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0 pointsChuckNorris894y ago0 comments

>Another option is 2.4 GHz wireless

Sorry to break it to you but Bluetooth also operates on the 2.4GHz ISM band. Those 2.4GHz dongles you're talking about is basically a custom wireless protocol that doesn't follow Bluetooth or any other open standard or OSI stack but is most likely based on some internal protocol of what the three major chip makers in the 2.4GHz space offer (Texas Instruments, Silicon Labs, Nordic Semi) .

I think the world needs less proprietary standards, not more, where the dongle is paired to the device in factory and if you loose the dongle then most likely the headphone or peripheral is instant e-waste.

So I'll stick with Bluetooth for the time being thank you very much.

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6 comments · 3 top-level

eqvinox4y ago· 2 in thread

The reason "2.4 GHz wireless" is an option is the very proprietary standard right there, or rather the static pairing coming with it. The absence of Bluetooth connection negotiation/switching/… removes an entire class of bugs and annoyances.

ChuckNorris89OP4y ago

>removes an entire class of bugs and annoyances

Bugs and annoyances which not everyone is having. Stripping out functionality to crush bugs is like removing your stomach to get rid of a stomach ache.

There are cases and classes of hardware where Bluetooth is not ideal and 2.4GHz proprietary standards are used (low latency audio, gaming mice, concert/conference audio. etc.) but those devices already exist on said proprietary standard instead of Bluetooth since they're usually not meant to be paired with changing hosts/clients all the time like most bluetooth devices, so what's your point? Do you want proprietary dongles to ship with every pair of earphones?

2.4GHz proprietary standards are no magic silver bullet either. Sure, compared to Bluetooth they can have the advantage of latency and bandwidth depending on how you implement said custom protocol in firmware, but it's ultimately the same damn overcrowded ISM band shared with the billions of devices everyone has everywhere (Bluetooth phones, smartwatches, headphones, cars, IoT devices, security systems, and, the 400 pound gorilla in the room, motha-friggin-Wi-Fi) . So due to pollution on the 2.4GHz spectrum you'll end up with potentially similar issues like Bluetooth devices except now you have a proprietary standard to deal with.

lanstin4y ago

If you need good audio in one home location, then the dongle is just fine. My best audio, speaking and listening, is a gamer wireless over the head/around the ears thing with a microphone that can extend to where my mouth is that I bought off my son after he switched to some fancier thing with a YouTuber style mic. It has a base station that plugs into USB and also charges a second battery so I can talk and listen continuously. At work, sounding clear and not having your sound break is quite useful. Also for online games. If it’s just pod cast listening and yelling at kids to text when they get there or whatever, maybe it isn’t as important as these other features.

But also, in general, they say perfection is reached when there is nothing left to remove. Extra features often mean something is wrong with the design. Even with programming languages, it is vastly better for the default response to requested new features is “no.”

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Gigachad4y ago· 1 in thread

They put the complexity in to the dongle which if done right, just works. It's why I choose to use the usb dongle for my mouse/kb even when they support bluetooth. Because bluetooth works most of the time while the dongle works all of the time and doesn't have compromises like "It doesn't work here because the OS bluetooth stack isn't loaded yet"

Bluetooth almost needs to be lifted from the OS and become part of the higher firmware so it works everywhere.

fomine34y ago

BT-W3 could be a solution.

quacker4y ago

>Sorry to break it to you but Bluetooth also operates on the 2.4GHz ISM band.

Right, but "2.4 GHz wireless audio" is what to search to find information and non-BT products.

It is interesting to see your comments about Bluetooth. I appreciate the standard. It's useful. But as a user I like things that just work, and Bluetooth audio has been subpar in my experience.

Sample size of one, but my experience with non-BT wireless headsets is superior to Bluetooth headsets in pretty much every way: no pairing issues and no BT profile switching madness with varying audio quality when I want to use a mic. I get low latency, high quality (even lossless) audio. On my particular headset, replacement dongles can be purchased and you pair it with the headset once (I've not had to do this myself yet though).

I would love to only use Bluetooth everywhere, but it is not without its shortcomings.

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