Often, when we try to go mobile, a tangled cluster of cables linking notebook, PDAs and other items of hardware holds us back. So, when Toshiba engineers met with colleagues from Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Lucent, Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia and 3Com, they had one purpose in mind: to fundamentally re-invent the way devices communicate with one another - both at home and in the office. Their goal was to make inter-device communication wireless.

The outcome is Bluetooth™ technology - a connectivity innovation that opens up a world in which PCs, mobile phones, organisers and other electronic devices communicate with each other cable-free over distances of up to 100 meters (without power amplification 10 meters).

Bluetooth technology has redefined short-distance communication with the aid of a tiny radio module using the worldwide freely accessible 2.4 GHz short wave (ISM) band. This module allows users to dispense with a host of cables. Moreover, with SPANworks, the Bluetooth™ PC Card is an essential link in providing a spontaneous, seamless network over two or more notebooks (up to a total of 7). SPANworks consists of four applications: file utilities, presentation sharing, contacts and chat. One of its main benefits will be the effortless transferring of files - as simple as drag and drop. But it will also allow users to view the same presentation via a wireless connection within a piconet (Bluetooth terminology for the small, ad hoc networks created via Bluetooth wireless technology).

In addition, users will also be able to take advantage of wireless synchronization of data between organisers and PC and will be able to send and receive e-mails without having to connect their mobile phone to their notebook physically. And in a few years from now, tangled cables will have long been forgotten. Whether you want to control presentations remotely or hook up to the Internet via a mobile phone without a wire, the Bluetooth™ PC Card is the option you'll need to get things started.