Connectivity in the Field – Bluetooth or WiFi?

Do you ever have issues with your Bluetooth head set not getting the best reception, even though your phone is in your pocket?!? Have you ever had your smart phone run out of batteries before your day is over? Are you worried about other people accessing information you are transmitting between your devices via Bluetooth or Wifi? Below you will find  Pros and Cons of the two different ways for devices to communicate with each other.

For wireless machine to machine communication – Bluetooth is the easiest and least expensive way for seamless communication. Bluetooth is secure as you have to “pair” the devices before they can communicate with each other. Bluetooth also takes up less energy to connect, thus saving a little more battery life on your smartphone. It is restrictive in distance, 10 meters, which is great for driving your pick up down the road, but what about combines communicating with each other in the field? Bluetooth has been around since 1994 and recently has been making leaps in bounds for stronger wireless communication.

Wireless Fidelity a.k.a Wi-Fi is available at almost every street corner, rural café, and truck repair shop. Does Wi-Fi have a chance in taking over what Bluetooth has been building on for almost 20 years? Wi-Fi was introduced 3 years before Bluetooth, but began with different use cases. Wi-Fi is more complex than Bluetooth and requires configuration of hardware and software, Wi-Fi will also soak up more of your precious battery life. Both communicate over a 2.4 GHz frequency level; Wi-Fi is more expensive but can also communicate of distances up to 100 meters. Have you thought of using Wi-Fi for a connection between two devices, but not for the internet? With a few extra steps, this could be the answer to your problems of needing a longer distance base for wireless communication.