Smartphone dock

[cplush#WP]

the dock WILL have bluetooth, but i agree with bengneier that a fourth usb would be very handy. cant wait for them to come out...the redfly is just a little to small to use on my desk, the dock will be very handy

 

[starky]

current redfly has a keyboard and screen which you connect to phone via bluetooth or usb; the recent announced dock concept doesnt have a keyboard so all i was saying is that a keyboard can be usb connected or celio could consider connecting a bluetooth keyboard if the dock allowed this and was able to discover that keyboard device ;-)
hope this helps to clarify

 

[starky]

yes the phone can be BT connected but i havnt seem mention that a seperate BT keyboard can be BT connected to the RF.

 

[cplush#WP]

ok...i guess i didnt get that. yes it would be great if they made a BT keyboard & mouse that would work with it...

 

[starky]

no!.
it wouldnt be to their benefit to make a BT keyboard as there are already those available. capability in the dock is a different aspect.

 

[cplush#WP]

wow....sry...i was on a totally different train there...LOL....got you now

 

[cplush#WP]

That or put some form of wireless support....i havent seen a bluetooth keyboard and mouse in awhile but wireless ones are all over.

 

[starky]

www.frogpad.com

 

[cplush#WP]

yeah...most definitely not dropping $140 for a 1 handed keyboard....talk about niche lol...cool tho

 

[starky]

i agree its very overpriced for what it is. redfly much better for sure.

 

[BengtBeier]

In fact I believe Windows Mobile might support bluetooth keyboards right away as HID devices. I might be wrong here, though.

But that's not the solution. The Redfly dock should be able to support basic hardware that you already have floating around somewhere and no need to buy new hardware - which is why it should be solved via usb.

 

[Bill R]

I'd rather see 802.11g to the dock rather than bluetooth. Much faster.

 

[Aware]

Yeah but not every phone has wi-fi.

 

[BengtBeier]

Hm, what I'm wondering is the cost/benefit ratio from having bluetooth support in the dock:

I suppose replacing bluetooth connectivity with a fourth usb would make the dock cheaper and allow to sell it for less, thereby making it more attractive to costumers. And as I already said in another post before, I believe the dock can do without bluetooth because it's stationary.

 

[cplush#WP]

true, but Bluetooth is a very handy way to connect. I would almost like to see the dock have some form of extra capabilities that are not on the smartphone. Maybe a seperate GPU (something that would take the strain of upscaling off the phone so it can work faster...especially if its going to be at 1280xwhatever), or some form of firmware layer that would allow the phone to detect various periphials and other devices.

 

[starky]

I agree an extended layer ref the drivers for some peripheral options but its must not take a processor or OS otherwise it becomes a failed device like folio

 

[cplush#WP]

yes, just like a generic upconverter for the screen size. nothing fancy just so the phone doesnt have to spend as much CPU power/RAM on filling the screen.....and support for USB hubs is almost a must for the dock. So many mice/keyboard sets use a central receiver that it will make it difficult to integrate with existing hardware