RF Micro Devices has unveiled a highly integrated system-on-a-chip (SoC) Bluetooth solution with enhanced data rate (EDR) capability. Consequently, the SiW4000 offers 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.

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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-mm x 4.5-mm ball grid array (BGA) package, which provides a 40% 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 bandpass 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% Bluetooth revenue growth for RFMD this quarter."

Besides EDR performance, the SiW4000 is backward compatible with Bluetooth V1.1 and V1.2 devices. Plus, it 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 2005.