Bluetooth internet surfing unstable.

jrdwyer · 01-30-05, 12:53 AM

I have set up my x50 with a Windows xp computer with Linksys bluetooth dongle and Netgear wired router/cable modem to surf the net using bluetooth on the x50. I used the network bridging on xp to connect the bluetooth connection and the internet/lan connection. It works for a while and then will freeze the screen and require me to do a hard reset to get the x50 running again. This is like a Windows 95 headache all over again!

So any ideas why this might be happening? Some possibilities I have considered: This mobile version of Windows and/or IE are just really unstable, the bluetooth receiver/transmitter on the x50 is not working properly all the time, mobile Windows/IE is having a problem being assigned an ip address by the router (router is 192.168.0.1), networking bridging is not stable, or I have not set the thing up properly.

I did not buy the x50 for this purpose, but it's nice to be able to sit on the couch and check the news sites on the web. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

ValkyrieRider · 01-30-05, 01:10 AM

Originally Posted by jrdwyer

I have set up my x50 with a Windows xp computer with Linksys bluetooth dongle and Netgear wired router/cable modem to surf the net using bluetooth on the x50. I used the network bridging on xp to connect the bluetooth connection and the internet/lan connection. It works for a while and then will freeze the screen and require me to do a hard reset to get the x50 running again. This is like a Windows 95 headache all over again!

So any ideas why this might be happening? Some possibilities I have considered: This mobile version of Windows and/or IE are just really unstable, the bluetooth receiver/transmitter on the x50 is not working properly all the time, mobile Windows/IE is having a problem being assigned an ip address by the router (router is 192.168.0.1), networking bridging is not stable, or I have not set the thing up properly.

I did not buy the x50 for this purpose, but it's nice to be able to sit on the couch and check the news sites on the web. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

I'm not surprised it has poor performance in this application. With its low power and range of 30 feet, bluetooth is a poor choice for use between a PDA and computer as a 'wireless LAN' connection when sitting on the couch. Compared to WiFi, it also has a throughput that is over 10x slower. Bluetooth was meant for close range, between the PDA and other devices on your person, or in close proximity, such as a phone, headphones, keyboard, etc.

BTW, did you mean 'hard reset' or 'soft reset'?

My recommendation would be to get a 802.11b wireless router (you can find them for $10-$20).

Doug

jrdwyer · 01-30-05, 11:44 AM

Actually, the Linksys bluetooth dongle is rated at 30m, so it is more than adequate for our home. And the data throughput rate is also more than adequate for the sites I visit (when the thing works). So the issue is system stability, not specs. Interestingly, the system worked fine and did not crash when I had it connected to a Windows Me machine using Internet Connection Sharing and a dial-up connection. It has only had problems since we switched over to a cable modem/wired router and network bridging with Windows xp.

Another site that explained doing this sucessfully with a Palm system stated that Bluetooth (i.e. my Axim) requires the use of internet address 192.168.0.1. Anyone out there set up bluetooth in a similar manner using this fixed address with Windows Mobile. If so, then I will have to change the router settings.

The problem is a system freeze requiring a hard reset.

jrdwyer · 02-10-05, 04:57 PM

This is a follow-up to the above post.

I contacted Dell Support. They first tried to help me do a Bios update using ActiveSync. This did not work as USB stopped working before update could be done, even though USB was shown to be working fine on Device Manager. We tried this twice. They said I probably already had the latest version with my X50 and this is why it wouldn't update.

So then they sent me a new X50. As far as the above problem of using Bluetooth and Networking Bridging to remotely surf the net, it failed again with the new device. Same problem as above, device locks up and requires a hard reset. So now I guess I won't be using the X50 for this purpose. Oh well, most new technology fails to live up to its hype.

After reading some of the other posts, I believe it was actually a ROM update that Dell tried to help me do instead of a Bios update. Anyway, it failed.

jrdwyer · 02-16-05, 10:51 PM

Final Post on the above issue.

I have finally been able to surf the net wirelessly using Bluetooth and the Axim X50. I followed the guidelines in the following sites as a basis for making changes to my computer's setup:

http://www.spug.net/features/btadapter.htm
http://www.clieuk.co.uk/surf.shtml

Essentially, I stopped using Network Bridging and started using Internet Connection Sharing in Windows XP. I also changed my router setup so that it did not use 192.168.0.1 as its address. Apparentely, the mini DHCP server on the Bluetooth network connection requires this address.

Using Bluetooth to surf is probably not as good an option as Wi-fi as it requires soft resets ocassionally. I just make sure to do this before starting each session. I also make sure to clear out the temp. internet files, cookies, and history to free up memory. You also have to ocassionally turn the computer's bluetooth adapter on and off as it sometimes get lost. The Linksys Bluetooth adapter has nice range (claimed 100m) as it picks me up anywhere in our two story house. And the throughput rate is good enough for me as it is faster than the dial-up connection we had up until recently.

So, as a cheap way to surf wirelessly, the bluetooth setup does ok.

ValkyrieRider · 02-16-05, 10:57 PM

Thanks for the feedback, jrdwyer. Glad to hear you were able to get it working.