bluetooth vs docking

[zver17]

does anybody have experince with using bluetooth devices with TP? how stable is the connection?

am I right that bluetooth already pretty much does what a docking station does - instant connection to mouse, keyboard, speakers/headset, printer - and without the bulky dock? And even now the costs are comparable, partially since the dock is so overpriced.

The only thing missing is external bluetooth monitor but I guess another year or two? they already have a $4k one at sony

[texasdiver]

Well, yeah, that's what bluetooth does, eliminate wires. But I would hardly consider it an inexpensive alernative to the docking stations. The mini-dock can be had for around $150 on ebay and that includes a power supply. You think it is cheaper to get a bluetooth keyboard, bluetooth mouse, bluetooth printer, bluetooth scanner, etc?

As for monitors, the current digital standard is DVI. Can you get the wireless equivalent of a digital DVI connection through bluetooth? I don't know, I'm just asking. And even if bluetooth monitors are possible, the real question is whether a thinkpad could drive a high-resolution external monitor via bluetooth. It's hard enough to do it through DVI and you need a docking station for that.

[daeojkim]

I doubt that bluetooth has enough bandwidth to deliver high resolution to the monitor.

Then again I might be wrong..

[zver17]

i dont think bluetooth mice/keyboards are that expensive nowdays (eg, $50 for mouse, probably cheaper 2nd hand). so the price premium of using bluetooth over a dockII (especially when comparing quotes on 2nd hand components) is at most extra $100, but may be as little as $20-50 or less. of course if one connects to printers and scanners / speakers then its more expensive, and monitors are not quite supported en masse yet. but in my case i just have mouse/speakers, whith wireless web and printing anyway, so bluetoothing these is about same as a dockII, except that I loose the extra USB ports and would need to connect external monitor directly if I needed it. But on the upside - less items around plus no wires. So on balance I think BT is becoming competitive, may get there more clearly in a year or two.

[texasdiver]

The current thinkpad models do not have DVI ports, The only way to get a DVI connection to an external monior is to use a docking station or port replicator.

Without a dock or port replicator, the only way you will be able to connect to an exernal monitor is through the analog VGA connection. This is clearly less than optimal, especially if you are using a digital LCD monitor. There are various threads on this subject and the universal opinion is that digital connections provide better picture quality on external monitors.

So whether or not you use bluetooth to drive the rest of your devices, the fact remains that you still need an IBM docking station or port replicator if you want to drive an external monitor through a digital DVI connection.

[ian]

For me it was more a question of pure lasiness rather than cost.

I have access to three networks in my office, two wireless and one wired - in addition to my three machinres, there are those of colleagues who want to share my printer. What to do when all three networks have different addresses?

Get a Bluetooth printer adapter. Now everyone shares my b**** printer (!) - on the Thinkpad I've already got BT and the others share one of three USB BT adapters - simple no?!

(PS. I've got a bluetooth mouse that I've raved about here - MS Intellimouse etc. - and I Hot-Sync my Palm Tungsten with BT as well...haven't sussed out how to get a connection with my coffee machine tho...)

[ian]

brain fart - excuse me!

[ehd]

im sorry.. but why do u need a dock to connect all those things.. doesnt the t42 have enough ports for you? if not u can always get a usb hub...

[zver17]

[censored] good question. in reality of course its just the convenience of arriving at office, putting notebook on the table and its ready to go. so strictly speaking its just a waste of $$$.

but so is the wireless remote control on a TV/VCR/DVDplayer - afterall most people watching TV from a couch could perfectly well have a corded remote. or even save some $$ on their gym and do the walking