ANALOG DEVICES TO INCORPORATE ITS NEW DSP CORE INTO PROCESSORS FOR 3G WIRELESS TERMINAL APPLICATIONS
Cannes, France (February 20, 2001) - Building on its existing product portfolio for third generation (3G) cellular applications, Analog Devices, Inc. (NYSE:ADI) announced today its plans to incorporate its newest DSP core into its SoftFone family of baseband processors for 3G applications such as wireless terminals. The new DSP core stems from a programmable architecture jointly developed by Analog Devices and Intel Corporation and code-named “Frio.” Embedded in a SoftFone baseband processor, the core performs functions such as signal modulation, channel equalization, and speech coding to deliver voice capabilities and 3G high-speed data services. 3G systems will enable consumers to use their cellular phones, PDAs and other wireless Internet devices to place phone calls, surf the Web, or download and play video, audio, and multimedia content.
The SoftFone 3G baseband processor will take advantage of the features of the new DSP core, including processing speeds up to 600 MMACs (Million Multiply-Accumulates-per-Second), dynamic power management which scales power consumption to the processing task, enhanced instructions for multimedia data types, and efficient C/C++ programming capability.
ADI’s current SoftFone baseband processor for GSM and GPRS (General Packet Radio Service, sometimes referred to as 2.5 Generation Cellular), has received many industry accolades and awards and has been adopted by a number of market-leading cellular handset and wireless terminal developers such as Siemens Corporation and others. The RAM-based SoftFone platform provides wireless terminal device manufacturers with the ability to easily customize user features and options entirely in software, while incorporating breakthrough advancements in power consumption, cost and size.
ADI Signal Processing Technology Spans Terminal to Infrastructure
The SoftFone 3G baseband processor featuring the next generation of ADI’s DSP technology will be the latest addition to ADI’s already significant product and technology portfolio for 3G wireless terminals and cellular infrastructure. ADI has optimized RF, mixed-signal and DSP technology for the different needs of terminal and infrastructure applications. The terminal-optimized portfolio, for example, includes a radio chip for W-CDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) co-developed with Mitsubishi Corporation, that features the same revolutionary direct conversion RF technology as the ADI OthelloS chipset. The SoftFone family delivers very low power baseband processing for terminal applications. The SoftFone 3G baseband processor, combined with ADI’s Othello direct-conversion radio chipset and ADI’s family of digital audio and video mixed-signal devices, forms a complete system solution that includes the analog functions on both sides of the baseband processor—the radio at the antenna end, and the audio/video interfaces at the user end of the device. The products optimized for 3G cellular infrastructure applications include the market-leading SoftCell chipset for wideband data conversion and TigerSHARCS DSP for multichannel baseband processing.
ADI is already shipping its W-CDMA radio chip. SoftFone 3G baseband processors will be available to lead customers by the end of the year.
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Sorry for this old PR. I just want to stand corrected on the issue of direct conversion RF chips and ADI. When TXN released the info on their direct conversion chip, I thought ADI did not have anything to match it. This release shows that I was wrong.
"and has been adopted by a number of market-leading cellular handset and wireless terminal developers such as Siemens Corporation and others. "
Who are these OTHERS? Siemans is an up and coming force in handsets, they may even pass ERICY this year. Tell NOK is a design win with your Softphone and now you've got some real $$. As noted previously, TXN has the big guns using their parts.
Jim |
