Bluetooth® Technology: Advancements
in 2024 and Expected Trends in 2025

Bluetooth and True Distance Awareness

Earlier this year, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) adopted a new version of the Bluetooth Core Specification that supports a long-awaited feature for true distance awareness between wireless devices – Bluetooth Channel Sounding.

Bluetooth^® Channel Sounding introduces transformative benefits across various applications. The user experience of Find My solutions can be greatly improved, making it easier and faster to locate lost items. In digital key solutions, Bluetooth Channel Sounding will add a robust layer of security, ensuring that only authorized users within a specified range can unlock doors or access secure areas.

“When our engineers showed a demo of the new Bluetooth^® Channel Sounding feature, we knew how well it could work in theory but seeing it demonstrated on real production hardware is another thing,” said Allan Eriksen, Samsung Electronics senior director of the Bluetooth Firmware Team in System LSI.

By infusing billions of everyday devices with true distance awareness, Bluetooth^® Channel Sounding unlocks a world of possibilities for developers, freeing them to imagine and create innovative experiences that will continue to enhance our connection with our devices, one another, and the world around us.

“Bluetooth^® Channel Sounding will apply to consumer, enterprise, and industrial settings alike,” said Andrew Zignani, senior research director at ABI Research. “Imagine Bluetooth mice, keyboards, and game controllers that can automatically switch between active and inactive states based on their distance from a laptop. In industrial settings, distance-aware Bluetooth Human-Machine Interface (HMI) solutions can increase personnel safety by only allowing usage from a safe distance. Meanwhile, Bluetooth device networks, such as those used for networked lighting control, can more easily self-configure to enhance system performance using this innovative technology.”

Bluetooth Technology in the Coming Years

As Auracast™ broadcast audio and Bluetooth Channel Sounding continue to make major impacts across multiple markets, the connections they create will bring us together in new and exciting ways. “Collaborating with the Bluetooth SIG on Auracast™ broadcast audio has been transformative for us as an audio company,” said Carsten Olesen, president of consumer audio at JBL. “Their innovative broadcast solutions and commitment to excellence have enhanced our product offerings and elevated the overall audio experience for our customers.”

The Bluetooth SIG typically has more than 50 active specification development projects at any given time.  These projects include everything from adding minor features to existing Bluetooth specifications to creating new specifications that add major functionality to Bluetooth^® wireless technology.

“In the coming years, we expect better utilization of the spectrum, higher data throughput, and moving out of the congested 2.4GHz band,” said Eriksen. “Bluetooth® technology will prove once and for all that wireless can be a viable alternative to cabled devices for hi-res audio, low latency gaming devices, secure and accurate distance awareness, and much more.”

Moving forward in the near term, we can expect to see some big Bluetooth feature advancements coming soon, including:

• High Data Throughput: Established to address a growing market need and intends to support data rates up to 8 Mbps.
• Higher Frequency Bands: A new spectrum expansion project that will help ensure Bluetooth performance enhancements continue well into the future, paving the way for the next generation of Bluetooth innovation.
• Bluetooth LE Audio Enhancements: Beyond enhancing existing Bluetooth applications, such as wireless calling and media, Bluetooth LE Audio is set to drive innovation in wireless audio with high-resolution and lossless audio, spatial audio, surround sound, voice assistants, extended Auracast™ coverage, increased Auracast™ capability, and greater ability to discover Auracast™ broadcasts.
• Ultra Low Latency HID: Aims to make Bluetooth gaming controllers as responsive as those using USB-wired or proprietary wireless communications.

“Auracast™ broadcast audio will expand the ecosystem of Bluetooth^® audio devices, break the limitation of receiving audio in public places, and create more market demand,” said Jim Liao from Realtek. “It will also enhance our connection with each other and the world around us and improve the listening experience for everyone while ushering in a better life for hearing aid users. We are looking forward to continuing to work with the Bluetooth SIG during this exciting, next phase of the audio market.”

If past experience is any indication of future expectations, Bluetooth technology will continue to expand and support even more use cases through its innovative capabilities. Thanks to a dedicated and involved global member community, Bluetooth technology is well-positioned to overcome new challenges and drive wireless use cases that have yet to be created.