The wireless era is one of unfettered connectivity, where a multitude of devices can be networked with only the bare minimum of physical cables. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections reign supreme. Although both types of connection work the same way, using radio waves for wireless communication, the essential details of how they work are different. Where Bluetooth is intended for relatively simple, short-range connections, Wi-Fi can reach much further and connect to a wider range of wireless networks.
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth work together to provide our current level of interconnectivity, with the former connecting nearby devices without cables and the latter helping those devices reach beyond your home via the Internet. Technically, Wi-Fi could do what Bluetooth does on its own, but its increased complexity makes it less suitable for fast local connections. Plus, it’s more power hungry, so adding Bluetooth helps optimize your entire network.
Wi-Fi enables longer-range connection to the wider Internet
Wi-Fi technology has its roots in various wireless broadcast technologies dating back to the 1800s. Actress and inventor Hedy Lamarr’s World War II-era contributions formed the backbone of today’s Wi-Fi frequency hopping capabilities. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) released the first Wi-Fi standard publicly in 1997, under the name 802.11. A group of companies came together to manage it under the name Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (WECA). Some people think that the term Wi-Fi is short for “wireless fidelity”, but in fact “Wi-Fi” means nothing; WECA hired a marketing firm to come up with the name “Wi-Fi” because it sounded similar to the attractive “hi-fi”, and later changed its name to Wi-Fi Alliance to match.
Wi-Fi works based on radio frequencies to transmit data wirelessly. It takes a signal and divides it into a multitude of small pieces, distributing them across multiple frequency bands. Sending a signal in this way allows large amounts of data to be sent through the air at higher speeds and from multiple devices simultaneously. Wi-Fi is technically different from wireless Internet in that the former only facilitates local connections, while the latter allows you to connect to the wider Internet through a router. The downside is that Wi-Fi is more complex and power-hungry, requiring elaborate infrastructure inside and outside the home to maintain stable connections. This is why, although Wi-Fi can technically connect nearby devices in the same way as Bluetooth, it would not be economical to do so when simpler Bluetooth connections are available.
Bluetooth uses simpler short-range connections
Bluetooth was invented in 1994 by Dr. Jaap Haartsen, who was looking for a way to boost the emerging mobile phone industry with greater connectivity. Dr. Haartsen’s design used 2.4 GHz UHF radio waves to establish a connection capable of operating reliably and coherently at short range. Fun fact: The name “Bluetooth” comes from an Intel employee named Jim Kardach, who came up with it as a placeholder based on the rotten, toothy smile of the legendary Viking king Harald Gormsson.
The overall technology of Bluetooth is very simple and does not require a lot of power, so it can be installed on all kinds of gadgets and devices. Because it uses a radio signal rather than, say, an infrared signal, it doesn’t require line of sight to connect. As long as two Bluetooth-enabled devices are physically close enough, they can establish a strong connection, enabling, among other functions, smart Bluetooth connections in a smart home. While a Bluetooth connection is very stable, it’s not particularly fast and can only handle around 50 Mbps, much less than Wi-Fi, and it has a hard limit of around 30 feet. Bluetooth has some common problems, although newer versions of the technology have gradually made them more bearable. The main purpose of Bluetooth in a modern environment is to eliminate the need for multiple cables, allowing clear connections for pairing two or more devices, such as keyboards, headphones, etc.
