Bluetooth SIG at CES 2026: Bluetooth 6.2 released, Channel Sounding slow, Auracast rising

At CES 2026, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group and its team discussed the state of the technology, highlighting the publication of Bluetooth 6.2 and the differing adoption rates of new features such as Channel Sounding and Auracast. The Bluetooth SIG published Bluetooth 6.2, which includes features named Shorter Connection Intervals and Channel Sounding Resilience.

The Bluetooth team told the reporter that whether those and other latest features appear in consumer devices is a decision made entirely by manufacturers, so a device's Bluetooth version may not indicate which new capabilities it actually supports. Channel Sounding, a standout feature in Bluetooth 6.0 intended to help with device discovery and Find My Device–type uses, has seen slow consumer adoption.

At CES, examples using Channel Sounding included Motorola's Moto Tag 2, which pairs Channel Sounding with Ultra-Wideband for improved tracking, and Bauer Products' NE-CS smart RV lock, which uses Channel Sounding for distance awareness and security; Bauer demonstrated unlocking the NE-CS with a Google Pixel 10 compatible with Bluetooth 6.0.

By contrast, Auracast — announced in 2022 and described as gaining traction in 2025 with more adoption anticipated in 2026 — is showing clearer momentum.

Key Topics

Tech, Bluetooth Sig, Auracast, Channel Sounding, Ne-cs Smart Lock