Infineon to Start Volume Shipments of Single Chip CMOS GSM/GPRS Radio Transceiver

Infineon Technologies AG, the industry leader in making radio frequency (RF) transceivers for mobile telephones, today announced that it had started volume shipments of its GSM/GPRS RF transceivers manufactured in standard CMOS technology to a tier 1 customer. The new SMARTi® SD is the world’s first single chip CMOS-based GSM/GPRS quad-band transceiver that is optimized for cost, size and power consumption. It integrates into one chip all the functions required by a GSM radio of today and tomorrow and enables global roaming, making possible small inexpensive devices that combine a mobile telephone with web browsing capabilities.

SMARTi SD is a member of Infineon’s successful SMARTi product line. It is the first product that uses 0.13 micron standard CMOS process technology. With SMARTi SD, Infineon is introducing its new CMOS RF transceiver family for GSM, GPRS, EDGE and UMTS mobile phones. CMOS technology offers the advantage of almost unlimited manufacturing flexibility at lowest cost and enables further integration of digital baseband functions.

“An integrated CMOS GSM/GPRS RF transceiver has been a goal of the industry for many years,” said Dominik Bilo, Chief Marketing Officer of Infineon’s Secure Mobile Solutions business group. “There were a lot of technical challenges to overcome, and with the SMARTi SD, Infineon has shown once again that it is the world leader for RF transceivers.”

A GSM/GPRS radio using SMARTi SD can be implemented with 50 percent less board space and saves 30 percent in components’ cost compared to competing solutions. Its low power consumption enables long standby time and talk time. The high integration level enables OEMs and ODMs to speed up development time and save R&D costs.

Technical details on SMARTi SD

SMARTi SD integrates into a single chip all functions required of a GSM/GPRS quad-band transceiver, including an RF VCO, Zero IF receiver and Sigma-Delta transmitter chain. Its fast locking time and low power consumption makes it an ideal solution for GPRS class 12 implementation, as well as low-cost, voice-only phones. The SMARTi SD is entirely controllable through a 3 wire bus and is housed in a VQFN-48 standard package.

Further information on Infineon’s SMARTi SD products is available at: www.infineon.com/wireless


The original press release can be found here.

Related stories:

Infineon, Motorola to Develop 3G Radio Frequency Chip
Infineon Technologies AG today announced that it has signed an agreement with Motorola to develop a new multi-mode, single-chip 3G radio frequency (RF) transceiver based on Infineon’s SMARTi UE chip.
In Brief: Samsung to use Infineon chip in EDGE phone
Samsung has selected Germany's Infineon to supply radio frequency chips for its line of EDGE mobile phones, which will debut later this year.
Industry`s First Single-Chip CMOS EDGE Transceiver Reduces RF Board Space in EDGE Mobile Phones
Infineon Technologies AG today announced sample availability of the SMARTi PM, a single-chip CMOS radio frequency (RF) transceiver for GSM, GPRS and EDGE mobile phones. With SMARTi PM, a complete GPRS/EDGE radio can be implemented on 50 percent less board space saving 30 percent in components’ cost compared to competing solutions. The high integration level of the SMARTi PM allows handset manufacturers to minimize the number of external components needed for a GSM/GPRS/EDGE RF design to less then 15. The polar modulator architecture eliminates the need of any isolator or extra filter components in the transmitter path. The latest member of Infineon’s successful SMARTi RF transceiver family features GPRS/EDGE data service class 1 to 12 for fast data transfer and quad-band applications. The single-chip solution providing ease-of-use and high manufacturability allows handset manufacturers to rapidly enter the market with multiple designs based on the same chip platform.
World's Most Integrated GSM/GPRS Entry Phone Platform
Infineon Technologies AG (FSE/NYSE: IFX) today announced its E-GOLDradio™ chip, a GSM/GPRS single-chip which combines a quadband radio transceiver part with a base band processor. The E-GOLDradio enables the base band and RF functionality to be realized on a board space of less than 4 square centimetres which is about 30 percent less than the area previously occupied by two-chip solutions. Featuring E-GOLDradio, Infineon is able to provide the word's most integrated platform. The new BP3 platform comprises all hardware and software components necessary to design a mobile phone, such as power management, filter, power amplifier, memory as well as a GSM/GPRS protocol stack and application framework (APOXI) with a reference man-machine interface.

Infineon Makes UMTS Phones Usable Worldwide
New features such as fast data transmission and new applications like recording, sending and receiving video clips or receiving television while on the move are generally associated with the new UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) mobile radio standard. But "universal" does not automatically mean that a UMTS handset will also work anywhere in the world. A total of six frequency blocks have been defined for providing UMTS services worldwide. To make next-generation mobile phones “universal” in the truest sense of the word, Infineon Technologies AG recently introduced a new chip which accommodates the transmit and receive electronics for all six frequency bands in a footprint measuring only 5mm on 5mm. SMARTi 3G is the name of the smart chip, which Infineon unveiled this week at an industry conference in California.

News discussion:

Technology news