Bluetooth attachment coming for Palm V

SINGAPORE--A Singapore-based company plans to release a Bluetooth add-on for the Palm V series in May.

Sunderland Technologies will showcase the Waveclip at the CeBit trade show this week in Hanover, Germany. The $320 device will link a Palm V to other Bluetooth-enabled devices within 30 feet.

Bluetooth is a wireless radio technology that allows electronic devices within 10 yards of each other to share information. For example, Bluetooth technology will allow a person to print a memo from a handheld on a nearby printer. Similarly, a Palm V can then use a Bluetooth-enabled cell phone as a modem to handle e-mail or surf the Web.

The Waveclip is powered by rechargeable NiMH batteries that the company claims provide more than 10 hours of use. At the same time, the batteries can recharge the Palm V if the need arises.

A Sunderland representative said that the Waveclip is compatible with Palm OS 3.5 and that testing is under way with Palm's upcoming OS 4.0. The Bluetooth add-on is also being tweaked for use with the new Palm m505.

The Waveclip is compliant with Bluetooth 1.0B specifications but may be upgraded to the new version 1.1 specifications via a supplied cable, the representative said.

The company will bundle the Waveclip with a Bluetooth PC card known as the Bluecard. This is an external card that slips into a laptop's PCMCIA slot, enabling both the Palm V and the Bluetooth-enabled laptop to share information, transfers files and sync.

Sunderland is an associate company of Eastgate Technology, which develops wireless products and mobile business software. Its products include Palm handheld add-on devices, Smart Card applications, Bluetooth-enabled accessories and peripherals, and customized wireless business applications for the Palm OS.

Three-year-old Sunderland will launch another Bluetooth product in early April, the representative said. The Blueprint, an adapter that attaches to a printer, allows for wireless printing from other Bluetooth-enabled devices such as laptops.

CNET Singapore's Priscilla Wong reported from Singapore.