BARCELONA, Spain--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 12, 2007--Silicon
Laboratories Inc. (Nasdaq:SLAB), a leader in high-performance,
analog-intensive, mixed-signal ICs, today announced the first
single-chip FM radio transceiver family at 3GSM World Congress. The
proven, patented digital architecture of the Si472x transceiver
combines the functionality of the Si470x FM radio receiver with the
Si471x FM radio transmitter in a single 3x3x0.55 mm package. Competing
solutions require at least two chips, more than 50 external components
and up to five times more board space. The Si472x FM transceiver is
optimized for portable applications, offering the ability to both
receive FM broadcasts over the air and create a wireless audio link
from the device to any FM receiver. The Si472x is targeted to mobile
phones, digital media players, portable gaming devices and satellite
receivers, and GPS/navigation devices.
The Si472x is layout compatible with Silicon Laboratories' new
Si473x AM/FM radio receiver, the Si470x FM radio receiver and the
Si471x FM transmitter solutions, allowing a single PCB layout to
seamlessly support all these options. The Si472x supports analog and
digital audio interfaces to simplify customer design, speed
time-to-market and offer unique features such as recording FM
broadcasts for ring-tones. The digital audio interface also reduces
system power and extends battery life by eliminating the need for
redundant data converters.
The Si472x provides industry-leading selectivity and sensitivity,
as well as adjustable seek, soft mute and stereo blend, fundamental to
superior audio performance in highly variable FM broadcast radio
environments. The high performance Si472x also enables unmatched
volume output stability on the receiving system and increases
transmitted audio fidelity through automatic audio dynamic range
control.
The Si4721 is the only single-chip FM radio transceiver with
transmit and receive support for the European Radio Data System (RDS)
and the U.S. Radio Broadcast Data System (RBDS). Using the RDS
transmit function, the Si472x can broadcast the song name, artist and
album to create a visual user experience similar to a portable media
player. The Si472x also works with an integrated antenna for both
receive and transmit, eliminating the need for a headphone cable when
using a Bluetooth headset. In addition, having both transmit and
receive functions in the device allows consumers to share songs
wirelessly between players.
"Cost effectively enabling both FM radio reception and
transmission is a requirement for portable consumer device
manufacturers," said Tyson Tuttle, vice president of Silicon
Laboratories. "Since launching our FM receiver in 2005, we have
shipped tens of millions of products to many leading handset, digital
media player and GPS manufacturers. The new single-chip FM radio
transceiver leverages our unique RF expertise to create another
disruptive innovation in integration and performance, enabling our
customers to continue to improve consumers' listening experience while
easing system design and lowering cost."
Pricing and Availability
The Si4720 is sampling now, and the Si4721 is available for
sampling in May 2007. Pricing for the Si4720 begins at $5.26 in
quantities of 10K. Pricing for the Si4721, which supports RDS/RBDS,
begins at $6.31 in quantities of 10K. An evaluation board is available
for $150.
Silicon Laboratories Inc.
Silicon Laboratories Inc. is a leading designer of
high-performance, analog-intensive mixed-signal integrated circuits
(ICs) for a broad range of applications. Silicon Laboratories' diverse
portfolio of highly integrated, patented solutions is developed by a
world-class engineering team with decades of cumulative expertise in
cutting-edge mixed-signal design. The company has design, engineering,
marketing, sales and applications offices throughout North America,
Europe and Asia. For more information about Silicon Laboratories,
please visit www.silabs.com.
Cautionary Language
This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on
Silicon Laboratories' current expectations. These forward-looking
statements involve risks and uncertainties. A number of important
factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in
the forward-looking statements. For a discussion of factors that could
impact Silicon Laboratories' financial results and cause actual
results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking
statements, please refer to Silicon Laboratories' filings with the
SEC. Silicon Laboratories disclaims any intention or obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result
of new information, future events or otherwise.
Note to editors: Silicon Laboratories and the Silicon Laboratories
logo are trademarks of Silicon Laboratories Inc. All other product
names noted herein may be trademarks of their respective holders.
CONTACT: Silicon Laboratories Inc., Austin
Kirstan Ryan, +1 512-532-5349
kirstan.ryan@silabs.com
SOURCE: Silicon Laboratories Inc.