Brainboxes, the Bluetooth and serial PC add on specialist, has launched a Bluetooth RS232 adaptor, the BL-510, which plugs in to the standard RS232 serial port of any PC and provides a Bluetooth transceiver and antenna. The adaptor facilitates wireless connection to a variety of other Bluetooth devices such as printers, notebook PCs, PDAs, mobile phones and headsets. Brainboxes’ RS232 adaptor is fully qualified to v1.1 of the Bluetooth specification and is available now from the blueunplugged.com website amongst others.

The RS232 adaptor allows PCs without USB or PCMCIA connections to be upgraded to participate in a wireless network. The adaptor complements existing Brainboxes Bluetooth adaptors for USB, PCMCIA and Compact Flash connection. This means Brainboxes are now able to offer a complete set of Bluetooth connectors for desktop PC, Pocket PC and laptops.

BL-510 is a class 1 Bluetooth device, FCC tested and accredited to operate at up to +13dBm giving it a range of at least 100 metres. In terms of technology employed in the adaptor, the BL-510 is powered by the latest generation BlueCore2 chipset from CSR, the world’s leading Bluetooth chip manufacturer. A Bluetooth Software Suite CD from Brain Boxes is included to provide support for Microsoft Windows XP, 2000, ME and 98SE. The on-board Flash memory is upgradeable to enable the RS232 adaptor to be upgraded should there be any changes to the Bluetooth specification. Brain Boxes products are also supported by, arguably, the widest range of Bluetooth software stacks from third-party vendors.

Eamonn Walsh, managing director of Brainboxes, commented “Accreditation of the BL-510 at +13dBm means the RS232 adaptor offers the highest output power of any of our products so far – and higher than many other similar products on the market.” Walsh continued, “This gives our product a tremendous advantage when looking for Bluetooth connectivity for office and SOHO environments. Bluetooth is very capable of operating over the same distances as 802.11 wireless networks, not just the 10 metre range many assume is the limit for Bluetooth.”

All Bluetooth products from Brainboxes have a 3 year warranty, lifetime technical support and each product is packaged with a Bluetooth Software Suite CD and Quick Start Guide.