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Next-Gen Wireless USB Will Include Touch-and-Go
Version 1.1 of the Wireless USB specification will include “touch and go” capabilities, which will allow devices to be brought into close proximity with the host, allowing them to be instantly associated, without the need for manual setup.
The Wireless USB specification, version 1.0, is slowly rolling out as part of wireless devices. Both IOGEAR and Icron have announced their own Wireless USB hubs, although both are pricey: $395, in the case of the Icron hub.
The 1.1 spec will be finalized in the first half of 2008. Typically, products based upon a new specification revision require an additional six months or so before they’re brought to market.
Wireless USB is, as the name suggests, a wireless version of the wired USB protocol, running over an ultrawideband radio. The specification is led by Intel, with many of the competing products shifting to trying to run high-def video and audio data between CE components.
