Samsung Selects RF Transceiver from Infineon for EDGE Mobile Phones; Chip Reduces Number of Components and Board Space |
Munich, Germany – April 20, 2006 – Infineon Technologies AG (FSE/NYSE: IFX) today announced that Samsung, the world’s third-largest mobile phone supplier, has selected the single-chip SMARTi PM CMOS radio frequency (RF) transceiver for new EDGE mobile phones that will be coming to the market in the second half of 2006. The SMARTi PM chip reduces component count in a complete GPRS/EDGE radio by 30 percent, requiring 50 percent less board space for the RF portion of the phone than competing solutions. Infineon Technologies sold more than 200 million RF chips for mobile devices in 2005, making it the undisputed leading provider of semiconductors of this kind. Samsung is, according to market research firm Strategy Analytics, number three in the global mobile phone business, with a total of 103 million phones sold in 2005, more than 76 million of which were for GSM networks. For the growing EDGE mobile phone market, Samsung has decided on the Infineon RF transceiver SMARTi PM . “The market for EDGE mobile phones will double from 160 million in 2006 to more than 320 million in 2010, with an annual growth rate of 15 percent,” Chris Taylor, Director, RF and Wireless Components, at Strategy Analytics stated. “Infineon has established itself as a top EDGE transceiver supplier, and with the SMARTi PM fabricated in its 0.13 micron C11 CMOS process, we believe it is about six months ahead of its nearest EDGE competitors.” “The decision of the Samsung mobile phone division to use our innovative integrated GSM/GPRS/EDGE transceiver is an important milestone in rolling out our new line of highly competitive RF transceivers based on leading-edge CMOS technology,” said Stefan Wolff, Vice President and General Manager of Infineon’s RF Engine business unit. “Infineon is enabling handset manufacturers to design smaller, more feature-rich handsets with increasing levels of functionality. The successful market entry of the SMARTi PM underlines our leadership in RF transceivers.” The SMARTi PM (PMB 6272) is a quad-band single-chip CMOS transceiver for GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 voice and high-performance data applications that measures just 5.5 x 6.5 mm². Based on its standard I/Q interface, the SMARTi PM can be combined with all major EDGE baseband chips. The single-chip solution provides ease-of-use and high-volume manufacturability, allowing handset manufacturers to rapidly enter the market with multiple designs based on the same platform. The innovative small-signal polar architecture of the SMARTi PM operates with a standard power amplifier, available from multiple vendors, and eliminates the need for any isolator or extra filter components in the transmit path. |
About Infineon Infineon Technologies AG, Munich, Germany, offers semiconductor and system solutions for automotive, industrial and multimarket sectors, for applications in communication, as well as memory products. With a global presence, Infineon operates through its subsidiaries in the US from San Jose, CA, in the Asia-Pacific region from Singapore and in Japan from Tokyo. In fiscal year 2005 (ending September), the company achieved sales of Euro 6.76 billion with about 36,400 employees worldwide. Infineon is listed on the DAX index of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: IFX). Further information is available at http://www.infineon.com |