RFMD commences volume shipments of next-generation WCDMA/HSPA+ power amplifiers for smart phones and 3G devices

GREENSBORO, USA: RF Micro Devices Inc., a leader in the design and manufacture of high-performance radio frequency components and compound semiconductor technologies, has commenced high-volume production shipments of its RF720x WCDMA/HSPA+ power amplifiers (PAs) to leading smart phone and 3G device manufacturers in Korea and China.

The RF720x product family is currently supporting multiple new data-centric devices, and volume shipments are forecast to increase materially in calendar 2010.

RFMD's RF720x PAs maximize efficiency across all major 3G frequency bands (1-6, 8-11, 33, 34) to extend battery life in both voice and data operation. RFMD's RF720x PAs also feature the industry's highest mid-power to high-power switch point, enabling further improvement in efficiency and higher data throughput in mid-power data modes up to 19 dBm - several decibels better than current competitive offerings.

The higher mid-power switch point is especially critical to manufacturers of next-generation 3G/4G smart phones, as they seek greater reductions in output power in data-only operation. Also, by optimizing all switch points (low-power, mid-power and high-power) for data-centric smart phones, the RF720x product family reduces customer test times related to calibration, further lowering total system costs while also accelerating time-to-market.

Eric Creviston, president of RFMD's Cellular Products Group (CPG), said: "RFMD's innovative new RF720x product family represents the next-generation of discrete 3G power amplifiers for smart phones and 3G devices. RFMD's RF720x product family helps smart phone manufacturers significantly enhance the consumer experience by extending battery life and enabling smaller device form factors. The RF720x product family also lowers our customers' total system costs and helps to maximize customer-level factory throughput by minimizing design cycle times and test times.

"We are particularly excited about new smart phone programs we are supporting in Korea and China, and we look forward to ramping new design wins in the near-term in Europe and North America."

RFMD's RF720x product family includes nine high performance PAs designed for smartphones and 3G devices implementing mode-specific, band-specific front end architectures. The RF720x product family accommodates all major WCDMA/HSPA+/TD-SCDMA bands and band combinations and is optimized for seamless operation with reference designs from Qualcomm and other leading open market 3G chipset suppliers.

RFMD's 3G product portfolio accommodates all major RF architectures, including existing mode-specific/band-specific and mode-specific/multi-band architectures as well as emerging multimode/multi-band, converged architectures. RFMD also supplies a broad portfolio of switch-based components optimized for smart phones and 3G devices, providing a comprehensive RF product portfolio covering the entire cellular front end.