Newport Media claims tiniest, lowest-power 802.11n WiFi chip yet, smartphones get a little less thirsty
Cellular chipsets get all the love these days, but it's WiFi that's still the most ubiquitous -- and often the most consistent drain on the battery. Newport Media might have that last problem solved through its new NMC1000 chip. The part is billed as the lowest-power 802.11n wireless system-on-a-chip you'll find, and potentially a big help to smartphones and other devices that lean heavily on a wire-free existence. At just 2.5mm (0.1 inches) square, the equally record-setting size should also please device makers trying to squeeze wireless into an exceptionally tiny footprint. If you're as excited about the prospect of WiFi everywhere as Newport's Stock Photography Woman above appears to be, you can get more details below and expect full-scale production in the fall.
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Newport Media Introduces World's Smallest, Lowest Power 802.11n Wi-Fi SoC
Newport Media's NMC1000 Connectivity SoC addresses the rapidly growing global smartphone market
LAKE FOREST, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Newport Media, an innovative fabless communications semiconductor company supplying products to the broadcast media industry, today announced its first system-on-chip (SoC) product to address the wireless connectivity market.
The NMC1000 is a Wi-Fi® SoC that includes all RF and Baseband circuitry required to provide IEEE 802.11b, g, n-compliant operation including all necessary power amplifiers and switches. By leveraging Newport Media's advanced OFDM baseband and RF CMOS technology, the NMC1000 offers levels of performance, power consumption, and external bill of material (BOM) typically associated with the world's leading connectivity solutions providers.
"As smartphones replace feature phones as the norm in wireless markets throughout the globe, there will be great demand for connectivity solutions that provide dramatically lower bill of material costs without compromises in performance," said Mohy Abdelgany, president and chief executive officer for Newport Media. "Newport Media has a well-established track record of supplying best-in-class OFDM SoC solutions into highly price-competitive markets and looks forward to expanding its connectivity offering to address this dynamic and rapidly growing market."
The NMC1000 is available in 40-pin, 5mm X 5mm quad flat no-lead (QFN) and 2.5mm x 2.5mm chip scale packages, requiring the industry's smallest external BOM.
Engineering samples will be available next month with volume production scheduled to commence in the fourth quarter of 2012.
