Sony develops TransferJet; Mocks wireless USB

While most of us at IntoMobile love Sony as a brand, we hate the company for developing its own standards. Yeah, they’re big enough to be able to do that, but sometimes they just go over the line. Ok for the BlueRay, that sounds promising, but what about memory sticks. The rest of the industry uses SD cards (micro/mini), but that’s obviously not good enough for the Japanese giant’s camera and mobile phones (that’s Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) mobile phones actually).

Now they’ve figured out wireless USB sucks. As a matter of fact it sucks so much that they need to present their own technology to the world. And so they did… The so called TransferJet is a close proximity wireless transfer technology that should allow transfer speeds from 375 megabits per second (sustained) to 500 megabits per second (optimal). According to Sony, it may only look/function like wireless USB cable, but that’s “an entirely new technology.” Yeah, sure…

Anyway, if you’re at CES, make sure you visit Sony’s booth. They’re showing TransferJet in action… Or check out the full release after the jump to get a better picture of it.

PRESS RELEASE – Sony today announced “TransferJet”, a new Close Proximity Wireless Transfer Technology enabling the high speed transfer of large data files (photos, HD images, etc.) between electronic devices such as mobile phones, digital cameras, digital video cameras, computers and TVs. Using this technology, data can be sent at speeds of 560Mbps. Sony will present reference exhibits of this newly developed technology at CES International, to be held in Las Vegas from January 7th.

TransferJet is an extremely simple wireless technology which eliminates the need for complex setup and operation. For example, just touching a TV with a digital camera enables photos to be instantaneously displayed on the TV screen. Alternatively, downloaded music content can be easily enjoyed by touching a mobile phone to a portable audio player. TransferJet can be used as a Universal Interface among a wide variety of consumer electronics devices.

Sony will actively promote the use of TransferJet across the consumer electronics industry and seek to enhance the enjoyment of mobile device-based content through the introduction of various products and services based on this technology.

Main Features of TransferJet

1) Simple interface and intuitive operation: “Touch & Get”
Just touch two electronic products together and files are transferred automatically. TransferJet eliminates the complex setup procedures required by existing wireless systems, and no access point is necessary. Furthermore, users are also able to register their electronic products to enable TransferJet to recognize specific products. For example, by registering only the devices within their household, users can prevent external data leakage. Operation is also very intuitive, and as there is no host/target relationship, data transfer can take place between mobile phones and PCs for example, as well as between mobile devices.

2) Realizing Stable High Speed Data Transmission
TransferJet’s physical layer transmission rate is 560Mbps, and even allowing for error corrections and protocol overheads, the effective physical layer transmission rate is 375Mbps. TransferJet is also capable of selecting the appropriate data transmission rate according to the wireless environment. Even if the conditions for transmission deteriorate, it will maintain the highest possible wireless connectivity by automatically lowering the data transmission rate.
As TransferJet is a close proximity wireless system which radiates very low-intensity radio waves, it causes almost no interference to other wireless systems, and there is no impact to performance even if multiple users simultaneously multiple TransferJet system. Moreover, users of electronic products incorporating TransferJet technology are able to transfer data among each other’s products regardless of whether they are indoors or outdoors and irrespective of their geographic location.

3) Development of New “TransferJet Coupler”
Sony’s newly developed “TransferJet Coupler” is based on electric induction field coupling to deliver superior propagation performance compared to conventional radiation field based antennas. It maintains high transmission gain and efficient coupling in near-field proximity, while providing sharp attenuation over longer distances to avoid interference with other wireless systems.
Furthermore, as there is no antenna polarization it is possible to transmit data without any performance loss, regardless of the contact angle of the electronic devices.

TransferJet Specifications

• Central Frequency: 4.48GHz
• Transmission Power: -70dBm/MHz or less (average power). Corresponds with low intensity radio wave regulations in Japan, and with local regulations in respective overseas regions.
• Transmission Rate: 560Mbps (Max.) / effective 375Mbps. It is capable of selecting the appropriate transmission rate depending on the wireless environment.
• Communication Distance: Within 3cm