Monday September 17, Motorola Unveils the i.250 Platform - The Industry's Most Comprehensive 2.5G GSM/GPRS Platform
Turnkey GPRS Solutions Accelerate Time to Market for Handset Manufacturers
AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Motorola, Inc.'s (NYSE: MOT - news) Semiconductor Products Sector (SPS) today announced its 2.5G Innovative Convergence(TM) (i.250) platform -- a comprehensive silicon-to-software solution for 2.5G Global System for Mobile Communication/Global Packet Radio Service (GSM/GPRS) wireless handsets. This scalable, highly integrated platform combines an advanced chipset with an industry-leading development environment, field-proven GPRS protocol software, type certification support, and best-in-class system cost to support a complete range of voice-centric, voice/data, and data-centric products.
The new platform, which is designed to help global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and original design manufacturers (ODMs) develop state- of-the-art products to enable anytime, anywhere communication for consumers, joins Motorola's broad GPRS product portfolio. With the i.250 platform, Motorola is leveraging its GPRS expertise to give manufacturers unprecedented flexibility and scalability, coupled with the ``always on'' connectivity today's consumers demand.
``The turnkey i.250 platform is designed to reduce system cost while speeding time to market for handset manufacturers,'' said Pete Shinyeda, corporate vice president of Motorola's Wireless and Broadband Systems Group. ``Its streamlined, compact design features the lowest component part-count in the industry. Manufacturers can easily add personality and packaging to their handset products, focusing on applications, branding, features and style while enjoying instant access to cutting-edge technology. The bundled platform gives them unprecedented flexibility for getting to market quickly, easily, and cost-effectively. In addition, our platform solutions can scale from voice-only wireless clients to rich multimedia platforms, easing the migration to 3G solutions and reducing overall costs.''
The i.250 platform is expected to capture a significant share of the wireless semiconductor market, which is forecasted to reach $35 billion in 2004, with more than 480 million GSM/GPRS handsets in production by 2005 (Gartner Group, Dataquest, July 2001).
``In the next three to four years, companies like Motorola that get out in front like you are doing with this announcement will be the ones that last in the marketplace, the ones that will win,'' said Andrew M. Seybold, senior partner, the Andrew Seybold Group, a consulting firm that specializes in the connected mobility space.
An array of market firsts from a highly integrated chipset
The i.250 platform represents the third life cycle of Motorola GPRS chipset solutions-technology that embodies 70 years of wireless expertise, 50 years in semiconductors, and two decades of leadership in the cellular industry. Motorola's GPRS technology has achieved many industry-first milestones:
-- First to transmit packet data
-- First to transmit a live GPRS call
-- First to achieve an IP (Internet protocol) call over a GSM network
-- First to demonstrate mobile e-commerce using WAP (Wireless
Application Protocol) over a live GPRS network
-- First to publicly demonstrate MPEG4 (Moving Picture Experts Group,
web multimedia) video transmission over a GPRS network
This groundbreaking chipset is both Enhanced Data GSM Evolution (EDGE)- receive and GPRS Class 12-capable, and supports two dual-band configurations for regional customization: either 900/1800 megahertz (MHz) or 850/1900 MHz. The chipset includes four main integrated circuits (ICs) -- the silicon heart of the i.250 platform, representing significant advances in system integration and semiconductor manufacturing:
-- Dual-core baseband processor IC. Leveraging Motorola's fourth
generation of dual-core baseband technology, these digital, integrated
DSP56600 (digital signal processor) and ARM(R)7 TDMI baseband ICs use
industry-leading 0.13 um, copper-based technology. Embedded memory
minimizes both the need for external flash and the static random
access memory (SRAM) used in current platforms. Embedded memory
reduces system power consumption and gives consumers a longer battery
life.
-- Front End IC. Superior high-frequency performance results from
Motorola's mainstream radio frequency (RF) BiCMOS technology combined
with a single Silicon Germanium:Carbon (SiGe:C) process step. The
SiGe:C also offers, right on-chip, a wide variety of high
quality/accuracy active and passive devices, including copper
inductors-thereby heightening the cost-efficiency of wireless
applications.
-- Power Management and Audio Circuit. Motorola's cost-effective
SMARTMOS(TM) 5 technology underlies this integrated power management
and audio circuit. A medium-voltage mixed-signal BiCMOS process
integrates high-performance analog circuitry, intelligent digital
control, and power-capable devices.
-- Power Amplifier Module. In this module, Motorola's Indium Gallium
Phosphide heterojunction bipolar transistor (InGaP HBT) technology
integrates-in a single package-two power amplifiers, a Single-Pole
4-Throw (SP4T) antenna switch, harmonic filters, couplers, and power
detection circuitry. The resulting System-in-Package (SiP) capability
reduces overall system cost, while also improving performance with the
validated chipset.
Ease and flexibility from best-of-breed software and development aids
To help manufacturers meet customers' rising demands for speed, connectivity, and plentiful mobile applications, the i.250 platform combines a mature, field-proven GPRS protocol stack and certified communication protocol software with a comprehensive integrated development environment (IDE). The mature, field-tested GPRS architecture enhances bandwidth to offer ``always-on'' connectivity and proven interoperability with a range of portable devices- personal digital assistants (PDAs), cell phones, laptops, web tablets and more.
A range of additional aids further streamlines platform development and speeds time to market:
-- Radio Test Environment (RTE), which enhances radio development and
performance optimization.
-- Manufacturing Test Environment (MTE), used to meet type approval and
production line test requirements.
-- Reference design speeds time to market by providing a typical cellular
system design for a quick start on customer product designs.
-- FTA (Field Type Approval) Reference Design in a phone form factor
reduces customer cycle time and investment. Motorola's full FTA
global support teams help ensure manufacturers' success, regardless of
their target platform or business needs.
-- Extensive third-party solutions (WAP browser, predictive text entry
and more) to enhance one-stop-shopping capabilities.
``i.'' platform's scalability for migrating from 2G to 2.5G to 3G solutions Motorola helps smooth the evolution from 2.5G to 3G solutions with its ``i.'' (pronounced ``eye-dot'') platform series, which was named to symbolize Innovative Convergence and Internet connectivity. The ``i.'' platform series represents three distinct GSM solutions that cover the 2G/2.5G space:
i.200 -- An entry-level GSM platform for voice and enhanced voice-only
applications.
i.250 -- A 2.5G GSM/GPRS platform enabling voice-centric or voice data
applications.
i.275 -- A 2.75G GSM/GPRS platform that is focused on data-centric
applications and other voice-data applications requiring high-speed
Internet connectivity.
Built on a flexible open architecture, the i.250 platform is expandable to EDGE and scalable to 3G systems such as the ultra-fast 2Mbps UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) and W-CDMA (Wideband-Code Division Multiple Access) standards. The platform allows manufacturers to use faster data services over existing GSM carriers, generating revenue immediately while gaining the ability to migrate to 3G technology. A comprehensive portfolio of 3G platforms will be included in the family.
Scalability is enhanced by PAN-to-WAN connectivity, software and hardware reusability, and flexible memory structures for combining features. Plus, Motorola is one of only two licensed architectural partners for ARM® technology.
About Motorola
As the world's #1 producer of embedded processors, Motorola's Semiconductor Products Sector offers multiple DigitalDNA(TM) technologies which enable its customers to create ``smart'' products and new business opportunities in the networking and computing, wireless communications, transportation, and home networking markets. Motorola's worldwide semiconductor sales were $7.9 billion (USD) in 2000. motorola.com
Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT - news) is a global leader in providing integrated communications and embedded electronic solutions. Sales in 2000 were $37.6 billion. motorola.com
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SOURCE: Motorola SPS |
