In-Stat: Bluetooth Chips Get Big Boost From Mobile Phone Market

In-Stat has issued a new report that finds "rising Bluetooth chip shipments have had a cascading effect, leading to falling chip prices. This has led in turn to greater Bluetooth penetration of mobile phones and the emergence of Bluetooth in other product segments."

Brian O’Rourke at In-Stat said, “The primary driver for Bluetooth handsets is the desire to connect to Bluetooth mono headsets, nearly 33 million of which shipped in 2005. This figure is expected to increase to over 55 million in 2006.”

Highlights of the research include:

• GSM phones have adopted Bluetooth most rapidly, with one-third of GSM handsets in 2005 shipping with Bluetooth.
• European and Japanese automakers made Bluetooth capability available in a greater variety of higher-end cars in 2005.
• According to results from In-Stat’s 2006 Residential Technology Survey, 50% of average US consumers claimed to be “Extremely Familiar” with Bluetooth technology, compared to a mere 2% of respondents in a 2005 survey.