When using your XV6600 as a modem for your computer via Bluetooth, your phone does not require a direct line of sight connection. It may be tucked in your attaché, pocket or glove box and it should work fine. Bluetooth, however, is a short distance wireless protocol so you may not get too far from the phone before disconnecting.

If your laptop is not Bluetooth enabled you may purchase an USB adapter for it. Win XP Provides a generic driver in Service Pack 2 (SP2) otherwise you may install the driver that comes with your bluetooth dongle. There are two flavors of Bluetooth, class 1 and class 2. The major difference between the two classes of Bluetooth adapters is communication range and power requirements. As a rule, you will typically trade power consumption for distance (though all Bluetooth devices typically have low power requirements relative to other types of computer add-in devices.) Class 2 Bluetooth devices have a communication range of 10 meters (30 feet), and Class 1 adapters provide a communication range of 100 meters (300 feet).

We took this information and performed some tests. We were in a second floor of a restaurant where we knew that it had good evdo coverage. What we found was that the class 1 dongle was a little slower than the class 2 on short proximity (the phone next to the computer). With the class 1 dongle we were getting download speed of about 438Kbps.

When we moved the phone about 15 feet away and the download speed suffered a little.

Then we moved it about 50 feet.

Class 2 dongle with phone at short proximity download speed was between 412Kbps and 609Kpbs.

We moved the phone 15 feet away and the speed suffered dramatically to 78Kbps.

When we moved the phone 50 feet away we lost the connection.

In summary, you will get higher top speeds with a class 2 dongle but you wont be able to get the phone too far from the computer.

For Win XP Users: When you buy this dongle don’t install the bluetooth driver that comes with it in a cd, instead, make sure you have Service Pack 2 for Windows XP. It comes with a generic bluetooth driver for these devices. This is what we use here. If you are not sure you have Service Pack 2 you may check at http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/

Let’s get our hands wet!

1. Turn on VX6600 and turn on the Bluetooth connection software.

Go to settings->Connections and tap on the Bluetooth icon. Tap the “Turn On” button.

2. Make the phone discoverable by tapping on the accessibility tab below.

Note: If you have more than one pocket pc device then uncheck the box that says “User PocketPC device name for Bluetooth” and give it a unique name.

3. In Windows XP on the laptop go to double click on the Bluetooth icon in the system tray area. Alternatively you can go to Start -> Control Panel and Double click on “Bluetooth Devices.”

4. Click Add. and then follow the instructions in the Add Bluetooth Device Wizard.


5. After the discovery process is complete you should see the icon for the phone.

6. Click on OK.

7. Go to the Control Panel and double click on Network Connections. Create a new connection by clicking “Create New Connection” from the left menu.

8. Follow the wizard instructions.

12. A dialogue box appears asking for user name, password and the phone number of your ISP.

13. Click on the dial button to complete the connection.


Tips:

  • Pairing a phone and laptop will ensure the connection can be established whenever you require it and you don’t have to go through the set-up process each time. If you do not pair the two devices you will have to make the phone discoverable each time.