Bluetooth to Get High Data Throughput, Speed Rising From 2 to 7.5 Megabits

The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) is set to add new technology to increase the speed of data transfer over Bluetooth by about four times.

Through the 'High Data Throughput' (HDT) technology, to be launched next year, data can be transferred at a maximum speed of 7.5 megabits per second over a Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) connection.

At present, the maximum data transfer speed over a Bluetooth LE connection is 2 megabits per second. The new speed is about four times higher than the current maximum.

HDT technology has been added as an optional feature of Bluetooth Core Specification 7.0. Manufacturers will therefore be able to include it in new devices if they wish, but suitable hardware will also be required in the device to use it.

One of the main goals of the new technology is to improve the quality of wireless audio. At present, data transfer speed is a major limitation in sending high-quality lossless audio directly over a Bluetooth connection. Once HDT is launched, it will create the opportunity to listen to music on wireless headphones and speakers while preserving the original quality of the audio.

Additional benefits from this technology will also be available for multichannel surround sound and spatial audio. Its use in premium wireless audio devices is expected to begin next year.

Alongside audio, health and fitness data collected on a smartwatch can be sent to a smartphone more quickly. The connection between a phone and smart glasses with artificial intelligence-based features, data coordination among smart home devices, and software updates for various devices will also become faster.

However, to get the extra speed, both the smartphone and the headphones must support HDT. The feature cannot be added to old devices through a software update alone. Although the new technology can connect with old Bluetooth devices, the extra speed benefit will not be available unless both devices support it.

As a result, users will be able to benefit from it only after devices supporting the new technology come to market in 2027, according to the report.