CSR demos first Ultra-Low Power Bluetooth chips

Chipmaker CSR has demonstrated silicon supporting the Ultra-Low Power (ULP) extensions to Bluetooth, aimed at supporting applications for low-power communication. The firm said it is on track to deliver production chips this year.

ULP Bluetooth is derived from a low-power wireless standard known as WiBree, developed by Nokia. The Bluetooth SIG announced in 2007 that this would be incorporated into Bluetooth to support applications based around small button-cell batteries, where very low power consumption is vital to ensure battery longevity.

CSR said its demo showed that ULP Bluetooth data packets could be transferred using as little as 1/50th of the power required for standard Bluetooth communications.

The company previously said it envisions dual-mode chips supporting Bluetooth and ULP will be built into PCs and smartphones, while ULP-only chips will be used in peripherals and other low-power devices.

ULP Bluetooth is expected to be used for remote controls, linking smartphones with devices such as a digital watch, and also in medical applications where sensors such as a wireless heart rate monitor can be used to gather data.