TI Unveils 1 GHz Digital Signal Processor
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Jay Wrolstad , www.newsfactor.com
Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN - news) (TI) has unveiled a 1 GHz digital signal processor designed to effect significant improvements in the performance of wireless communications systems, IP-based video and telecommunications networks.
Boosting DSP speed from 720 MHz to 1 GHz gives customers the performance required to develop a variety of new applications, said Thomas Brooks, a product marketing manager for DSPs at TI. "The ability to process information faster means added features and channels for wireless infrastructure, telecom infrastructure and digital video content," he told NewsFactor.
Handling More Traffic
In essence, DSPs provide real-time processing for cell phone calls, VoIP transmission and other applications by compressing data to make better use of bandwidth. Other applications include IP-based video, high-speed broadband networking, medical diagnostics and radar.
For example, said Brooks, a single 1 GHz DSP can process 55 GSM (global system for mobile communications) cellular network channels, compared to about 35 channels with a typical 600 MHz DSP. "That performance lets developers avoid having to design with multiple processors," he said.
Smaller, Faster
The new 1 GHz DSP uses the 90-nanometer (nm) process node, which TI also applied to its existing 720 MHz components -- a move that slashes the prices on these industrial products, said Brooks. Smaller, faster chips based on the 90-nm process consume less power, he said, while enabling more chips to be used in a wafer.
The process, also used by other chip makers, including Intel (Nasdaq: INTC - news), allows a higher density of on-chip memory to increase application efficiency. As a result, TI has cut the price of its existing 720 MHz chips by more than half.
The new 1 GHz and 720 MHz devices at 90 nm are code-compatible with their predecessors, eliminating the need to write new software. They are also pin-to-pin compatible with previous versions, enabling drop-in replacement for increased performance, lower power consumption and lower cost without extensive redesign.
Cutting Costs
TI is sampling three 1 GHz DSPs, with production prices starting at US$189 in 10,000-unit quantities. The first will be commercially available in the fourth quarter of 2004, the company said. The 720 MHz versions of these devices also will be available at a price reduction of up to a 50 percent.
TI, which already dominates among vendors selling products based on the global GSM/GPRS wireless standard, recently teamed up with European chip maker STMicroelectronics to launch a CDMA (news - web sites) wireless chipset that poses a direct challenge to CDMA pioneer and market leader Qualcomm (Nasdaq: QCOM - news). |
