EDA Geek » Wireless

Connected Device Market to Grow to 1.34 Billion Units in 2016

Ken Cheung — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:49:05 +0000

Connected consumer electronics devices, which have the ability to connect directly to the Internet or to a home network and can deliver IP-based video content, will continue to grow rapidly. According to a research report by NPD In-Stat (The Global Market for Connected and Smart CE Devices), the connected device installed base will grow from 256.8 million units in 2011 to 1.34 billion units in 2016.

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Texas Instruments TRPGR30TGC and TRPGP40TGC RFID Mini-Transponders

Ken Cheung — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:11:14 +0000

Texas Instruments introduced the TRPGR30TGC and TRPGP40TGC glass encapsulated mini-transponders. The TI devices are the industry’s smallest half-duplex radio frequency identification mini-transponders. The Texas Instruments RFID mini-transponders enable engineers to embed tags into smaller objects across a broader range of applications. The mini-transponders are durable enough for use in applications including tool, medical instrument, package and inventory tracking and safe enough for use in fish and livestock tracking and pet identification. The chips can work for up to 30 years. The TRPGR30TGC and TRPGP40TGC mini-transponders are can be ordered now. The devices are priced at USD $2.90 for 1k units.

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iPhone Ranked First in Q4, but Samsung Smartphones Finished First in 2011

Ken Cheung — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:35:06 +0000

Global smartphone shipments grew to a record 155 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011. According to Strategy Analytics, Apple reclaimed the top position as the world’s number one smartphone vendor with a 24% marketshare during the fourth quarter. Apple’s global smartphone shipments surged 128% annually to 37.0 million units. However, Samsung became the market leader in annual terms with a 29.9% global share in 2011. Apple was a close second with 19.0%. Nokia finished third and saw its share dropped in half to 16% in 2011 from 33% in 2010.

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Android Accounts for 39% of Tablets Sold

Ken Cheung — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:32:21 +0000

Global tablet shipments grew to 26.8 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011. This is an all time-high and a 150% increase compared to the fourth quarter of 2010 (10.7 million units). According to Strategy Analytics, Apple iOS remains strong at 58% (15.4 million iPads). However, Android now accounts for 39% of tablets sold (29% a year earlier). Strategy Analytics expects demand for tablets among consumer, business and education users to remain strong.

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Mindspeed Acquires Picochip for $51.8 Million Plus $25 Million Potential Earnout Payment

Ken Cheung — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 15:28:42 +0000

Mindspeed Technologies will acquire Picochip Limited for about $51.8 million. In addition, there is a potential earnout payment of up to $25 million payable in the first calendar quarter of 2013. The transaction has been approved by the boards of directors of Mindspeed and Picochip. The acquisition is subject to certain closing conditions, and is expected to close in the first calendar quarter of 2012. Picochip is a supplier of integrated system-on-chip (SoC) solutions for small cell base stations.

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Q3 2011 Smartphone Applications Processor Revenues Grew to $2.24 Billion

Ken Cheung — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 16:28:27 +0000

According to Strategy Analytics, the global smartphone applications processor market grew to $2.24 billion in the third quarter of this year (Q3 2011). This is a 59% year-on-year growth. Qualcomm ranked first in the smartphone applications processor market with 49% of revenue share in the last quarter. Thanks to the ramp up of its Android business, Broadcom finally broke into the top-five vendor list for smartphone applications processors in the third quarter.

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Laird Receives Patent for Multiple Antenna Multiplexers, Demultiplexers and Antenna Assemblies

Ken Cheung — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 19:23:44 +0000

Laird Technologies was awarded a patent by the U.S. Patent Office. A patent was issued for work with multiple antenna multiplexers, demultiplexers and antenna assemblies. The technology reduces the number of cables required in a long cable harness (mostly in the OEM automotive market). The technology can also be used in tandem with a demultiplexer of the same nature to separate the combined signals into multiple receivers. It reduces cost by reducing the number of cables required.

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In-Stat Research: The Worldwide Emergence of Low-Cost Android Smartphones

Ken Cheung — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 15:50:06 +0000

In-Stat expects unit shipments for low-cost Android smartphones to reach almost 340 million worldwide in 2015. According to In-Stat, low-cost Android handset segment will cause some fragmentation in the Android platform. Low-cost Android smartphones will most likely be released with Android 2.2 or 2.3 because these versions offer a good blend of features with modest memory and processor usage. The Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) release requires more memory and processor demands, which makes the new version less attractive for low-cost Android devices.

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Imec and Holst Centre Develop Ultralow Power IR-UWB Solution

Ken Cheung — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:04:37 +0000

Imec and Holst Centre developed a fully chip-integrated ultralow-power impulse-radio ultra-wideband (IR-UWB) solution for the 6-10GHz band, which is available worldwide. The radio features fade-resilient and interference-free operation. Imec and Holst Centre’s solution for the 6-10GHz band makes UWB communication available for battery-operated applications in the area of personal area networks and positioning sensors worldwide. Examples include short-range video streaming or around-the-body audio streaming (e.g. between a headset and a smartphone).

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Sensor Fusion to Power iPhone, iPad, and Android Devices

Ken Cheung — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 17:26:35 +0000

According to a IHS iSuppli report, sensor fusion will eventually power the next generation of iPhone and iPad devices. A fused signal combines the outputs of three types of Microelectromechanical system (MEMS) motion sensors (gyroscopes, accelerometers and compasses) to improve the motion-based interface. Sensor fusion could enhance interfaces of any tablet or smartphone that uses a combination of a 3-axis accelerometer, 3-axis compass and 3-axis gyroscope to provide 9-axis sensor fusion.

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u-blox Enters Embedded CDMA Wireless Market by Acquiring Fusion Wireless

Ken Cheung — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 14:55:53 +0000

u-blox has acquired Fusion Wireless for $900,000 in cash, plus existing debt of $2.1 million. Fusion Wireless is a provider of CDMA wireless modules for consumer and M2M applications in North America. In addition to gaining Fusion Wireless’ wireless module products, the acquisition will give u-blox access to the embedded CDMA market in North America for both consumer and M2M applications.

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octoScope octoBox Wireless Testing System

Ken Cheung — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:11:02 +0000

octoScope introduced their octoBox wireless testing system. octoBox is a tool for the OTA testing of conventional and MIMO wireless devices. It features a customizable refrigerator sized anechoic (non-echoing) enclosure that replaces expensive walk-in anechoic chambers and facilitates test setup. octoBox can be used to design, test and verify multi-radio devices such as smartphones and USB dongles. octoBox is available now.

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Digi XBee Wi-Fi Embedded RF Module

Ken Cheung — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 18:09:35 +0000

Digi International announced their XBee Wi-Fi embedded RF module. The XBee Wi-Fi delivers serial to IEEE 802.11 connectivity. With the new Digi module, engineers can create a single board design for wireless products that supports 802.15.4, ZigBee, ZigBee Smart Energy, 2.4 GHz, 900 and 868 MHz, Wi-Fi and proprietary DigiMesh protocols. It is ideal for energy management, process and factory automation, wireless sensor networks, and intelligent asset management. XBee Wi-Fi development kits are available now for $149.

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Connect One Nano WiReach SMT WiFi Module

Ken Cheung — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 15:23:56 +0000

Connect One rolled out their Nano WiReach SMT, which is a secure embedded Wireless LAN module that easily connects embedded devices to 802.11b/g Wireless LAN, 10/100BaseT wired LAN and cellular WAN. The WiFi module features iChip CO2144 IP Communication Controller chip, Marvell 88W8686 WiFi chipset, multiple hardware interfaces, extensive firmware functionality, 3G routing, WiFi client and access-point capabilities. It supports secure Internet protocols for up to eight WiFi users in its router or access point mode. Nano WiReach SMT is now available at $26 for high-volume projects.

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White Paper: Moving Beyond Zigbee for Star Networks

Ken Cheung — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 18:09:26 +0000

Laird Technologies published a new white paper, Moving Beyond Zigbee for Star Networks. The technical paper addresses the requirements of star networks, and the need of finding the correct wireless solution beyond traditional means. The white paper details the data flow through a network, and how most networks that are point-to-multipoint (or multipoint-to-point, depending on the perspective) form a star topology. The technical paper also presents possible solutions and features a model comparison of some of the key attributes of a Laird Technologies LT2510 100 mW transceiver versus a typical Zigbee 10 mW transceiver.

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NVIDIA Acquires Icera, 3G and 4G Baseband Processors

Ken Cheung — Tue, 10 May 2011 04:08:01 +0000

NVIDIA will acquire Icera for $367 million in cash. Icera is one of the few remaining independent baseband processor providers for both 3G and 4G cellular phones, data modems, and tablets. The remaining independent suppliers are specialized in either 3G or 4G (but not both 3G and 4G). The acquisition has been approved by both companies’ boards of directors and is expected to be completed, subject to customary closing conditions, in about 30 days.

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Texas Instruments bq51013 Wireless Power Receiver

Ken Cheung — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 23:01:41 +0000

Texas Instruments announced the bq51013 receiver integrated circuit (IC) for wireless charging. The TI chip combines voltage conditioning and full wireless power control in a small 1.9-mm x 3-mm WCSP package. The bq51013 wireless power receiver supports up to 5 W of output power, provides up to 93% efficient AC/DC power conversion and is the only IC required between the receiver coil and system. The Qi compliant IC is available now in a 1.9mm x 3mm WCSP package. It is priced at $3.50 (quantities of 1,000).

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ZMD ZWIR4512 Wireless Data Communication Module

Ken Cheung — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 15:43:06 +0000

ZMD introduced the ZWIR4512 wireless data communication module for sensors and other small devices. The ZWIR4512 implements full data networking based on the IPv6 Internet protocol. 6LoWPAN is used to optimize IPv6 packets for embedded low-power device networks. Data encryption and authentication is provided by the Internet Protocol Security (IPSec) protocol suite. IPSec keys can be exchanged and renewed automatically based on the Internet Key Exchange version 2 (IKEv2) protocol. The ZMD ZWIR4512 IPv6 wireless module features a 32-bit ARM Cortex M3 microcontroller, GPIO and peripheral interfaces, and up to 192kB of flash memory and 32kB of RAM for the user application.

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LiMo 4 Linux Based Platform

Ken Cheung — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 17:14:17 +0000

LiMo Foundation introduced version four of the Linux based LiMo Platform. LiMo 4 Platform offers complete middleware and base application functionality. It enables flexible disaggregation of the device platform and the service propositions such that operators and device manufacturers can more freely shape user propositions and secure sustainable long-term value. The first LiMo 4 devices are expected to be brought to market during the second half of this year. LiMo Foundation is a global consortium of mobile operators, device and handset vendors.

Apple iPad Users Unlikely to Switch to HP TouchPad

Ken Cheung — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 15:16:44 +0000

HP launched their new TouchPad a couple of days ago. On the surface, the TouchPad is an iPad clone. The sleek TouchPad has a 9.7″ touch display and weighs 1.6 pounds. However, the HP tablet features a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 1024×768 resolution, and webOS, which HP acquired when it purchased Palm last year. According to In-Stat, the key differentiators are not enough to compete with the Apple iPad and other tablets.

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Apple iPad and Android Tablets Driving MEMS Market

Ken Cheung — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 15:20:22 +0000

According to new IHS iSuppli research, tablets (like the Apple iPad and Android tablets) are expected to be the fastest-growing market for microelectromechanical system (MEMS) in the consumer electronics and mobile segment in 2011. Sales of MEMS for use in tablets will increased by 373% to $140.4 million in 2011 (compared to $29.7 million in 2010). By 2014, tablets will become the second-largest application for MEMS sensors with revenue of $280 million. Cell phones will still be primary driver of MEMS in the consumer and mobile segment.

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Users Want GPS, Cameras, and Memory Card Slots in Cellphones

Ken Cheung — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 19:09:11 +0000

According to In-Stat’s survey, GPS, digital cameras, and memory card slots are three features that cellphone users are interested in and might pay for when they purchase their next phone. Bar phones with touchscreens is the preferred form factor. Interest in integration with other devices is on the rise, with survey respondents indicating they would like to integrate their phone with their car or other devices and to use their phone as a mobile hotspot. The survey results are available in their report, Future Cellphones: Current User Preferences Drive Future Handset Designs.

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Over Half of Handset Shipments Will be Smartphones by 2012

Ken Cheung — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 15:28:21 +0000

According to In-Stat’s Smartphones: A Worldwide View research, unit shipments of smartphones will grow to almost 850 million by 2015. Critical factors driving smartphone sales include a powerful browser, a wide variety of apps, an easy to navigate user interface, and a good keyboard or touch screen. The research is part of In-Stat’s Mobile Devices service, which provides analysis and forecasts of the market for mobile communications and computing devices, including cell phones, smartphones, MIDs, tablets, mini-notes/netbooks, and notebooks.

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In-Stat Publishes Mobile Processor Architecture Wars Report

Ken Cheung — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 17:34:29 +0000

Currently, two architectures, ARM and x86 dominate the low and high-end of the mobile market, respectively, and are battling it out for the mid-range convergence devices like e-readers, tablets, and netbooks. However, other architectures, such as MIPS and SH, are equally suited to power mobile SoCs and as more emphasis is placed on the OS and mobile applications, the use of a particular processor architecture or instruction set is likely to become less important, says In-Stat. The differentiating factors become price, power, and performance as competing architectures wage war to gain their share of the nearly 4 billion unit mobile processor market in 2014.

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Wind River, VIA Telecom Team on Kunlun Project for Android Smartphones

Ken Cheung — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 15:35:03 +0000

Wind River has teamed with VIA Telecom on a multiyear project, codenamed Kunlun, to help bring low-cost Android smartphones featuring high-end capabilities to regional original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for the Chinese code division multiple access (CDMA) market. The collaboration delivers an integrated software and hardware Android solution to help OEMs meet network operator requirements and deliver Android devices to market faster with greater engineering efficiencies.

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Laird Technologies Gains M2M Products by Acquiring Cattron Group

Ken Cheung — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 17:09:19 +0000

Laird Technologies, a global leader in the design and supply of customized, performance critical components and systems for advanced electronics wireless products, announced its acquisition of Cattron Group International, Inc. Cattron’s sales revenues for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2010 were $53.8 million. The purchase expands the scope of Laird Technologies’ wireless machine-to-machine (M2M) product offering and the markets those products serve.

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Accenture Acquires Mogenesis, Embedded Software Services

Ken Cheung — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 17:29:57 +0000

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) has completed its acquisition of Beijing Genesis Interactive Technology Co., Ltd. (Mogenesis), a Beijing-based embedded software services company that provides mobile software outsourcing services and solution licensing for companies in China. The acquisition will build on the expertise, design, development, testing and outsourcing capabilities of Accenture Embedded Software Services, which helps clients innovate through the use of embedded software to deliver any product, service or solution faster and more cost-effectively across a range of industries. Those industries include mobile devices, automotive, medical equipment, and aerospace and defense.

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Mobile Processors to Grow to 4 Billion Units by 2011

Ken Cheung — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 15:36:15 +0000

Mobility and mobile devices are reshaping the entire high-tech industry. Everything from silicon chipsets to software to services are being reshaped by mobility. Smartphones will continue to be the innovation driver in mobile processor technology, particularly with the integration of multiple cores, GPUs and baseband modems. While there will be some convergence of devices and usage models, consumer patterns and the history of the high-tech market indicate that the total number of mobile devices will continue to expand, increasing the TAM of mobile processors to nearly 4 billion by 2014, says In-Stat.

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Mentor Embedded Nucleus RTOS Powers Over 2.3 Billion Mobile Devices

Ken Cheung — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 21:53:31 +0000

Mentor Graphics Corporation (NASDAQ: MENT) announced that the Mentor® Embedded Nucleus® Real Time Operating System (RTOS) has again topped worldwide adoption in the mobile handset market with use in over 2.345 billion devices, according to the VisionMobile’s 100 Million Club research report. The 100 Million Club is a watch-list of software companies whose products have been embedded in more than 100 million cellular handsets. The report was just published and the findings are available online.

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Adaptive Digital Introduces iPVoice VoIP Engine for Apple iPhones

Ken Cheung — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 15:41:09 +0000

Adaptive Digital Technologies (Adaptive Digital), a dominant player in the voice software landscape for over sixteen years has made available to Apple Inc. iPhone application developers its toll-quality voice engine software with the introduction of iPVoice[tm] VoIP Engine. Well established in the telecom and VoIP communities with a reputation for providing high quality digital signal processor (DSP) software, Adaptive Digital first broke into the Mobile market with the successful launch of anVoip[tm] a voice engine product enabling VoIP for Android development.

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