Is Apple Working On A Bluetooth Headset?

Apple appears to be ready to put its engineering muscle into delivering high quality bluetooth headphones and headset for the iPhone and iPod.

Michael Kim, co-founder, project manager and lead electrical engineer for Wi-Gear, a San Francisco maker of high quality headphones and headsets for the iPhone and iPod, is now listed on LinkedIn as an iOS Bluetooth engineer at Apple.

There had been speculation that Wi-Gear was acquired by Apple. But MacWorld is reporting that Wi-Gear and its intellectual property are still available for sale. The Wi-Gear website includes a notice under the contact heading that reads: "Notice: Wi-Gear has ceased operations and is no longer in business. We will be unable to respond to any inquiries."

Tyler Dikman, president and CEO of CoolTronics, a Tampa, Fla.-based solution provider, said Apple needs better performing headphones and headsets for the iPhone and iPod.

Dikman said it's about time that Apple used the full processing power of the iPhone and iPod to give users a more compelling stereo experience.

"The Apple devices have enough processing power to deliver high quality sound yet the earbuds and the sound quality built into the iPhone is just terrible," said Dikman. "Why not make full use of the sound capabilities of the devices. Apple knows they can make a boat load of money on accessories. So why not make them and brand them themselves instead of using third-parties?"