Finally, a Useful Bluetooth Device

"I'm standing in the middle of a half-empty Silicon Valley parking lot, grinning like an idiot and holding a circuit board festooned with wires and other accoutrement. The cord from my Bose noise-canceling headphones snakes out of the board while, inside my head, I hear the clear dulcet tones of my favorite new band, The Assembly of Dust.

Why am I so happy? Because my Nomad Zen MP3 player – which is providing the tunes – is about 200 feet away from me. I'm testing out a prototype Bluetooth sender and transmitter that promises to revolutionize portable audio and make our portable music players much, much more useful.

The technology and the circuit boards are provided by a company called Infinite Range. They've spent the past few years taking Bluetooth wireless and applying it to music. The company has developed RangeScan, Bluetooth audio technology that will let any hardware developer send audio from one device to another wirelessly. And as I learned in that parking lot, it really works.

It's also generating a lot of buzz: According to Infinite Range, numerous consumer electronics companies have lined up to license and produce RangeScan products. The only one that will talk, though, is iPod add-on vendor XtremeMac. Early next year, they plan on releasing an iPod enhancement that will stream music from the player – or any music source – to portable speakers, headphones, a home stereo, or even a car." [Extremetech]

This is when wireless takes over the mainstream, when the price drops low enough that everyday devices let the non-techies amongst us do things they couldn't do before but can't imagine living without ever again.

Acer Offers Free Wireless for K-12 Education

Acer America Corp. has announced the 'Wi-Fi 101' initiative, which will provide free wireless access points and installation to select K-12 schools nationwide. With the support of Intel Corp., Acer America will canvas and select one school in each qualified school district for Wi-Fi 101, with up to 120 schools participating nationwide for the program. Each designated school will be eligible for the installation of up to four access points in two different locations at no cost to the school or the school district.

Wireless connectivity can enable K-12 environments to enjoy the advantages of technology such as Internet access without incurring the more expensive infrastructure costs often associated with hard-wiring. Wireless technology also accelerates the availability of advanced networking in environments where hard-wiring is not a viable option. The intent of Acer is to be in the forefront of providers to education environments, offering solutions that will help speed the penetration of technology into education.

The installation of the wireless access points requires no funding or manpower contribution on the part of schools or district personnel. Interested schools are invited to contact Acer at www.acer.com/wifi101, or their local Acer reseller for details on applying for the program. Upon approval, Acer America will arrange for a site inspection of existing network connections. Up to two wireless sites employing four access points will be installed at each participating school, with the library, cafeteria or computer laboratory being the obvious choices for their Wi-Fi hotspots.

For more information about Wi-Fi 101, visit www.acer.com/wifi101.

T.H.E. Newsletter is a weekly bulletin comprised of recent announcements that affect the education community. Our goal is to keep our readers well informed with the most up to date news. In addition, we hope our audience will share with us their opinions regarding educational technology issues so we may be certain we are covering the topics that are of most interest to them. Do not reply to this email. Direct any questions or comments about T.H.E. Newsletter to mailto:THENews@thejournal.com. [Wireless Librarian Mailing List]