Fueled by the rapid uptake of Bluetooth in mobile phones, Bluetooth chip shipments have been on the rise, reports In-Stat. The rising Bluetooth chip shipments have had a cascading effect, leading to falling chip prices. This has led in turn to greater Bluetooth penetration of mobile phones and the emergence of Bluetooth in other product segments.
"The primary driver for Bluetooth handsets is the desire to connect to Bluetooth mono headsets, nearly 33 million of which shipped in 2005," says Brian O'Rourke, In-Stat analyst. "This figure is expected to increase to over 55 million in 2006."
This newfound success must be welcomed news to all those industry analysts that predicted the rapid growth of Bluetooth nearly a decade ago, but were totally wrong. Makes you wonder, though, what might have happened if those small mono headsets had not been invented. Bluetooth would probably still be 'technology in search of an application.'
In-Stat study found the following:
- GSM phones have adopted Bluetooth most rapidly, with one-third of GSM handsets in 2005 shipping with Bluetooth.
- European and Japanese automakers made Bluetooth capability available in a greater variety of higher-end cars in 2005.
- According to results from In-Stat's 2006 Residential Technology Survey, 50 percent of average U.S. consumers claimed to be "Extremely Familiar" with Bluetooth technology, compared to a mere 2 percent of respondents in a 2005 survey.
"The primary driver for Bluetooth handsets is the desire to connect to Bluetooth mono headsets, nearly 33 million of which shipped in 2005," says Brian O'Rourke, In-Stat analyst. "This figure is expected to increase to over 55 million in 2006."
This newfound success must be welcomed news to all those industry analysts that predicted the rapid growth of Bluetooth nearly a decade ago, but were totally wrong. Makes you wonder, though, what might have happened if those small mono headsets had not been invented. Bluetooth would probably still be 'technology in search of an application.'
In-Stat study found the following:
- GSM phones have adopted Bluetooth most rapidly, with one-third of GSM handsets in 2005 shipping with Bluetooth.
- European and Japanese automakers made Bluetooth capability available in a greater variety of higher-end cars in 2005.
- According to results from In-Stat's 2006 Residential Technology Survey, 50 percent of average U.S. consumers claimed to be "Extremely Familiar" with Bluetooth technology, compared to a mere 2 percent of respondents in a 2005 survey.