A new study from ABI Research forecasts that close to 2.4 billion units of Bluetooth-enabled equipment are expected to ship worldwide in 2013. Of these, more than half will be cellular handsets; adding the accompanying headsets brings that figure to more than 75% of the total market. Notebook computers and portable music devices will run a distant second and third, although the compound annual growth rate for the latter is by far the greatest of any product class.

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The new study, “Bluetooth: The Global Outlook” addresses all major applications and variations of Bluetooth, and discusses other wireless connectivity IC integration. Providing the most comprehensive look at the Bluetooth market available today, the report also includes extensive analysis of the equipment and semiconductor markets.

Bluetooth is showing up everywhere; in addition to the products just mentioned, it can be found in PDAs, desktop PCs, Human Interface Devices (e.g. keyboards and mice), printers, automotive products, add-in cards and dongles, digital cameras and medical products. That ubiquity opens up new opportunities:

“Integration is a key trend in Bluetooth markets,” says ABI Research senior analyst Douglas McEuen. “Designers are saying ‘Bluetooth is in everything, so what else can we add to the Bluetooth chip?’ GPS is a popular candidate, as is FM radio.”

Some forms of integration just add speed and range, such as the current development of “Bluetooth over 802.11.” It’s the same with ultrawideband: the Bluetooth SIG is working with the WiMedia Alliance to create a technology code named “Seattle,” which will also add UWB’s high-speed capabilities to Bluetooth.

Gaming is another quite significant market for Bluetooth, although it is characterized by eccentric cycles of growth and contraction caused by the staggered 4-5 year generations of the three leading game consoles/remote controls.

McEuen adds, “The big Bluetooth IC vendors – CSR, Broadcom, and Texas Instruments – remain the market leaders. And as they see OEMs moving to develop Bluetooth into a more capable solution, they are meeting that demand.”