Bluetooth was introduced in 1998, and to date, it is an in-built feature in almost every android, iOS, and another device.
We examine the various Bluetooth versions and how they influence your wireless listening experience. Bluetooth’s fundamental concept has stayed largely unchanged since its beginnings.
Despite this, technology has improved significantly. Each Bluetooth version has made significant advancements in audio data transmission. Bluetooth is available on various devices such as headphones, speakers, USBs, etc.
Key Takeaways
- Bluetooth 2.0 has a faster data transfer speed than Bluetooth 1.2.
- Bluetooth 2.0 has better power management than Bluetooth 1.2.
- Bluetooth 2.0 is backwards compatible with Bluetooth 1.2 devices.
Bluetooth 1.2 Vs 2.0
The difference between Bluetooth 1.2 and 2.0 is that Bluetooth 1.2 uses GFSK (Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying), whereas Bluetooth 2.0 uses 8DPSK (Eight Phase Differential Phase Shift Keying). Bluetooth 1.2 is suitable to render a single bit per symbol, and Bluetooth 2.0 is suitable to render three bits per symbol. The 8DPSK used in Bluetooth 1.2 is faster than GFSK used in Bluetooth 2.0.
Bluetooth 1.2 uses GFSK (Gaussian Frequency Shift keying) as its modulation type. GFSK is capable of rendering a single bit per symbol. Bluetooth 1.2 has a slower speed. It doesn’t have backward compatibility with old devices.
One cannot have further connections running simultaneously with Bluetooth 1.2 interpretation. It is not suitable to connect multiple connections running at the same time. This was the first version that made Bluetooth popular and was used onwards.
Bluetooth 2.0 uses 8DPSK (Eight Phase Differential Phase Shift Keying) as its modulation type. The 8PDSK is suitable to render three bits per symbol. Bluetooth 2.0 has a faster speed.
It has backward compatibility with old devices. You can get farther connections from a specific range, running simultaneously with Bluetooth 2.0 interpretation.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Bluetooth 1.2 | Bluetooth 2.0 |
|---|---|---|
| Speed | Slower compared to 2.0 version | Three times faster compared to 2.0 |
| Modulation type | GFSK (Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying) | 8DPSK (Eight Phase Differential Phase Shift Keying) |
| Power consumption | Consumes high power | Consumes lower power |
| Connectivity | Cannot connect from a far distance | Can connect from a specific far distance |
| Backward compatibility | Don’t have backward compatibility with old devices | Has backward compatibility with old devices |
What is Bluetooth 1.2?
Bluetooth 1.2 is limited to 1mbps with factual data rates of just over 700kbps. Bluetooth 1.2 uses GFSK (Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying), which is suitable to help render a single bit per symbol.
Bluetooth 1.2 is unsuitable for connecting multiple connections running simultaneously, as the GFSK doesn’t support it.
Bluetooth 1.2 consumes a large amount of power for its work. It is running slower compared to the 2.0 version. It does not have backward compatibility with old devices.
Bluetooth 1.2 version works in around 10 meters of range. The Adaptive Frequency Hopping was specially designed to decrease the similar frequencies of the technologies of the 2.4 GHz range.
Bluetooth 1.2 is a widely used Bluetooth technology with a basic data rate. It was first invented in the year 2003. Due to the collision of wi-fi and technologies of the same frequencies with Bluetooth, adaptive frequency hopping (AFH) was helpful.
The speed of the pairing was improved to the other two previous versions. The previous versions, 1.0 and 1.1, were introduced in 1999 and 2001, respectively.
The major enhancements in Bluetooth 1.2 from the 1.0 version were faster connectivity, easier sharing and discovery, and more features.
What is Bluetooth 2.0?
Bluetooth 2.0 can achieve 3mbps with practical data rates of around 2.1mbps. Bluetooth 2.0 uses an 8DPSK (Eight Phase Differential Phase Shift Keying) which is suitable to help render three bits per symbol.
As Bluetooth 2.0 uses 8DPSK, it is faster than Bluetooth 1.2, which uses GFSK. The advantage of Bluetooth 2.0 is that it can have farther connections running simultaneously, as the 8DPSK is suitable to support it.
Another advantage is that Bluetooth 2.0 has the capacity for bit recovery (BER). The lower bandwidth gives the device more chances of resending lost or distorted packets before the user notices any declination.
It contains less power by reducing the workload cycle (duty cycle). It has backwards compatible with older devices. It can connect much farther connections running simultaneously. Some of the uses of Bluetooth 2.0 are as follows:
- A mobile phone and a handset can communicate and control each other wirelessly.
- For opening doors, a smartphone communicates wirelessly with a smart lock.
- Audio can be streamed wirelessly to headphones, with or without the ability to communicate.
- Data acquired by Bluetooth-enabled fitness equipment can be wirelessly sent to a phone or a computer.
- Bluetooth can be considered a wireless bridge between any IE network.
Main Differences Between Bluetooth 1.2 and 2.0
- Bluetooth 1.2 is three times slower than Bluetooth 2.0.
- Bluetooth 1.2 uses GFSK (Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying) modulator, while Bluetooth 2.0 uses 8DPSK (Eight Phase Differential Phase Shift Keying) modulator.
- Bluetooth 1.2 isn’t backwards compatible, while Bluetooth 2.0 has backward compatibility with older equipment.
- Bluetooth 1.2 does not provide farther connections running simultaneously at a time, but Bluetooth 2.0 provides you with farther connections running concurrently.
- Regarding the consumption of sources, Bluetooth 1.2 consumes more power than the 2.0 version.
- Bluetooth 2.0 has more ability to recover errors compared to Bluetooth 1.2.
- Bluetooth 1.2 works in the range of 10 meters, and Bluetooth 2.0 can work in the range of 100 meters.
- https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/5342016/
- https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/6488558/
Last Updated : 13 July, 2023
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Sandeep Bhandari holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computers from Thapar University (2006). He has 20 years of experience in the technology field. He has a keen interest in various technical fields, including database systems, computer networks, and programming. You can read more about him on his bio page.
I found this post a bit too technical, but I appreciate the in-depth details. It was well-researched and presented.
I found the post to be quite technical and theoretical. It would have been interesting to look at some practical examples of the different Bluetooth versions, but good job overall.
I think the post is overly technical and could have been made more accessible to a layperson. But the comparison table and differences provided are really useful.
This is very interesting! I never knew the speed and modulation types used in different Bluetooth versions. Thanks for sharing!
I totally agree with you Sofia54. The post gives a clear understanding of Bluetooth versions.
This was a very informative post and really helped me understand the major differences between 1.2 and 2.0. Also, I didn’t know about the modulation types, GFSK and 8DPSK.
I wish the article had included a bit more real-world use cases rather than just technical specifications. But it’s a well-researched piece.