make existing products support WIFI Direct via providing software upgrade. He also complemented, if all the participating demo equipments come with WIFI Direct function, its experience will be more abundant. More importantly, the first advantage WIFI Direct can bring just is to cover the whole family instead of covering a single room of original traditional PAN.     It is reported, WIFI Alliance plans to authenticate the new standard in the metaphase of 2010; the products passing the certification will gain WIFI CERTIFIED WIFI Direct mark.   Myron Hattig, WLAN standard Director of Intel mobile wireless sector expressed, it is expected to officially launch WIFI Direct in this summer, Intel is able to become the first company win the certification. Besides, CTO of Broadcom communication department, Stephen R. Palm showed, as for WIFI Direct’s new function, they anticipate and acknowledge it very much. It is expected that there will be Broadcom’s certified products launched soon when the Authentication programs released in this year.   Bluetooth crisis   WIFI Direct technology has been published in 2009, the media paid strong attention to the technology, nevertheless, more views considered this maybe mean the termination of Bluetooth. Withal, Bluetooth Alliance responded immediately, and claimed that Bluetooth 3.0 technology is more advantageous and it is more convenient to use.   Therefore, compared with Bluetooth technology, what advantages does WIFI Direct technology have? WIFI Alliance executive director expressed in an interview of Telecom World, the following 5 points indicate WIFI Direct superior to Bluetooth in: firstly, WIFI Direct has WPA2 security performance; secondly, it is based on IP, and able to realize naturally the interactive operation with other IP based equipments; thirdly, its service scope is larger (can cover two football fields); fourthly, its transmission speed is higher, reaching 250Mbps; fifthly, it can support all the existing equipments with WIFI function.   It is worth mentioning that WIFI Direct can be not only used in the family, its security can also satisfy the enterprises users. According to the reports, the standard can provide management function for enterprises environment and come with WPA2 safety performance.   According to the ABI Research2009, it is expected the shipments of Bluetooth chipset will be close to 2 billion in 2014, above a half will be used in wireless mobile phones; the same year, WIFI chipset’s shipments will be near 1.5 billion, more than one third will be used in mobile phones. The research pointed out simultaneously, WIFI Direct can realize peer-to-peer communication among the equipments in the short distances, which will promote development of WIFI.   The competition between Bluetooth and WIFI may be unavoidable; no matter WIFI mobile phones or Bluetooth mobile phones , or other equipments, who will be the winner, it will be decided by the market and consumers.  

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