Bluetooth USB dongle for laptop

MONEYSAVVYSAVER

Hammyman wrote: »

Buy crap, get crap. There's a reason they're a quid.

Just to update anyone thinking of purchasing these Livewire USB Bluetooth Dongles for £1 from poundworld, you certainly do get what you pay for! :T

I have purchased 3 and all work perfectly and are instantly recognised on Windows XP, Vista and 7 without doing anything other than plugging it into a free USB port and letting the computer do the rest, If you are plugging the dongle into a USB port and it does not recognise it....Take it back!!!! :eek:

So I got what I paid for and that was 3 working USB dongles for £3 instead of at least £15 What a bargain......If you need to send data/photos/music/videos via bluetooth to or from your computer go and get one, two or more.....at these prices you would be mad not to.

Happy bluetoothing :j

pitkin2020

Hammyman wrote: »

Buy crap, get crap. There's a reason they're a quid.

LOL, don't think it really applies to something like a bluetooth dongle as there isn't much inside them that actually differs. I have one of the logitech bluetooth mice which also acts as a bluetooth hub, cost in the region of £100 (few years old now) but the hub does exactly the same thing as the 99p bluetooth dongle I have my laptop.

Its not like buying a monitor or printer which would be fair to say you pay for what you get.

The_Economist

Just come across this thread and i've got the same problem mine doesn't work. But It shows that its loading the drivers etc etc and shows that it should be ok but it will not pick up my phone (no pun intended) via blue tooth. Is it time to part with another quid or could it be something else?

kwikbreaks

Probably.

I bought a couple of 99p delivered from HongKong USB Bluetooth adaptors on eBay a long time ago and both worked perfectly - I'm using one on a Windows 7 laptop which lacked bluetooth with a mouse and have on occasion used it for transferring pictures from phones too.

The world is awash with dirt cheap made in China bluetooth adaptors that work. Some will be duffers but they are cheap enough to throw away and try another if you cba to exchange them. It really isn't worth paying more than £1 for one - I've seen some in Maplins than look identical (blue semicircle of plastic on USB plug) for over £10 in the past - guaranteed they come from the same factory as the £1 ones.

linda0515

Why do not you have a try to use Bluetooth 4.0 Adapter Dongle, it is much better than the old '2', I have a Inateck Bluetooth 4.0 USB Adapter Dongle from amazon uk - which allows me to connect all of my devices by Bluetooth, even though my PC, laptop & netbook do not have Bluetooth built-in. You can have a try!

earthstorm

kwikbreaks wrote: »

Probably.

I bought a couple of 99p delivered from HongKong USB Bluetooth adaptors on eBay a long time ago and both worked perfectly - I'm using one on a Windows 7 laptop which lacked bluetooth with a mouse and have on occasion used it for transferring pictures from phones too.

The world is awash with dirt cheap made in China bluetooth adaptors that work. Some will be duffers but they are cheap enough to throw away and try another if you cba to exchange them. It really isn't worth paying more than £1 for one - I've seen some in Maplins than look identical (blue semicircle of plastic on USB plug) for over £10 in the past - guaranteed they come from the same factory as the £1 ones.

yes Argos has a Micro 10m USB Bluetooth Adaptor.for £9.99. I have the same one from eBay via china for 99p and it has worked perfect for the last 3 years on my PC, the only difference is the argos one has printed text on it

liamcrayden

For those who are struggling to locate drivers for the Poundland "Signalex" branded USB bluetooth dongles, you can find the complete set here:

http:// liamcrayden.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/signalex-bluetooth-driver-download.html

(note that since I'm new here I couldn't post a link. you will need to remove the space after the http:// part to get the real working link. I will edit this as soon as MSE forums allow me).

Hope this helps.

Skeenfleent

Pfff worked out of the box on Ubuntu. However, 'worked' is the wrong word - pathetic transfer speeds
(was only trying to transfer a 13MB file, not a 1300MB one! - as had no other option on the device in question).
Even then, it failed miserably.
Oh sure, the first time, it claimed to have completed the transfer OK.
Not sure what rubbish checksums the Bluetooth protocol uses for file transfers, but:

a) It took AGES. As in, 20KB/s kind of ages. Other Bluetooth (revision greater than v2.0?) kit does 120KB/s o.n.o.

b) FILE CORRUPTION (intentional?): The file had a different SHA1 checksum from the original. Glad I bothered to check!

c) Repeating the transfer failed with a "request could not be handled" or similar error (I forget the wording).

Yet another piece of evidence to prove that with Pound Shops there are some rules (I'm in the lowest 39% of WORLD income levels, making me nearly the skintest in the UK, so I've tested many many items):

1) Never buy non-branded electronics, especially USB ones (google what BadUSB is - it IS a real thing).

I've seen rogue behaviour in person with my own eyes from Poundworld USB devices. I still have the device at home in my projects box, I think. Might run it past someone who's better at low-level analysis than I...

2) Never buy anything mechanical (i.e. that has to have a decent build quality). It just won't last; literally *never* has in my experience.

3) Oh and just to help publicise it - in case you're in there and tempted to buy edibles - check for GM ingredients in the food (hidden in the small print, e.g. ' KTC Edibles ' ' Long Life ' Vegetable Oil ).

Thanks for the drivers, anyway.

Download link for drivers
For those who are struggling to locate drivers for the Poundland "Signalex" branded USB bluetooth dongles, you can find the complete set here:

http:// liamcrayden.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/signalex-bluetooth-driver-download.html

(note that since I'm new here I couldn't post a link. you will need to remove the space after the http:// part to get the real working link. I will edit this as soon as MSE forums allow me).

Hope this helps.

Shanker

Can you still get these?

I've been in the big Poundland in Colwyn Bay this afternoon (5 May 2016), and there'should not a single one.

If anyone knows a Poundland in the Conwy or Bangor area in North Wales where there'should stock of these adaptors, please let me know.

Shanker

earthstorm wrote: »

yes Argos has a Micro 10m USB Bluetooth Adaptor.for £9.99. I have the same one from eBay via china for 99p and it has worked perfect for the last 3 years on my PC, the only difference is the argos one has printed text on it

Have you got a link you can give me for one like yours on eBay?

I bought one which was white with blue writing on it which was purportedly V 4.0. It doesn'the work. I had to get my money back.

Trouble is there's so many and they all come from China. Even the ones dispatched in the UK are sold by Chinese. It's hard to pick one that will work for sure.