The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) today announced the new Bluetooth 4.2 specification, which promises enhanced privacy measures, increased speed of data transfers, and an update that will allow Bluetooth Smart sensors to directly access the Internet.
The group emphasizes connected home scenarios as being able to take the most advantage of Bluetooth 4.2's new direct Internet access feature, promising low-power connectivity using the standard and with IPv6 support available by year's end.
“Bluetooth 4.2 is all about continuing to make Bluetooth Smart the best solution to connect all the technology in your life – from personal sensors to your connected home. In addition to the improvements to the specification itself, a new profile known as IPSP enables IPv6 for Bluetooth, opening entirely new doors for device connectivity,” said Mark Powell, executive director of the Bluetooth SIG. “Bluetooth Smart is the only technology that can scale with the market, provide developers the flexibility to innovate, and be the foundation for the IoT.”
The new 4.2 spec also promises speedier data transfers between devices, up to 2.5 times faster than previous versions. Bluetooth SIG promises that "increased data transfer speeds and packet capacity reduces the opportunity for transmission errors to occur and reduces battery consumption, resulting in a more efficient connection."
The new privacy features also take aim at lowering power consumption, while protecting consumers from being tracked through their Bluetooth devices. As more retail stores and public places accept Bluetooth beacons and similar applications, Bluetooth SIG hopes to be at the forefront for protecting every user's personal and private information.
The new privacy features put control back into the hands of the consumer by making it difficult for eavesdroppers to track a device through its Bluetooth connection without permission. For example, when shopping in a retail store with beacons, unless you’ve enabled permission for the beacon to engage with your device, you can’t be tracked.
The standard Bluetooth 4.2 specification is available now, with the new direct Internet access feature due within a month.
Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others.
During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by Joe Rossignol
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more.
In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date.
Keep reading...
Friday November 21, 2025 3:53 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple has begun selling the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand, a new limited-edition iPhone accessory designed with accessibility in mind.
Designed by LA-based Bailey Hikawa to celebrate the 40th anniversary of accessibility at Apple, the grip uses magnets to securely snap onto any iPhone with MagSafe.
Apple says it can be removed with ease, and doubles as a stand with two different viewing...
Wednesday November 19, 2025 4:00 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
Black Friday is just over a week away, and iPad deals have finally started to flood in at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy. Below we're tracking discounts on every current generation iPad, including lowest-ever prices on M3 iPad Air and M5 iPad Pro, plus steep markdowns on iPad and iPad mini.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a ...
Apple's eighth-generation iPad mini is highly likely to arrive next year, offering a significant refresh of the device with at least four major new features.
OLED Display
The next-generation version of the iPad mini could feature an OLED display, as part of Apple's plan to expand the display technology across many more of its devices. Apple's first OLED device was the Apple Watch in 2015, ...
Thursday November 20, 2025 7:01 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple Watch owners have been voicing their frustration online over changes to the Workout app that Apple introduced in watchOS 26, with many finding the redesigned interface makes starting exercises difficult and exasperating.
When Apple launched watchOS 26 in September, the Workout app went from large, easily tapped workout tiles to a scrolling, corner-button interface. Instead of tapping a ...
Thursday November 20, 2025 8:21 am PST by Joe Rossignol
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Apple Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, and then use it to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps.
Earlier this week, Illinois became the 13th state in the U.S. to offer the feature. Subsequently, we shared a list of additional states that are committed...
Thursday November 20, 2025 9:47 am PST by Juli Clover
Google today announced a new cross-platform feature that allows for file sharing between iPhone and Android users. With AirDrop on the iPhone and QuickShare on Pixel 10 devices, there is a new file transfer function available.
The file sharing option works on Apple devices that include iPhone, iPad, and Mac, along with the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro XL, and Pixel 10 Fold....
Too bad iOS users won't ever get a full Bluetooth implementation, unlike those of competing mobile operating systems.
Hilarious, iOS users had Bluetooth 4.0 LONG before the competing mobile OS's and it went completely unnoticed. Yet a profile or two not being supported because the OS offers other methods to do such things is just completely horrible, right?
Hilarious, iOS users had Bluetooth 4.0 LONG before the competing mobile OS's and it went completely unnoticed. Yet a profile or two not being supported because the OS offers other methods to do such things is just completely horrible, right?
Have you ever tried exchanging files (photos etc.), contacts etc. with non-Apple devices wirelessly? Obviously not.
Who uses bluetooth anymore?... oh, wait, never mind.
Uh... Everyone?
It's been getting better and better and more and more common each day for years, now.
This new 4.2 spec being IPv6-only is also a great thing. It will hopefully get a lot of lazy network people off their asses and get IPv6 working in more places. So many places (especially in the US) have been putting it off and putting it off for years.
Do you understand that one of the goals (of iOS from 2007 was to NOT have a general use file system that a user has to maintain? Obviously not. :rolleyes:
Do you understand that iOS also has
- Camera Roll to store incoming photos in / serve as a source for outgoing photos
- a Contacts database acting both as an input / output
- etc?
So much for "there's no point in having OBEX" on an OS not supporting direct access to the file system... importing to / exporting from the above system databases would certainly be feasible without a visible filesystem. Too bad iOS doesn't support even this.
