Cambridge Silicon Radio Launches Wi-Fi Chips

Building on its position as a leading supplier of Bluetooth integrated circuits (ICs), Cambridge Silicon Radio (CSR) has announced a family of single-chip Wi-Fi devices for use in cellular telephones and other consumer products. The ICs combine has many as three Wi-Fi standards, such as IEEE 802.11a/b/g, in a single device. The company's first Wi-Fi products are the UniFi-1 Portable (802.11b/g, single band) IC in a miniature package for cellular telephones and the UniFi-1 Consumer (802.11a/b/g, dual band) IC aimed at both cellular telephones and other consumer electronics applications.

The UniFi-1 Portable device is available in a 5.8 x 6.4 mm CSP housing while the UniFi-1 Consumer device is available in an 8 x 8 mm BGA package. CSR achieved the size reductions by integrating the RF, modem, baseband, and media access controller (MAC) into a single chip. CSR has also eliminated the need for external flash memory since the consumer version contains an integrated flash memory. Because the UniFi solutions do not rely on a host processor, they are also ideal for embedding Wi-Fi functionality into consumer electronics devices such as DVD or video players and plasma screens. The UniFi-1 solution is priced at less than $8.00 (US), or less than alternative multiple-chip solutions. Because the UniFi-1 device requires few external components, it also features a low bill of materials (BOM) or less than $1 (US).

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