Qualcomm Introduces Single-Chip 802.11n Wireless LAN Solution for Handsets and Mobile Devices

-- Qualcomm Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM - News), a leading developer and innovator of advanced wireless technologies, products and services, today introduced the WCN1312(TM) - a single-chip, high-performance 802.11n-compliant wireless local-area networking (WLAN) solution for handsets and mobile devices. This highly integrated device supports data rates of up to 72 Mbps - significantly higher than previous 802.11a, b, and g Wi-Fi solutions - for a better user experience while downloading data, watching streaming video or surfing the Internet.

"As demand increases for wireless LAN connectivity in handsets and other mobile devices, carriers are migrating to higher-performance, more integrated solutions," said Mike Concannon, senior vice president of Connectivity and Wireless Modules for Qualcomm CDMA Technologies. "The new WCN1312 solution gives our customers an extremely compact 802.11n solution with leading-edge performance and full system-level integration with other Qualcomm chipsets, which minimizes design time and reduces manufacturers' time-to-market."

The WCN1312 solution offers a high level of integration with a 2.4 GHz 802.11n baseband processor, media-access controller, RF transceiver, transmit power amplifier, low-noise amplifier, transmit switch, power coupler and radio-frequency (RF) bandpass filter all in a small 7x7 mm package. This simplified design eliminates the need for many external RF components, minimizing the component count and resulting in a smaller system footprint.

The new WCN1312 chip uses low-power 65nm CMOS technology and advanced power-management techniques to minimize sleep, standby and active power consumption. It is optimized for performance with Qualcomm's complete Mobile Station Modem(TM) (MSM(TM)) solutions and supports a variety of mobile operating systems, including Qualcomm's Brew Mobile Platform®, Android and Windows Mobile. The WCN1312 chip is the industry's first mobile handset device to support both 1x1 and 1x2 dual-receive configurations to increase range and data throughput performance when needed. The WCN1312 solution also implements advanced coexistence architecture and algorithms to optimize performance when paired with Qualcomm's Bluetooth® solutions.

Scheduled for sampling in the second quarter, the WCN1312 chip is expected to be in volume production by the fourth quarter of 2009, and is part of a complete end-to-end solution for 802.11n from Qualcomm, which also includes the WCN1320(TM) solution for consumer electronic devices.

Qualcomm Incorporated is a leader in developing and delivering innovative digital wireless communications products and services based on CDMA and other advanced technologies. Headquartered in San Diego, Calif., Qualcomm is included in the S&P 100 Index, the S&P 500 Index and is a 2009 FORTUNE 500® company. For more information, please visit www.qualcomm.com.