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USB to Bluetooth Adapters?

Posted by Cliff on from the do-they-even-exist-yet dept.

OtakuMan asks: "I am looking for a Bluetooth adapter so I can free up some of my USB slots. I have found many Bluetooth -> USB adapters, but I have not found any USB -> Bluetooth adapters. Any help?"

15 of 24 comments (clear)

  1. articualate! by xWeston · · Score: 2, Insightful

    you dont make sense Do you want to have more USB ports on some sort of wireless device so that it isnt by your computer? Or do you want a wireless adapter to connect to your usb port

    1. Re:articualate! by Speedy8 · · Score: 2, Informative

      He wants to have fewer USB ports taken up on his computer and he wants to be able to make his USB devices portable and cut baack on the cables they have. Something like a USB hub that instead of plugging into the computer through USB but used bluetooth to do it.

  2. Ummm by quintessent · · Score: 2

    If you just want more USB ports, wouldn't it be easier to drop $20 at the store for a USB hub?

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  3. Good luck! by Raetsel · · Score: 4, Informative

    I'll be very, very surprised to see the kind of thing you seem to be looking for. It sounds almost like you plugged one of those bluetooth dongles into a USB hub, another Bluetooth dongle into your computer, and wondered why you couldn't use the hub. (Is that what you had in mind?)

    Problems:

    1. IIRC, USB requires a computer to "run the hub." It has to be in the loop, somewhere, to arbitrate/manage/etc. the connections.

      (IEEE 1394/Firewire/iLink, on the other hand, doesn't require the computer and thus you can plug your Firewire-equipped Mini-DV camcorder into your Firewire VCR (or editing deck) and expect it to work. Curiosity point: any /.ers out there plugged a Firewire hard drive straight into a DV camcorder and had it work?)

    2. USB -- version 1.x -- is designed for 12 Mbit/sec. Bluetooth tops out (for now) at 1 Mbit/sec. (i.e. USB over Bluetooth? Bad idea.)
    Short version: I don't think USB was designed to work that way. You do get it to work and that's going to be one hell of an ugly hack.
    --

    "...America's great minds of today, teaching America's great minds of tomorrow. Poor bastards." -- A Beautiful Min
  4. Close, but no cigar by cookd · · Score: 2, Informative

    I'm guessing you mean you want a Bluetooth dongle you can plug into your USB (printer | scanner | keyboard | mouse | HDD | joystick | pressure cooker) and make it work -- since this is the kind that seems hard to find.

    Bad news -- it doesn't exist, and probably won't ever exist. If it does, it will be a hack that will cause a whole generation of telephone support personnelle to commit suicide (similar to the invention of parallel port scanners and other hack-job peripherals).

    All is not lost, though. You can at least get rid of some wires. They make Bluetooth Parallel adapters and Bluetooth Serial adapters, some of which even have Linux drivers available! While not a complete solution, it is a (good?) start.

    --
    Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
  5. You may be able to bluetoothize some of your kit by biglig2 · · Score: 2

    There are bluetooth adapters that allow you to replace a generic RS232 cable or a generic parallel printer cable. Would these let you connect your peripherals?

    P.S. Is your nest of cabling really that bad?

    --
    ~~~~~ BigLig2? You mean there's another one of me?
  6. Me too! by floydigus · · Score: 5, Funny

    I am looking for a connector to connect my Ask Slashdot questions to the editors.

    I know this is possible, because I have seen other peoples questions get posted.

    Maybe it's because mine aren't stupid enough?
    Please help!

    --

    All things in moderation; including moderation

  7. How fast is USB 1.1? by fm6 · · Score: 2
    1. USB -- version 1.x -- is designed for 12 Mbit/sec.
    That's burst speed. Sustained speed is only a tenth of that. And most USB devices are even slower than that.
    1. Re:How fast is USB 1.1? by afidel · · Score: 2

      Nope, sustained speeds with a good implentation will be around 1.1-1.2MB/s this is for a single device connected as the only device on a usb controller, controll issues and slower responding devices will slow the bus down but the ideal situation is near full blast.

      --
      There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.
    2. Re:How fast is USB 1.1? by fm6 · · Score: 2

      Isn't that what I said? 12/10 = 1.2.

    3. Re:How fast is USB 1.1? by afidel · · Score: 2

      No, you were working in the origional units which were Mbits/sec, mine are MB/s, big difference, either that or you did not recognize the units in the origional post.

      --
      There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.
  8. Wishlist by SmittyTheBold · · Score: 2

    I want an IDE-to-PCI adaptor and a PS/2-to-USB adaptor while we're at it. Maybe a USB-to-AGP adaptor, too, if you can find the time.

    --
    ± 29 dB
  9. Holy crap? What is this "USB HUB" you speak of? by Wakko+Warner · · Score: 2

    They make such a marvel? This could change everything!

    - A.P. (s/(As)k\ (Slash)?(ot)/\1s \2b\3/)

    --
    "Remember when the U.S. had a drug problem, and then we declared a War On Drugs, and now you can't buy drugs anymore?"
  10. A *real* wishlist by fm6 · · Score: 2

    I need an adapter that will transform me into Freddie Prinz. Only needs to work with Sarah Gellar!

  11. Power by JohnZed · · Score: 2

    Yeah, another difficulty -- USB provides power from the host (about 500 mA).
    Perhaps the USB-bluetooth adapter could fire a series of small lighting bolts?