RF Micro Devices announced that it is shipping its RF3283CR, a GSM/GPRS transmit module (TxM) optimized for GSM900/DCS1800 (2G) handsets. The RF3283CR is specifically designed to enhance the performance of system-on-chip (SoC) RF solutions, which integrate the cellular transceiver with the handset baseband.
2G handsets represent the majority of volume in high-growth emerging markets and are increasingly manufactured using SoC RF solutions. The adoption of SoC solutions in 2G handsets favorably impacts the total addressable market and value proposition for RFMD(R, as the higher levels of functionality and systems-level knowledge in RFMD's cellular front ends enhance SoC RF performance. RFMD is uniquely positioned to optimize SoC RF performance and reduce the complexity of SoC-based handset implementation, given the Company's industry leadership in cellular front ends, its deep cellular systems-level expertise and its proven experience supplying hundreds of millions of cellular transceivers to leading handset manufacturers.
RFMD's RF3283CR contains a cellular power amplifier, a pHEMT antenna switch and harmonic filtering designed to reduce VCO pulling and enhance overall system performance. The RF3283CR also features RFMD's TRP-enhanced PowerStar integrated power control technology, which reduces current variation by approximately 50% into non-ideal (3:1) loads, also known as "antenna mismatch," thus easing handset implementation for OEMs seeking improved TRP and SAR performance. Importantly, the RF3283CR delivers best-in-class harmonic emissions and insertion loss performance, which are critical front end parameters when mated with system-on-chip (SoC) solutions.
RFMD's RF3283CR delivers pin-to-pin compatibility with its highly successful, high-volume predecessor, thereby easing implementation and accelerating time-to-market of 2G handsets for leading handset development teams.
