Sagem Wireless moves to become software supplier

MobiWire, formerly Sagem Wireless, today announced  its open Android OS user interface software, Surface, as part of a strategic move to focus on user experience and connected services integrated into branded consumer electronics (CE) devices and professional industrial applications.  MobiWire combines user interface software connected to cloud-based content with its award winning device design to take global and luxury brands mobile. From design to delivery, MobiWire connects brands’ customers to services through customized connected CE devices.

Building on the company’s 15-year heritage of mobile operator relationships and handset development, MobiWire delivers brand-customized wireless devices based on advanced open and standard compliant technology.  MobiWire enables its customers and partners to deliver connected CE devices that quickly and economically allow them to engage with their consumers in a new way. MobiWire works with retail and luxury brands like FNAC and Porsche Design, device OEMs, and industrial device systems integrators to design, develop and deliver connected CE devices based on industry standard reference platforms. 

A key part of this focus on connected CE devices is the MobiWire Design Lab and its most recent patented invention, Surface, an enhanced Android user experience. Surface simplifies the complexities of Android by surfacing content and applications so they are easy to access and use. “With our increasingly powerful handset and tablet devices, the user interface, both physical and digital, can open or limit the potential of the device and the services it delivers.  Using intelligence to improve experience, Surface presents content from applications and the web, removing the need to navigate between them and simplifying access to a connected experience,” said Jerome Nadel, EVP User Experience at MobiWire.

MobiWire works with brands to deliver connected CE devices with a distinctive and customised user experience that is highly differentiated and customized for the requirements of specific user micro-segments.   System integrators work with MobiWire to develop smart connected devices for professional and industrial vertical markets based on a proven 2G/3G and forthcoming LTE core platforms.

NTT DOCOMO launches LTE service in Japan

NTT DOCOMO has launched Xi (Crossy), Japan's first LTE service, using Qualcomm's MDM9200 LTE/3G multi-mode chipset solution. DOCOMO has said that the Xi provides mobile data communication at a maximum downlink speed of 75 Mbps, which is roughly ten times as fast as DOCOMO's current FOMA W-CDMA service. The Xi service was initially launched in the Tokyo,Nagoya and Osaka areas with the USB data terminal L-02C, which is enabled by Qualcomm's MDM9200 solution.

"We are very pleased that we successfully launched Xi, Japan's first LTE service," said Toshio Miki, Managing Director of the Communication Device Development Department at DOCOMO. "With this successful collaboration with Qualcomm, we look forward to delivering new services and mobile broadband experiences to customers on the Xi network going forward."

"We are very excited to see the successful launch of LTE services in Japan by DOCOMO using our MDM9200 chipset," saidCristiano Amon, senior vice president of product management at Qualcomm.  "Qualcomm is very pleased to be part of this important milestone and we look forward to working closely with DOCOMO in their continuing efforts to commercialize their Xi LTE service."

The MDM9200 chipset is the industry's first multi-mode 3G/LTE solutions that allow UMTS operators to upgrade seamlessly to future LTE services while preserving backward compatibility to their existing 3G networks.  The MDM9200 chipset supports UMTS, HSPA+ and LTE.

Black Sand launches 3G CMOS power amplifiers

By Nick Flaherty

TWO PRODUCT LINES IMPROVE MOBILE DEVICE RELIABILITY, DATA RATE AND COST

Austin startup Black Sand Technologies has launched two new 3G CMOS RF power amplifier (PA) product lines that significantly improve the reliability and data throughput of mobile phones, tablets and datacards.  The product lines consist of six power amplifiers across multiple frequency bands.
The BST34 series of power amplifiers has been designed as a drop-in replacement for existing 3G GaAs RF PAs and, as such, are fully function and pin-compatible. Switching from GaAs to CMOS enables mobile device manufacturers to benefit from an improved supply chain, higher reliability, and lower cost.
The BST35 series includes a high-performance power detector and improves total radiated power (TRP) performance by up to 2dB; reducing the incidence of dropped calls and increasing the data rates in real-world operating environments. The BST3501 is the industry's first chip to bring this functionality to the RF front end. The device's performance figures match or exceed those of GaAs power amplifier ICs for output power, linearity, efficiency and noise.
The first products in each series are available in February. The launch follows Black Sand's previous news announcing demonstration of the world's first 3G CMOS PA.
"Our technology has gained a strong positive reaction from both our initial customers and mobile operators," said John Diehl, CEO of Black Sand. "In particular, the BST35 products help smartphone and datacard companies both meet their industrial design goals and achieve good TRP performance in the real world - ensuring fewer dropped calls and  faster data speeds with no additional eBOM components or cost."
"Mobile device manufacturers are looking for an alternative to GaAs PA technology, which has a known history of supply shortages and higher cost-structure," said Jim Nohrden, VP marketing at Black Sand. "We have a strategic supply base larger than all existing GaAs PA vendors combined and this will prove critical as the market continues to adopt 3G mobile devices, which have two to three times as many PAs as 2G phones. Our products will offer our customers better performance and a more reliable source of supply in 2011."
The BST34 and BST35 series are packaged in a 3x3mm 10pin form factor. The BST34 series products include an integrated directional coupler with daisy-chain support, integrated overvoltage and over-temperature protection circuitry. The BST35 products include Black Sand's TrueDeliveredTM power detection technology and are robust to 100:1 VSWR, 10 times that of GaAs power amplifiers.

• BST3401 for "2100" Band-1 (1920-1980 MHz), 
• BST3402 for PCS Band-2 (1850-1910 MHz) 
• BST3404 for AWS Band-4 (1710-1755 MHz), Japanese Band-9 (1749.9 - 1784.9 MHz) and Latin American Band-10 (1710-1770 MHz).
• BST3501 for "2100" Band-1 (1920-1980 MHz), 
• BST3502 for PCS Band-2 (1850-1910 MHz) 
• BST3504 for AWS Band-2 (1710-1755 MHz), Japanese Band-9 (1749.9 - 1784.9 MHz) and Latin American Band-10 (1710-1770 MHz).  

The BST3401 and BST3501 chips and evaluation boards are sampling in February. The BST3402, BST3502, BST3404 and BST3504 will sample in Q2 2011.

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LTE connections to reach 300million by 2015

LTE to account for 4% of world's mobile connections within five years, says Wireless Intelligence

By Nick Flaherty

LTE networks will account for 4 percent of the world's mobile connections within five years, according to a new report by Wireless Intelligence. The new study, Global LTE network forecasts and assumptions 2010-2015, predicts that global LTE connections will surpass the 1 million mark in the first half of 2011 and will reach 300 million by 2015 as the world's mobile operators ramp-up rollout of the next-generation network technology.

The study forecasts that Asia Pacific will be the world's largest LTE region by 2015, contributing almost half (43 percent) of global LTE connections by this point (see Table 1). China – the world's largest mobile market – is expected to account for around half of the Asia Pacific total. However, LTE network migration will initially be driven by operators in Western Europe and North America, which account for a combined 70 percent of global LTE connections in 2010. This is due to early LTE network rollouts by operators such as TeliaSonera (Europe) and Verizon Wireless (USA). Asia Pacific is expected to become the largest LTE market as migration gathers pace in major markets such as China, Japan, Indonesia and South Korea. The Americas and Africa are expected to be the two regions slowest to migrate to LTE, collectively accounting for just 5 percent of global LTE connections by 2015.

"The introduction of LTE networks reflects the move the telecoms industry is making towards delivering cloud-based and converged services, and an improved user experience," said Joss Gillet, Senior Analyst at Wireless Intelligence and author of the report. "Our latest forecasts show that LTE is being adopted by operators across the globe, but the pace of migration will be faster in countries where mobile broadband is on the political agenda and favourable regulatory developments are taking place – especially with regards to spectrum. However, creating a profitable ecosystem around the new networks will take time and it may take a few years for LTE services to live up to the hype."

The study is based on all known LTE deployments scheduled to take place over the next five years (excluding India). It predicts that 19 live LTE networks will be up-and-running across the globe by year-end 2010. These include major commercial LTE launches due later this month from market-leading operators such as NTT Docomo (Japan), Deutsche Telekom (Germany) and Etisalat (UAE). The world's first commercial LTE networks were launched a year ago by TeliaSonera in Sweden (Stockholm) and Norway (Oslo); TeliaSonera has since rolled-out LTE across its Nordic footprint, including in Finland and Denmark. Wireless Intelligence forecasts that global LTE connections will reach 350,000 by year-end 2010.

"Subscriber uptake of LTE is initially being driven by demand for data-centric mobile broadband services, typically accessed via USB dongles and embedded devices for which operators will charge a premium," said Gillet. "We predict that the introduction of voice over LTE (VoLTE) by around 2012 will mark the 'tipping point' for mass-market LTE handset volume shipments, which will accelerate LTE connections growth. However, premium price points and limited availability means that we will see low LTE handset penetration in the short term."

LTE migration will also be dependent on regulators allocating suitable frequency bands, the study says. It highlights three main spectrum scenarios for the deployment of LTE services; the release of IMT extension spectrum in the 2500-2600MHz bands, the release of 'digital dividend' spectrum in the 700-800MHz bands, and the re-farming of existing spectrum.

	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015
Asia Pacific	27%	32%	43%	40%	41%	43%
W. Europe	34%	22%	22%	28%	26%	24%
USA/Canada	36%	37%	27%	22%	20%	18%
E. Europe	1%	4%	3%	3%	4%	5%
Middle East	2%	4%	5%	6%	6%	5%
Americas	0%	1%	1%	2%	3%	4%
Africa	0%	0%	0%	1%	1%	1%

Table 1: Regional share of LTE connections
Source: 'Global LTE network forecasts & assumptions 2010-2015' Wireless Intelligence (December 2010)

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Samsung Shows off 330Mbit/s mobile wireless, but it is WiMax

Demonstrates Full-HD 3D Video service over WiMAX 2 based on IEEE 802.16m at CEATEC JAPAN 

By Nick Flaherty www.flaherty.co.uk

Samsung Electronics has demonstrated a WiMAX 2 system based on the IEEE 802.16m mobile wireless standard with a speed of 330Mbit/s.

UQ Communications and Samsung are showing Full-HD 3D videos and 16 Full-HD videos on 4 LFD (Large Format Display) TVs at the same time using its WiMAX 2 trial systems and device at teh CEATEC show in Japan. To do this, Samsung’s commercial Mobile WiMAX base station is used which is currently deployed and operated by major Mobile WiMAX operators around the world.

However, this seems more like  last ditch attempt to demosntrate the worth of WiMax in the face of declining rollouts around the world. While te headline high speed is imprssive, operators cannot support anywhere near these speeds for users on the backhaul, and the WiMax infrastructure is still limited.  

“It is expected that the demands for Wireless Broadband will exponentially grow," said Akio Nozaka, President of UQ Communications. "In this regard, the recognition of real worth of Mobile WiMAX, a true 4G technology, will increase not only in Japan but also around the world. Though this demonstration at CEATEC, we aim to show the excellences of new world by Mobile WiMAX, in cooperation with Samsung.” he added.

“Technology never stops evolving. As the demand for data bandwidth and speed grows exponentially, technology has needed to respond. Mobile WiMAX opened up the era of Mobile broadband and is already component of many optimized solutions.” said Woonsub Kim, Executive Vice President and Head of the Telecommunication Systems Business of Samsung Electronics. “We strongly believe WiMAX 2 will deliver even richer communication services to customers while unlocking a potential opportunity for service providers. Through the collaborations with our partners in the WiMAX ecosystem, Samsung has devoted its efforts to developing the most advanced solutions at the right time so that customers can maximize the benefits of using Mobile WiMAX.” he added.

WiMAX 2 based on IEEE 802.16m standard enables more efficient, faster, and more converged data communications. WiMAX 2 provides strong integration compatibility with deployed Mobile WiMAX solutions. It also allows current Mobile WiMAX operators to migrate their solutions to WiMAX 2 by upgrading channel cards or their system software. In addition, the subscribers who currently use Mobile WiMAX devices can communicate with new WiMAX 2 systems without difficulty.

WiMAX 2 standards are expected to be finalized by November 2010. Samsung is seeking to take the lead in its rapid commercialization and deployment and show itself to be a leading system and device provider for Mobile WiMAX. Samsung plans to introduce the first commercial solutions of WiMAX 2 in the end of 2011.

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Wireless Charging Market Set to Expand by Factor of Nearly 70 by 2014

By Nick Flaherty www.flaherty.co.uk

Perhaps it is finally time for the wireless charging market to take off after any false starts. Market researchers iSuppli think so, with a flood of electronic products with wireless charging capability arriving on the market in the coming years, causing global shipments of such solutions to soar to 234.9 million units in 2014. That's up by a factor of 65 from 3.6 million in 2010.

The product-specific wireless charging systems consist of a charger as well as a so-called “skin” or receiver sold for specific devices. These contrast with aftermarket solutions, which comprise universal chargers and various skins that can be used with multiple consumer electronics.

“While a number of serious challenges continue to present barriers to immediate wide adoption, wireless chargers will start shipping in meaningful volume this year and then quickly ramp up as the devices achieve greater market acceptance,” said Tina Teng, senior analyst for wireless research at iSuppli. “Over the next five years, wireless charging devices will find their way into an increasing number of applications, including mobile phones, portable media players, digital still cameras and mobile PCs. Among these, mobile phones will contribute the largest share of revenue to wireless charging—not only because of the large volume of mobile devices expected to benefit from the technology, but also because of participation by name brands in manufacturing the device, providing much needed market recognition in the process.”

Growth is also projected for aftermarket wireless charging, with revenue rising at a massive five-year Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 133.4 percent.

Barriers remain to wide adoption

Although wireless charging is poised for growth in 2010 and the years to come, it will take several years for manufacturers to fully implement wireless charging in their devices, iSuppli believes. In particular, manufacturers will need to consider how to integrate wireless charging into the design of printed circuit boards, and significant adoption of wireless charging technology will be needed to drive down costs.

One way to spur adoption by the market is for the wireless charging industry to adopt a common standard that would ensure interoperability among the solutions being developed. At present, all commercial solutions are based on proprietary technology, and the skin made by one company, for example, will not work with the charger pad of another.

“Until the industry finds a standard to follow, the wireless charging industry will be fragmented, and consumers will hesitate to adopt any solution that could be compromised by the rival companies,” Teng said. “However, an open, standardized system will create a healthier competitive environment and prompt manufacturers to join forces—which will enhance consumer awareness and lead to adoption in the markets.”

Participants, technologies, and applications scramble for power

Of the four current wireless charging technologies in place today, magnetic inductive is the most widely adopted by nodes in the value chain.

Based on the principle of electromagnetic induction, in which current generated from the induced magnetic field in the receiver coil is used to charge devices, the technology enjoys wide support from semiconductor vendors, device manufacturers, accessories makers as well as retailers. The most successful proponent of magnetic induction is Powermat, a Michigan-based company founded in 2009 that also owned 62 percent share of the wireless charging market in 2009—the largest slice in the industry.

Other wireless charging technologies include conductive, developed by the company WildCharge and currently licensed to Procter and Gamble’s Duracell; near-field magnetic resistance, championed by wireless telecom giant Qualcomm as well as Intel; and far-field magnetic resonance, a technology that has raised safety as well as health concerns and for which no commercial products are available for the time being.

While most companies are thought not to be ready with any commercial products until sometime this year, several high-profile manufacturers are examining the feasibility of producing wireless charging solutions. The companies include Texas Instruments and ST-Ericsson from the semiconductor side; Nokia  and Research In Motion from the device manufacturer side; and Logitech and Case-Mate from the accessory manufacturer side.

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World's first notebook PC with integrated 60GHz wirelessHD

ASUS' New Notebooks Incorporate SiBEAM’s WirelessHD 60GHz Technology

In a move that is a significant step forward for 60GHz technology, ASUS has launched two new notebook computer models that incorporate SiBEAM WirelessHD technology for linking to external displays.
By integrating SiBEAM’s advanced wireless video network chips on display mini-card (DMC) modules, these notebooksprovide high-quality, uncompressed 1080p/60 video, robust transmission, and latency-free transmission for gaming and entertainment. Consumers will be able to be “untethered” and connect to the HD television, while still accessing the Internet and their home network without interference. ASUS also announces their new membership and participation in WirelessHD as an adopter.

ASUS is incorporating SiBEAM’s WirelessHD technology in its new notebook PCs including the G73JW and the G53. Ideal for gaming, these models will provide consumers with a latency-free gaming experience with perfect video quality, as SiBEAM’s WirelessHD technology is the only wireless display solution on the market that provides a lossless and uncompressed video connection. The addition of the technology will enable consumers to use the notebook with the HD television while at home or play games on the notebook while on the road. By operating in the 60GHz frequency band, the new products will not experience any interference with WiFi, cordless phones, or other wireless technologies, but rather permit simultaneous usage of these other wireless devices for Internet access and home networking.

“As the WirelessHD entertainment experience expands from adapters to televisions to BD players to set-top boxes and now to portable devices including the notebook PC, the value of WirelessHD networks for consumers grows," said John LeMoncheck, president and CEO of SiBEAM. "This launch by ASUS not only represents the first notebook PC, but also the first portable devices to include WirelessHD, emphasizing the viability of 60GHz for portable entertainment platforms. There is clear value to the consumer in being able to connect their entertainment devices wirelessly to displays so that they can enjoy the content from their PC on the television wirelessly. SiBEAM is happy to support ASUS in such market expanding activities.” 

“ASUS is proud to be the first company to introduce a notebook PC enabled with WirelessHD. ASUS has a long-standing history of listening to customers and then identifying technology to meet those needs,” said P.C. Wang, Corporate Vice President & General Manager Notebook Business Unit from ASUS. “Having considered the needs of our customers, it’s clear that there is a compelling proposition for connecting a notebook PC to a high definition display for gaming and entertainment. Given that consumers are increasingly using ASUS PCs for entertainment applications, connectivity to a wireless display becomes valuable. Having evaluated the range of wireless display options available, the WirelessHD solution and wireless chips from SiBEAM were most appealing to ASUS. Given that the leading provider of WirelessHD technology is SiBEAM, we were delighted to partner with them in bringing the first notebook PC to market with their support.”

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Icera Triples HSPA User Data Rates & Cell Site Capacity

World's First Interference-Aware Technology Delivered on Mass Market Platform

Icera in Bristol has developed an "interference-aware" receiver technology for high speed data that can triple the effective data rate. Using signal processing algorithms in software, IceClear cancels the effect of interference from other cells, delivering up to triple the previous user data rate and cell site network efficiency. Interference-aware receiver technology has been known to achieve substantial user throughput and cell capacity gains for some time, but until now has been prohibitively complex and expensive to implement. The advantage of IceClear is to deliver this technology in software at no additional silicon cost, providing gains in user throughput right across the cell site but with particularly high gains towards the cell edge. In representative tests, where one dominant interfering cell limits user throughput to a few hundred kilobits per second, IceClear multiplies the throughput by a factor of up to 3.6 times.
Steve Allpress, CTO of Icera, said: "Mobile network operators are focusing on and differentiating themselves through the quality and consistency of their mobile broadband services. They can now look forward to delivering dramatically improved user data rates on their existing networks in a matter of weeks. This means that true mobile broadband can now be a reality for cellular users, irrespective of where in the network they happen to be."
Until now, the mobile broadband user experience has tapered from the high headline rates achieved when the user is close to the base station, to much lower data speeds at the cell edge. Previously, the data throughput has been seriously further limited at the cell edge due to interference, referred to as dominant interference power, from signals of the same frequency and of similar strength, transmitted by adjacent cell sites.
The use of current generation equalizer and diversity technology in mobile broadband chipsets materially improved user data rates compared with earlier rake receiver systems, however data rates remained poor at the cell edge in loaded networks. Hardware-based methods of cancelling the dominant interference sources require additional complex and silicon-hungry signal processing algorithms. For these cost and complexity reasons, no other mainstream HSPA chipsets have delivered interference cancellation technologies in production products to date.
Unlike any other baseband technology, Icera's Adaptive Wireless executes the entire modem in software on a specific high performance processor. This approach produces a unique flexibility to develop and implement advanced algorithms, which can adapt dynamically to specific channel conditions, in software, without the need to add any extra silicon blocks to the chip.
IceClear is included in the latest version of Adaptive Wireless.

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Intel shows off Moorestown smartphone

Intel shows off a moorestown smartphone - The Inquirer

Handset to be made by LG after deal for MID back in February

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Google speaks at Wireless Fest 2009

The UK is a global hot-spot for wireless technology and mobile phone innovation - it has produced world-class companies like Vodafone and CSR and continues to produce exciting new start-ups, all looking for their place on the world stage.
Following the success of the Wireless2.0 conference in Bristol over the last three years, Cambridge Wireless and Silicon South West have teamed up to launch the Wireless Start-Up Fest 2009 which will be held on Thurs. 8th Oct. at the offices of Taylor Wessing, 5 New Street Square, London EC4A 3TW

The Wireless Start-Up Fest 2009 features pitches from the UK's most exciting start-ups including: Airetrak, Alertme.com, BardOwl, Blu Wireless Technology, Cascoda, Octymo, Omnisense, Qasara, Reveal2Me, Rummble, Sidonis, & Zimiti

PLUS connfirmed speakers:

· Hugo Barra, Director of Product Management, Google

· Prof. Joe McGeehan, Managing Director, Toshiba TRL

· Dr. David Cleevely, Chairman, Cambridge Wireless

· Ted Mercer, Parterner, Taylor Wessing

· Moray Rumney, Agilent Technologies

· Carl Garrood, Strategic Director, Rohde & Schwarz



Click HERE for the Agenda and Registration (there are only 100 places available for this event, so hurry!)