Bluetooth is coming.

Will consumers bite?

The wireless technology known as Bluetooth has been greeted with huge enthusiasm throughout the computer and communications industries, and soon, consumers can expect to enjoy the convenience, speed, and security of instant wireless connections.

Bluetooth wireless technology has become a global specification for "always on" wireless communication between portable devices and desktops. Simply put, it's a way for devices such as PCs, handhelds, and cell phones, to "talk" to each other and synchronize data--all without wires. As more companies begin to create Bluetooth-enabled devices, look for the technology to explode by year's end. The first set of Bluetooth-enabled devices will ship midyear.

"To meet these expectations, Bluetooth is expected to be embedded in hundreds of millions of mobile phones, PCs, laptops, and a whole range of other electronic devices in the next few years," explains Nathan Muller, author of the new book, Bluetooth Demystified (McGraw-Hill; $49.95).

Bluetooth has a range of up to 30 feet, giving users greater mobility in the workspace. Unlike infrared connections, users don't have to have a line-of-sight connection to the device being accessed. Plus, without cables, the work environment looks and feels more comfortable.

Bluetooth can also be used to make wireless data connections to conventional local area networks (LANs) through an access point equipped with a Bluetooth radio transceiver that is wired to the LAN. For example, you can reply to an e-mail on your PDA, tell the device to make an Internet connection through a mobile phone, print a copy of the e-mail on a printer nearby, and record the original on the desktop PC--all while walking down the hall.

Since its development in 1994 by Ericsson, more than 1,800 companies worldwide, including Motorola, have signed on as members of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) to build products with the wireless specification and promote the new technology in the market.

But with any new technology, there's a downside. And this one is no different. With Bluetooth, you can synchronize all of your devices only as long as they are within that 30-foot range. Beyond that, you're out of luck. And if you want to synchronize data with others, for example, you want to share your contact list with a colleague; setting up Bluetooth to do this can be a tedious and involved process. In this case, infrared might be a better option.

Despite this, the technology is a good option for connecting, say, a home office without the stress of connecting wires.