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RF Micro Devices Announces New Bluetooth System-on-Chip Solution with Enhanced Data Rate; Optimized for Mobile Phone Applications
RFMD's SiW4000 Will Deliver Up To
Three Times Faster Throughput Than Current
Bluetooth V1.2 Devices
GREENSBORO, N.C.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Aug. 30, 2004—
RF Micro Devices, Inc. (Nasdaq:RFMD), a leading provider of
proprietary radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) for wireless
communications applications, today announced the highly integrated
SiW4000(TM) system-on-chip (SoC) Bluetooth(R) solution with Enhanced
Data Rate (EDR) for up to three times faster throughput than current
Bluetooth 1.2 devices. With its small size, low power consumption and
low bill of materials (BOM) cost, the SiW4000 is specifically designed
for mobile phone applications.
Developed using a 0.13 micron CMOS process technology with
inherently lower operating voltage, the SiW4000 consumes three times
less power than current Bluetooth products. Low power consumption is
critical to maintaining the talk time and standby time required of
today's feature-rich mobile phones. Efficient memory utilization and
small die size allow the SiW4000 to be assembled in an easy-to-use
4.5 x 4.5mm ball grid array (BGA) package, which provides a 40 percent
reduction in size compared to current solutions and minimizes the
footprint of the printed circuit board (PCB). Requiring only eight
external components, including six capacitors, one inductor and one
band pass filter, the SiW4000 lowers the overall BOM cost.
Michael Yin, director of product marketing for the Wireless
Personal Area Network (WPAN) product line at RF Micro Devices, said,
"We are pleased to announce our new single-chip SiW4000 Bluetooth
solution with Enhanced Data Rate. The higher data throughput enables
more efficient bandwidth utilization, lowers power consumption and
broadens the applications for Bluetooth technology. We selected 0.13
micron CMOS to remain at the forefront of the
technology-cost-performance trend. Furthermore, aggressive system
design and optimization reduce the overall die size and lower unit
costs."
Frank Morese, vice president of RF Micro Devices' wireless
connectivity business unit, said, "The SiW4000 will significantly
expand our Bluetooth product portfolio by targeting the high volume
2.5G and 3G handset marketplace, within which RFMD is the proven
leader in power amplifiers. We anticipate our new SiW4000 will
leverage the success of our current-generation, single-chip CMOS
Bluetooth products, which are helping to drive approximately 100
percent Bluetooth revenue growth for RFMD this quarter."
The SiW4000 features Enhanced Data Rate (EDR), which delivers two-
to three-times higher data transfer rates than the current Bluetooth
1.2 specification and is backward compatible with Bluetooth V1.1 and
V1.2 devices. The SiW4000 also provides a coexistence interface to
reduce interference with collocated 802.11 systems. The solution
requires fewer external components for an overall lower BOM cost. An
Enhanced Data Rate development platform will be available to select
OEMs in the fourth quarter of calendar year 2004, and samples of the
SiW4000 will be available during the first quarter of calendar year
2005.
Features of the SiW4000
-- 0.13 micron CMOS process for lower current consumption,
smaller size and lower cost
-- Direct connection to battery for more efficient power
management
-- Direct conversion architecture for superior performance,
including lower spurious emissions and enhanced RF blocking
-- On-chip 50 Ohm matching network lowers customer costs by
reducing component count and eliminating tuning and
calibration during production
-- High-speed synchronous and asynchronous serial interface
capable of supporting EDR data rates
-- Direct input from mobile phone reference clocks
-- Industry-standard ARM7TDMI(R) processor core
-- Stacked FLASH package footprint compatible with the ROM
package
RF Micro Devices, Inc., an ISO 9001- and ISO 14001-certified
manufacturer, designs, develops, manufactures and markets proprietary
radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) for wireless
communications products and applications. The Company is a leading
supplier of power amplifiers, one of the most critical radio frequency
(RF) components in cellular phones. The Company is also the leading
manufacturer of GaAs HBT, which offers distinct advantages over other
technologies for the manufacture of current- and next-generation power
amplifiers. The Company's products are included primarily in cellular
phones, base stations, wireless local area networks (WLANs), cable
television modems and global positioning systems (GPS). The Company
derives revenue from the sale of standard and custom-designed
products. The Company offers a broad array of products including
amplifiers, mixers, modulators/demodulators and single-chip
transmitters, Bluetooth(R) products and receivers and transceivers
that represent a substantial majority of the RFICs required in
wireless subscriber equipment. The Company's goal is to be the premier
supplier of low-cost, high-performance integrated circuits and
solutions for applications that enable wireless connectivity. RF Micro
Devices, Inc., is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the
symbol RFMD. For more information about RFMD, please visit
www.rfmd.com.
In May 2004, RF Micro Devices acquired Silicon Wave, Inc., a
leading provider of low-power highly integrated RF communication
system components for the global Bluetooth wireless market. RFMD's
Bluetooth product portfolio includes highly integrated single-chip
Bluetooth solutions, which incorporate stand-alone CMOS radio modems
and CMOS radio processors that leverage system-on-chip (SoC)
technology to integrate the radio modem and digital baseband functions
onto a single chip and eliminating external flash memory. RFMD is an
Associate Member of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that relate
to RF Micro Devices' plans, objectives, estimates and goals. Words
such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "projects,"
"believes" and "estimates," and variations of these words and similar
expressions, identify these forward-looking statements. RF Micro
Devices' business is subject to numerous risks and uncertainties,
including variability in quarterly operating results, the rate of
growth and development of wireless markets, risks associated with the
operation of wafer fabrication, molecular beam epitaxy and other
foreign and domestic manufacturing facilities, our ability to attract
and retain skilled personnel and develop leaders, variability in
production yields, our ability to reduce costs and improve gross
margins by implementing innovative technologies, our ability to bring
new products to market, our ability to increase production capacity
quickly in response to increases in demand for our products,
dependence on a limited number of customers and dependence on third
parties. These and other risks and uncertainties, which are described
in more detail in RF Micro Devices' most recent Annual Report on Form
10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, could cause
actual results and developments to be materially different from those
expressed or implied by any of these forward-looking statements.
RF MICRO DEVICES(R), RFMD(R), Silicon Wave, the diamond logo
design, the SiW product name prefix and UltimateBlue are trademarks of
RFMD, LLC. BLUETOOTH is a trademark owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc.,
U.S.A. and licensed for use by RF Micro Devices, Inc. All other trade
names, trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their
respective owners.
Contact:
RF Micro Devices, Inc.
Jerry Neal, +1 (336) 664-1233
or
Dave Bergevin, +1 (858) 404-7704
dbergevin@rfmd.com
www.rfmd.com
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