News for Monday, 6 August 2007

In a press release, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group unveiled the Bluetooth 2.1+EDR specifications, marking a new evolution for this popular wireless protocol. This new version is mostly bringing improved detection procedure of new Bluetooth devices while ensuring higher level of security with encrypted link. The Bluetooth SIG claims that the new energy saving system would allow extending battery life of many BT peripherals.
Unfortunately all those new functions can not be added via a firmware update to existing BT 2.0+EDR compatible hardware, as it will require a totally new chip. So, users will have to buy new peripherals to enjoy those new features, and first BT 2.1+EDR-based devices should arrive for Q4 2007.

Following the recent publication on the health risk associated with the emission of particles by laser printers, HP officially dismissed a potential risk stating that in any case it remains lower than safety level. Among the strong particle emitter models, 5 out of 6 were HP-branded printers, so one can understand why HP strongly reacts to this article.
If one would need to perform additional study to further understand where those particles come from, why some printer models are low and high emitters, it is also clear that printer rooms should be well ventilated. The impact of particles from diesel cars is well documented for respiratory diseases, so one should not forget that similar fine particles from printers could be harmful too.