Category: Connectivity’

If this tumblr is anything to go by it seems as though Bluetooth® Smart Developers the world over are jumping for joy at Google’s announcement that the next version of Android will natively support Bluetooth Smart Ready.

Joking aside, the news signals a coming of age for Bluetooth Smart technology and the market for Bluetooth Smart Ready appcessories (like the Adonit Jot Touch 4) is set to explode. In fact ABI projects the market for Bluetooth appcessories (defined as an accessory device with a companion application) to grow from 220 million units in 2013 to nearly one billion in 2016.

For the Bluetooth Smart developer community this is a massive opportunity for those looking to create innovative low-energy wireless devices and more functional mobile apps. Developers will soon be able to connect devices and distribute apps within the massive Android ecosystem.

CSR is committed to helping developers capitalise on this opportunity, and by providing flexible and powerful platforms we are allowing them to create devices which give consumers the seamless connectivity experience they desire. The CSR µEnergy® range, will provide developers with complete solutions for a range of devices, including HIDs such as wireless remote controls, mice and innovative appcessories.

They may not realise it yet, but with the major smartphone OSs (Android, Apple iOS and Blackberry 10) and Windows 8 and Apple OS X committed to the Bluetooth Smart ecosystem, consumers will reap the rewards including universal compatibility, seamless set-up and much reduced power consumption.

If you’re a regular visitor to the CSR blog you’ll notice that we’ve made some changes in the last 24 hours. We have a new logo, new tagline and new artwork to better reflect what CSR represents in today’s market.

Over the last five years CSR has embarked on a journey to evolve from a runaway Bluetooth® start-up success, to a more diversified platform company with world beating IP and products in several markets. And what a journey it’s been. We’ve invested in development of technologies like Wi-Fi® and Audio, merged with SiRF® and Zoran®, added aptX®, DDFA® and MAPX™ to our company and divested our handset connectivity and location business to Samsung.

The company is unrecognisable to what it looked like when we started. Yes, changing the company hasn’t always been easy, and many outsiders have openlyquestioned our ability to deliver the transformation. However, for me it was always clear that we would be able to achieve our goals.

The reason for my confidence is simple: our history at CSR is filled with examples of re-imagining what is possible, of being stubbornly inventive, of asking ‘when’ not ‘if’. We never settle, we keep pushing and we know that ‘impossible’ is just a word.

We are in the right markets, we have the right technology, we have leading market share and we have ambitious product ideas. Our new brand reflects all of this plus the tenacity of our people and their ability to push every boundary, which is at the heart of everything we do.

I am truly excited about our new brand as I feel it communicates an essential part of our culture that has made us successful in the past and will help us deliver against the opportunity in front of us. It would be great to hear your thoughts on the new brand – from the values behind it to the artwork itself. We look forward to hearing your feedback and taking you on the next stage of our journey with us.

By Joep van Beurden, CEO of CSR

Car manufacturers are always looking to differentiate their cars, and adding comprehensive connectivity is one of the best vehicles to demonstrate a raft of features that address changes in consumer behaviour. Drivers no longer want to play CDs into the car – they want the playlist that is already on their phones or MP3 player. They do not want to recreate their address books or re-enter the contacts into the vehicle – they want this information to be automatically and wirelessly transmitted from their phone to the dash.

The connected vehicle has the potential to fulfil these consumer desires, as well as offer a quantum boost in passenger safety, health and wellbeing, convenience and driving enjoyment. OEMs are exploring what the possibilities are of integrating other wireless gadgets into the car to make it a truly connected vehicle. Many offerings are now in the works, using connectivity and location developments such as Bluetooth® Smart, wideband speech and location innovations. It’s no surprise that CSR is well positioned to deliver the entire in-vehicle ecosystem with its patented Bluetooth® Smart, imaging, connectivity and location solutions.

For example, many people use wireless headsets in order to talk on the phone whilst driving, but infotainment solutions such as SiRFprimaII™ and SiRFatlasVI™ can enable hands-free support, giving users the ability to use the car’s audio system to talk on the phone without a headset, as well as access address and phone lists via voice command. Used in conjunction with a navigation system, drivers can auto-dial phone numbers associated with points of interest, such as hotels and restaurants.

Another use case is the connection of MP3 players, iPods, smartphones and other mobile devices to the car, so that songs and playlists can be chosen from the car’s video screen using voice commands. This avoids the need to look down at menus on users’ handheld devices, providing a far less hazardous way to enjoy music on the road. Some cars will offer wireless data plans so that drivers can listen to music through services such as Pandora in the US, allowing consumers to share music with friends on their phone lists, and even have limited access to Facebook and Twitter through very simple voice commands.

There are many other ways that wireless technology can ensure an easy, safe and comfortable driving experience, so keep your eyes on the blog as we explain other use cases in the coming weeks. What do you think will be the biggest benefits that the connected car will bring? Leave your comments below.

Earlier this week the Daily Mail reviewed the latest SmallPod speakers by Scandyna. There’s no denying that they have eye-catching qualities, but however good they look, wireless speakers need the audio quality to match.

In the past, many higher-end audio companies were reluctant to dabble in Bluetooth stereo because of the perceived ‘so-so’ sound quality. They didn’t want to damage their audiophile reputations by producing products that could deliver poor listening experiences for end-users. However the Scandnya speakers are a great example of how more and more high-end audio companies are dipping their toes into wireless audio. So what has changed?

CSR’s audio codec aptX is the key. In order to fit within the Bluetooth ‘pipe’ and be transmitted wirelessly, audio needs to use a bit rate reduction technique. aptX audio technology uses a non-destructive solution to ensure the audio is transmitted over Bluetooth’s available bandwidth. It replicates the entire frequency of the audio, maintaining CD-quality audio over the Bluetooth connection and ensuring that users can hear everything as the artist originally intended.

In addition to this, smartphone manufacturers haven’t prioritised wireless audio quality historically and therefore haven’t invested in high-quality audio codecs. This has meant that even if peripheral devices, such as headphones and speakers, did contain them they would not be compatible with the smartphones streaming the audio. However, this is changing, as smartphones including Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One and a whole host of other recent releases now include aptX.

This means that tech-savvy consumers can now expect to be able to stream their music wirelessly from smartphones and other mobile devices while still being able to tweet, message friends and talk on the phone. They can lift their speakers from the kitchen to the garden when they have friends over for a barbecue and they can do all this without compromising on audio quality.

So, along with Scandya’s SmallPod speakers, which other high-end devices can consumers get their hands on to enjoy a high-quality wireless audio experience? Here’s our pick of some of the best new aptX enabled wireless audio solutions on the market:

• Jarre Technologies AeroSkull
Another design that is sure to turn people’s heads! The AeroSkull features two 15 Watt speakers hidden behind sunglasses with an impressive 40 Watt Sub Woofer covering the whole of the back of the skull

• Beats Pill by Dr. Dre
The Pill is the latest speaker system to emerge from Beats. With wireless audio, tap-to-pair NFC functionality and an 8-hour battery life – it’s just what the Dr. ordered

• Harman Kardon BT headphones
As over-ear cans go, you could do much worse than the wireless BTs. Harmon Kardon have all bases covered, even including a built-in microphone and playback buttons for use with your smartphone

• Braven Six Series Speakers
Although it appears to be recycled from the 2012 Olympic torch, the Braven 650 takes gold for having a 20-hour playtime and wireless capability from up to 33 feet away

Braven 650 aptX enabled speakers

• Monster Clarity HD Micro
You’ll be surprised by the monstrous sound that comes out of this miniature speaker. The Micro even has voice functionality letting users pause, skip, and answer calls while listening, all wirelessly and with great audio quality

• Logitech UE 900
Should you ever need to spend some quality time with your music, the wireless UE 9000 offers intuitive controls so you can change tracks, turn up the volume, or take a call and get back to the music without missing a beat

The story all began when I lost my car keys. It was a cold and frosty morning and to keep the story short, my keys fell out of my pocket and disappeared forever, never to be seen again. Consequently my lunch times for the next few days consisted of rummaging through the undergrowth in the car park in the hope that I’d find them. On the plus side, however, this is where my life with the Hipkey began.

The Hipkey is a device that connects to your iphone/ipad by syncing via Bluetooth™ to a free IOS app. It then attaches to the item you don’t want to lose. It can alert you if someone tries to steal your iphone or if you leave the house or reach a certain distance without it. Attach it to your child in busy areas (!) and you will be able to find them and if you lose your iphone your Hipkey will find it instantly (or vice versa) with the simple click of a button.

Since my life with the Hipkey began, my nights have consisted of burying my iphone at the bottom of the laundry cupboard and demanding my boyfriend to track it by sounding the alarm. Unfortunately, this novelty has started to wear slightly thin with him. We have also spent days walking around the local supermarket, tracking each other down or pretending we’ve lost our (non-existent) child by hiding the Hipkey under the bananas. A friend told me they saw my mother and I running away from each other in a field one day last week during one of our daily walks and wanted to check that everything was OK (I’m sure you can guess what we were testing out). I think I’m starting to paint a picture of what a success this new technological device is and how helpful it can be. The Hipkey not only presents endless fun by making me look like a crazy person but is also an exceptionally intelligent and practical device. Something I would say never to be without, in fact, unless you are an extremely over organised individual who’s never left their car keys in the driver’s side door after you’ve sat down and belted yourself up.

Let’s hope that when the Hipkey needs to be put into serious action it proves itself to be as reliable as it’s been so far – I’m positive that it will.

Hetty Mallett
HR Administrator, Cambridge

Bluetooth is revolutionising the delivery process for pizza lovers. Red Tomato Pizza, a Dubai-based pizza chain, has created a fridge magnet in the style of a pizza box with a pizza-shaped button that, when pressed, delivers a customer’s favourite order to their door within minutes.

The magnet, which customers can request via the chain’s website, contains a Bluetooth chip that syncs to the customers’ smartphone when pressed. This places the order, via the internet, to Red Tomato Pizza. The customer then gets a message on their phone to confirm that the order has been received. Jonathan Fincher even said ‘the only way the process could be any simpler is if the magnet detected hunger as well.

The magnet is a great example of how Bluetooth is being used to create innovative gadgets that are changing consumer’s lives. One area we’re particularly excited about at CSR is the impact of the latest iteration of Bluetooth – Bluetooth Smart.

Bluetooth Smart uses very short pulses of radio activity which drastically reduces power consumption. Devices can stay connected, but the radio is off most of the time, rapidly responding when data is available.

This power efficiency is causing a boom in the development of a new breed of small, cost-effective and power-efficient wireless products known as ‘appcessories.’ These innovative gadgets are connected to the smartphone, forming an ecosystem around it with the mobile at the hub.

Bluetooth Smart is being used for everything from connected shoes for basketball players from Nike that can measure how high you jump to a sensor-based ruler from +Plugg that uploads measurements directly to your smartphone. The possibilities for this new appcessory market are endlesss. Here at CSR we can’t wait to see what other applications people come up with.

From blood-pressure monitors that alert your doctor if it becomes too high, to pill bottles that send a reminder to your phone if the lid hasn’t been opened and you’re due to takes your pills, connectivity is revolutionising the health industry.

With many countries around the world dealing with an ageing population, one particular area where we’ve seen some interesting advances is the development of products that specifically help the elderly, and incapacitated, maintain their mobility safely.

The launch of Navistar’s GPS Shoes last year was one of the first examples. The shoes have an in-built tracking device, using GPS technology, which ensures that Alzheimer’s and other dementia sufferers, who have a tendency to wander off and then become lost because they can’t remember where they are, can be easily located.

The shoes are simple and effective but more advanced solutions are now becoming available. This year’s Mobile World Congress saw Fujitsu demonstrate a prototype connected walking stick which uses a number of different technologies, including GPS solutions and Wi-Fi, to help elderly people find their way, as well as monitoring their health by measuring their temperature and heart rate. The stick has an LED display on top of the handle which vibrates and shows an arrow when the user should change direction. Carers are able to follow their location online and can be alerted by email if the elderly person seems to have fallen over or there is a change in the person’s health.

We’re heading towards a truly connected world that will not only benefit the young and fit but also help improve the quality of life for the elderly and infirm. We’re looking forward to seeing more solutions, such as the Fujitsu walking stick, that use technology such as GPS, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Smart, to keep innovating and, potentially, save lives.

In the above video, Dr. Steve Gray, CSR’s CTO, explains how CSR has built upon its existing indoor location technology to create Location as a Service (LAAS). Web services are truly revolutionising location technology, and LAAS is creating new opportunities for CSR in a number of marketplaces. One example is Retail, where Indoor Location can be used to drive proximity-based marketing initiatives. Others include Government and Enterprise, where LAAS can be used to secure content via geo-fencing.

In the above video, Slava Barabash, Business Operations VP, explains the details behind CSR’s recently launched image processor, COACH16™, and what it means for the future of CSR’s Imaging business.

Thanks to free GPS signals broadcast by US satellites, using your smartphone to pinpoint your location whilst out and about is a pretty painless experience. CSR is at the forefront of moving location technology to the next stage in its development – indoor location.

At CES 2013, CSR demonstrated its leading SiRFstarV architecture and SiRFusion platform to show off exactly how this technology works. In the above video, Dave Huntingford, Director of Product Line, demonstrates indoor navigation in action on a widely available smartphone, and also offers examples of the additional services that can be layered on top of SiRFusion.