VIA Adopts Sequans Mobile WiMAX Chip Technology for New VIA eNote Turnkey Solution

Sleek and stylish, the feature-rich 11.6” thin and light notebook design will be unveiled at the Sequans booth during 4G World in Chicago, September 15-18

TAIPEI, Taiwan and CUPERTINO, Calif., USA -- September 11, 2009 - VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the availability of the new VIA eNote Turnkey Solution, a thin and light notebook that strikes the perfect balance between netbook ultra-portability and notebook performance and functionality.  The snappy 11.6” design, which incorporates both state-of-the art WiMAX and Wi-Fi connectivity, is based on Sequans’ Mobile WiMAX chip and will be demo’d from September 15-17 at 4G World in Chicago in Sequans’ booth, number 423.

The VIA eNote Turnkey Solution’s Mobile WiMAX chip is provided by Sequans Communications, the leading supplier of chips for the WiMAX market. Sequans technology delivers high throughput with low power consumption via Sequans mimoMAX™ technology, which combines a maximum likelihood decoder on the downlink with two transmitters (2Tx) on the uplink - a unique feature that can significantly improve link budget and greatly enhance coverage and capacity.

“The VIA eNote Turnkey Solution is one of the most advanced mobile notebooks in the world,” said Georges Karam, Sequans CEO.  â€œIt incorporates all the features one would expect in a state-of-the-art ultra mobile product, plus all the connectivity options that users need to experience truly high speed connectivity anywhere they go.”

“Sequans technology brings the best in mobile WiMAX connectivity to the VIA eNote Turnkey Solution,” said Richard Brown, vice president of marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. “The result is a device that, for the first time, fuses the best features from the netbook and notebook segments resulting in a highly connected mobile product that is unmatched in both functionality and value.”

About the VIA eNote Turnkey Solution

Powered by the 1.3GHz VIA Nano processor and the VIA VX800 digital media IGP chipset, the eNote is a slim-line, 1.3kg, 11.6" form factor design that supports WXGA screen resolutions and high performance VIA Chrome9™ DirectX™ 9.0 3D graphics. Advanced video acceleration for MPEG-2, MPEG-4, WMV9, VC1 and DiVX video formats, a VMR capable HD video processor and 8-channel HD audio make it a feature-rich thin and light platform.

The VIA eNote Turnkey Solution offers unrivaled broadband connectivity options though two internal modules, with the first one featuring WiFi, Bluetooth, and optional AGPS connections and the second one offering WiMAX, HSDPA, and EV-DO/W-CDMA options. Additionally, the device comes with three USB 2.0 ports, a VGA port, and audio-in/audio-out jacks as well as a 4-in-1 card reader (SD/SDIO/MMC/MS) and a 2 mega-pixel dual-headed web camera.

The VIA eNote Turnkey Solution supports a wide range of operating system environments, including Microsoft Windows Vista Basic, Microsoft Windows XP, and various Linux distributions. The device features up to 2GB DDR2 DRAM and can be equipped with a choice of hard disk drive and solid state storage options.

Featuring a 4-cell 2600mA lithium-ion battery, the VIA eNote Turnkey Solution delivers up to three hours of battery life and measures just 240mm(W)x175mm (D) x36.2mm (H).

About Sequans Communications

Sequans Communications is the world’s leading WiMAX chipmaker. Sequans has products that are WiMAX Forum Certified™ for both fixed and Mobile WiMAX, for both base station and subscriber station technology, and is the first and only WiMAX chipmaker to achieve this distinction.  Sequans’ new generation SQN1200 series of Mobile WiMAX chips are the industry’s most highly integrated solutions, integrating baseband and triple band RF in a single 65 nm die.  Sequans delivers ultra high throughput with ultra low power consumption and 2Tx for uplink MIMO, a feature unique to Sequans that can nearly double cell coverage. www.sequans.com

About VIA Technologies, Inc.

VIA Technologies, Inc is the foremost fabless supplier of power efficient x86 processor platforms that are driving system innovation in the PC, client, ultra mobile and embedded markets. Combining energy-saving processors with digital media chipsets and advanced connectivity, multimedia and networking silicon enables a broad spectrum of computing and communication platforms, including its widely acclaimed ultra compact mainboards. Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, VIA’s global network links the high tech centers of the US, Europe and Asia, and its customer base includes the world’s top OEMs and system integrators. www.via.com.tw