Bluetooth 2.0 and 2.1
Bluetooth 2.0 was the first main number update for Bluetooth, and it was well-deserving of the big name change.
This is when EDR — Enhanced Data Rate — came to Bluetooth, enabling data transfer speeds that were three times as fast. EDR boasted a bit rate of 3/Mbs, but in real-world use, Bluetooth 2.0 was only capable of 2.1/Mbs. Even so, it was a huge step forward for the standard.
Along with better wireless performance, thanks to the increased speed, Bluetooth 2.0 and its use of EDR also allowed for better battery life on devices that used it compared to Bluetooth 1.2. In 2005, former Executive Director of the Bluetooth SIG, Mike Foley, noted that a wireless headset with Bluetooth 1.2 may only last 90 minutes on a charge, whereas one with Bluetooth 2.0 could be used for over four hours on a single charge.
Bluetooth 2.1 was a modest follow-up to 2.0, and it was unveiled by the SIG in July 2007.
The main draw to Bluetooth 2.1 was that it offered a simpler pairing process between devices, utilizing its "secure simple pairing" system. Similarly, Bluetooth 2.1 introduced the option to pair devices using NFC (the same technology used by Google Pay and Apple Pay for contactless payments).
