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Bluetooth built-in... yes or no

post #1 of 23
1/22/05 at 7:40pm
Thread Starter 
ok, first of all, I dont know that much about bluetooth, is it good or not???

should I select this option??? are bluetooth mouse good or not...
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post #2 of 23
1/22/05 at 7:56pm
Bluetooth is good. I use it for comm with cell phone for internet, to my palm T3, to a mouse (sometimes).

As far as integrated into the machine (I assume that's what you mean by option), I don't know. I've heard some complaints about integrated bluetooth on Dells. Search this forum. If you don't get it, you can get a USB dongle pretty cheap and I can attest that they DO work. And most bluetooth mice come with one, so you'd be getting it for "free" if you plan on getting one.

I have a bluetooth mouse and it works great. The range made me happy (more than 20 feet), but it interfered with the software for my touchpad, which I didn't like. I may have done something wrong when installing, though.
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post #3 of 23
1/22/05 at 8:24pm

Go with internal BT if you can

There are several reasons to prefer internal BT:
1) No dongle or wires sticking out - sleek look with just the mouse
2) No USB port being used up
3) No base station to carry around, no dongle to lose.

I have great reception with the internal TM300 BT and would recommend it.

EDIT: I take it you're asking to determine if you should get this on your new machine. Don't get it when you originally buy as then it costs $49. Get it from Dell Spare Parts for $24.95 + $8 shipping. You'd also need a $4.95 cable if you're buying a i8600.

You'll see that certain machines, like the 700m, don't allow internal BT.
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post #4 of 23
1/23/05 at 1:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by skifiend
EDIT: I take it you're asking to determine if you should get this on your new machine. Don't get it when you originally buy as then it costs $49. Get it from Dell Spare Parts for $24.95 + $8 shipping.
MAN I wish I had known that...
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post #5 of 23
1/23/05 at 2:06am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lex416
MAN I wish I had known that...
Sorry. That's the case for almost all upgrades. DVD burner is $199 as an upgrade when configured with a new system but $150 from Spare Parts. If you're concerned enough, give customer service a call and ask them to adjust the price for you.
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post #6 of 23
1/23/05 at 4:18am
I'd suggest getting it internally as well. I have a bt dongle and it works fine, but if i want to go somewhere, i have to bring it along with me to use my bt mouse. I'm going to be ordering me a bt card for my I9200 soon because of it.
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post #7 of 23
1/23/05 at 10:09am
The downside to Bluetooth is the price of components. Expect to pay at least 30% more for a Bluetooth version of the same item, compared to RF or IR. Many of these come with their own Bluetooth USB adaptor (also doubles as charger), which would be a waste of money if you had internal BT.

I just picked up the card for my i9200 from spare parts, and it installs in seconds. But with the price of add-ons, I'll probably wait to get BT mouse or other.

At first you imagine the possibilities, like BT enabled Headphones (not mono headset), FF Steering wheels, joysticks or gamepads, speakers, GPS, then reality sets in when you see little to none is offered, and what is available may not work, and is way overpriced. Hopefully this will soon change. Then there is the Bluetooth standard. Currently our internal is 1.1, yet 1.2 is out now in some forms, and is supposed to be the fix for the above type devices. Will this be like USB 1.1 compared to USB 2.0? Will out internal 1.1 BT be outdated in 3 months?
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post #8 of 23
1/23/05 at 1:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by RobsTV
The downside to Bluetooth is the price of components. Expect to pay at least 30% more for a Bluetooth version of the same item, compared to RF or IR. Many of these come with their own Bluetooth USB adaptor (also doubles as charger), which would be a waste of money if you had internal BT.

I just picked up the card for my i9200 from spare parts, and it installs in seconds. But with the price of add-ons, I'll probably wait to get BT mouse or other.

At first you imagine the possibilities, like BT enabled Headphones (not mono headset), FF Steering wheels, joysticks or gamepads, speakers, GPS, then reality sets in when you see little to none is offered, and what is available may not work, and is way overpriced. Hopefully this will soon change. Then there is the Bluetooth standard. Currently our internal is 1.1, yet 1.2 is out now in some forms, and is supposed to be the fix for the above type devices. Will this be like USB 1.1 compared to USB 2.0? Will out internal 1.1 BT be outdated in 3 months?
Agree with your point about the prices, which is why I bought my BlueTooth mouse used from ebay for $39 despite reservations. It works/looks as good as new. Several GPS BT devices have been available for a while now. You can also create a BT "Personal Area Network" to share an Internet connection - I did. It'll be nice when I eventually get a BT PDA to be able to sync wirelessly. Several new PDAs include BT as standard now. While its true that many devices are overpriced and several peripherals like gaming devices aren't available, I will have to disagree a bit with you and say that not everything is hype. It's nice to have devices connect wirelessly with no dongles or base stations.

Almost certainly the Dell BT card will one day be obsolete but that's the nice thing about the card - just replace it, albeit for some cost. In the meantime I am going to enjoy my BT mouse.
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post #9 of 23
1/24/05 at 9:18pm
Out of curiosity, what version of BT does the Dell's have - is it the 1.2 or the old 1.1? Personally Im thinking of buying a Bluetooth headset with 1.2 specifications.... or might even get a 2.0 later in the year.
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post #10 of 23
1/24/05 at 9:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by crellion
Out of curiosity, what version of BT does the Dell's have - is it the 1.2 or the old 1.1? Personally Im thinking of buying a Bluetooth headset with 1.2 specifications.... or might even get a 2.0 later in the year.
1.1
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post #11 of 23
1/24/05 at 9:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by crellion
Out of curiosity, what version of BT does the Dell's have - is it the 1.2 or the old 1.1? Personally Im thinking of buying a Bluetooth headset with 1.2 specifications.... or might even get a 2.0 later in the year.

Just a sidenote, I think the I6000 that was just released had the option for the 2.0 bluetooth.
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post #12 of 23
1/24/05 at 9:48pm
I'm just curious- does the 600m and the 8600 use the same internal bluetooth adapter?
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post #13 of 23
1/24/05 at 10:17pm
The built-in bluetooth card has not given me any problems, as of yet. For years, I either carried an usb wireless receiver or usb dongle. Now, I just turn on my bluetooth mouse and go, freeing up an usb slot.
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post #14 of 23
1/24/05 at 10:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tburke261
I'm just curious- does the 600m and the 8600 use the same internal bluetooth adapter?
It is the same TM300 Internal BT card.
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post #15 of 23
1/25/05 at 1:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jslessley
Just a sidenote, I think the I6000 that was just released had the option for the 2.0 bluetooth.
WOW! Thanks jslessley - that's the first 2.0 I've seen so far! Anyone know where I can find Bluetooth version 2.0 adapters for my notebook?
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post #16 of 23
1/26/05 at 2:46pm
bump for a good thread-topic
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post #17 of 23
1/26/05 at 6:58pm
Does anyone know the price of True Mobile 3500 bluetooth 2.0 card? It seems that dell is using same bluetooth cards for all the laptops.
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post #18 of 23
1/26/05 at 7:25pm
Get the internal bluetooth. It makes it sooo much easier for me using my Bluetooth mouse (MX900), syncing my PDA (iPAQ 4355) and phone (SE T610). I use the base from my MX900 just for charging. It sits at the back of the desk. I got it for AU$129, when other places were selling for AU$179-199! So a good deal and THE BEST mouse with NO DONGLES OR WIRES !
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post #19 of 23
1/26/05 at 9:11pm
I have an i9200 and I was about to call and get the truemobile 300 chip today mainly for the purpose of using a bluetooth mouse.

Then I saw that the the bluetooth option for the i6000 is the 2.0 compatible truemobile 350 chip.

Would this chip work in the i9200 as well?
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post #20 of 23
1/27/05 at 12:10am
wait wait wait guys...
are u telling me that when u buy a bluetooth mouse (which comes with the receiver that plugs into the USB) that the receiver works with other devices such as pdas and other stuff?
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