Finally I did it. It took a while, but I got my computers and phone to communicating and share files using the Bluetooth wireless connection. And it sucks!

Bluetooth is a wireless networking standard for peripherals. What it does is allow a main device, such as a computer or phone, chat with a peripheral, like a printer, keyboard, mouse, or one of those silly earphone things people wear just so that they can look cool.

You can read more about Bluetooth in an earlier blog post, if you wanna.

Generally speaking, Bluetooth works well for connecting two devices. It’s a pain to set up, but once it’s working, you don’t have to mess with Bluetooth again.

Ever since I got the Nexus One, or maybe even before that with the iPhone, I’ve tried to connect my phones with my Bluetooth-enabled computers.

The Bluetooth pairing works just fine. The phone sees the computer, the computer sees the phone. They wave. They’re happy. It’s getting the gizmos to connect and actually share something where the system breaks down. That’s because a lot of the phones lack the proper drivers, or software necessary to make something like file sharing possible.

For example, I can get the Droid X to connect to my PC and use the PC to view images as a form of media sharing. It’s silly, but works.

Okay. It’s silly because Bluetooth has a short range. Sure, you can see the phone’s pictures all big and nice on the computer monitor. But so what? Especially with the Droid X, which has HDMI output — providing you can afford the HDMI cable.

The reason I’m fussing over this Bluetooth issue is that Bluetooth pops up on various Share menus in the Android operating system. You can share files, media, and even connect with a Bluetooth printer to print your phone’s pictures.

Up until now, I’ve never gotten the silly thing to work.

With the HTC Thunderbolt, however, Bluetooth works as promised.

You can use Bluetooth on the Thunderbolt to have a Macintosh send files. But on a PC, you can both send and receive files between the phone and the computer. That’s pretty handy.

Most importantly, I’ve gotten the Thunderbolt to pair and print on my HP Photosmart printer. That was something.

The phone and the printer paired nicely. I used the Gallery app on the phone to choose a picture, then I chose the Share Via command and selected the HP Photosmart printer. The printer and the phone then swapped codes and confirmation messages. A few seconds later, the picture printed.

I was floored.

Now it works, but I wrote that it sucks. That’s because it’s just plain awkward. With all the confirmation prompts it just seems like too much trouble verses the other method.

The Other Method: I connect the phone to my computer, transfer over a bunch of photos, then use my photo-sharing program to print. That seems easier when compared with the Bluetooth method.