National Semiconductor Makes Bluetooth Wireless Technology Easier to Implement With New Family of 'Simply Blue' Modules

BLUETOOTH DEVELOPERS CONFERENCE, SAN JOSE, Calif., Dec. 10 /PRNewswire- FirstCall/ -- National Semiconductor Corporation today introduced the first of a new family of modules that greatly simplify the design of systems using Bluetooth(TM) wireless technology to exchange information between a wide range of computer and communication systems. National's new product family, called Simply Blue, also offers low power consumption, exceptionally small size and reduced design time.

"With National's Simply Blue family our customers can now obtain an easy-to-use, fully integrated Bluetooth solution in a module designed to meet the specific needs of applications such as mobile phones, access points, digital cameras, set top boxes, printers and scanners," said James Benefer, product marketing manager for National's wireless division. "Because each device contains the entire Bluetooth stack and comes as a Bluetooth pre-certified module, National's Simply Blue products significantly reduce the design complexity and cost-of-adoption associated with implementing Bluetooth in new consumer products."

The first module in this family is the LMX9820 Serial Port Module. The LMX9820 enables Bluetooth data connectivity via a UART serial port to support applications such as access points, digital cameras, set-top boxes, printers and scanners. Additional members of the Simply Blue family will be introduced throughout 2003.

All of National's Simply Blue products include an embedded Bluetooth protocol stack, application-specific profiles and a high-level command interpreter. Developed in conjunction with National's Bluetooth system partner RTX, the LMX9820 module is compliant with the Bluetooth V1.1 specification.

Simply Blue modules also feature a small footprint of only 10.1 x 14.0 x 1.9 millimeters. They provide metal can shielding and radio front-end filtering for effective immunity to close proximity radio noise that is a common issue in most current portable wireless devices. The devices also include non-volatile memory to support all Bluetooth wireless parameter storage needs, as well as firmware upgrades in the field.

To simplify and accelerate the design cycle, National's Simply Blue modules come with comprehensive development support tools, which include demo boards, example source code and detailed technical support documentation. National also offers customers the opportunity to help define application specific profile needs for future products in this family.

The LMX9820 will be available in Q1 2003 for $15 in 10k quantities. More information about the Simply Blue family is available at http://www.national.com/see/simblue . A high resolution, downloadable photo is available at http://www.national.com/company/pressroom/gallery/wireless.html .

About National Semiconductor

National Semiconductor is the premier analog company driving the information age. Combining real-world analog and state-of-the-art digital technology, the company is focused on the fast growing markets for wireless handsets; displays; information infrastructure, and information appliances. With headquarters in Santa Clara, California, National reported sales of $1.5 billion for its most recent fiscal year and has about 10,000 employees worldwide. Additional company and product information is available on the World Wide Web at http://www.national.com/.

NOTE: National Semiconductor is a registered trademark of National Semiconductor Corporation. Bluetooth is a trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and is used under license by National Semiconductor.

CONTACT: Megan Carter of National Semiconductor, +1-408-721-6929, or
megan.carter@nsc.com

Web site: http://www.national.com/