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Certified Wireless USB and UWB Bluetooth offer differing opportunities for vendors aiming at mass markets for devices using short-range connectivity. Will they have to choose one or the other? A recent ABI Research study, "Ultrawideband: WiMedia, DS-UWB or CWave?" has concluded that room exists for both.

"The application protocols that will run over WiMedia solutions are one of the most interesting and hotly contested areas in the short-range connectivity marketplace today," says principal analyst Stuart Carlaw. "Startups in this market are moving to all-CMOS implementations in order to drive down the cost of devices and stimulate volume growth. Unfortunately, the result is that they need to realize volume shipments within a small window of time, since the margins per chip are extremely low. In essence, UWB vendors need to secure a vehicle to mass market and both Bluetooth and USB hold the key to that door in the form of cellular handsets and the PC peripheral markets, respectively."

So, is it really a question of one over the other? Timing and potential are the critical notions in understanding this question. W-USB is here today, and commercial product launches are imminent. Bluetooth over WiMedia is still two or three years away. The Bluetooth market realized 317 million unit shipments of ICs in 2005 and is set to reach more than 500 million in 2006. But the USB market realizes an installed base in the billions of ports. This pattern of size and timing clearly illustrates that things are in the balance.