Qualcomm unleashes tri-band WiFi and new mobile wireless chipset

Qualcomm might be all juiced up about getting its Snapdragon processor in 250 upcoming devices, but that doesn't mean the company has forgotten its wireless roots. The San Diego-based chip maker announced that its partnership with Wilocity has finally bore fruit in the form of the AR9004TB chipset. This tri-band wireless setup adds 60GHz WiGig to the usual 2.4 and 5GHz dual-band 802.11n formula for "multi-gigabit in-room performance." Though far from finalized, the 802.11ad standard being pushed by the WiGig alliance should be able to hit speeds of 5Gbps -- more than enough to blast several HD video streams around your home. It also packs Bluetooth 4.0 for your less bandwidth intensive (and more battery sensitive) computing needs. Going smaller scale, Qualcomm also unveiled the WCN3660, a wireless chipset to complement its Snapdragon CPU in smartphones and tablets. Inside this sliver of silicon is a dual-band Wi-Fi radio, Bluetooth 4.0, and an FM radio. It also supports Wi-Fi Display (not to be confused with WiDi) for beaming video to a WiFi-enabled TV or monitor. Head on after the break for more PR than you can shake an antenna at.

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Qualcomm Atheros and Wilocity Announce Tri-band Wi-Fi: Industry's First Standards-compliant, Multi-gigabit Wireless Chipset

- Qualcomm Atheros AR9004TB Solution Adds In-room 5 Gbps Performance to Industry Leading Wi-Fi Technology -

TAIPEI, Taiwan and SAN JOSE, Calif., May 31, 2011 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Qualcomm Atheros Inc., the networking and connectivity subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM), and Wilocity, a leading developer of 60 GHz multi-gigabit wireless chipsets for the mobile computing, consumer electronics and peripheral markets, today announced the AR9004TB, the industry's first tri-band Wi-Fi chipset that integrates the multi-gigabit performance of in-room 60 GHz band with seamless handoff to 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz band Wi-Fi. The new AR9004TB solution is the first chipset capable of supporting a wide range of applications, from I/O to video to networking, at the same speeds as equivalent wired connectivity technologies, while maintaining whole home coverage and complete interoperability.

AR9004TB is a significant step forward in delivering the most seamless, high-performance wireless networking connectivity. By using a fully standards-compliant and interoperable approach, Qualcomm Atheros and Wilocity can help device makers deliver more than 10 times greater speed in Wi-Fi performance, resulting in faster data and video transfers between devices. These enhancements will help power even more advanced devices, applications and experiences, from gaming to video streaming, smart synchronization and wireless docking. New fast session transfer technology in the AR9004TB will drive a seamless transition between multi-gigabit in-room performance to whole home and enterprise wireless coverage.

"The new AR9004TB solution strengthens and expands our industry-leading portfolio of wireless and wired connectivity technologies for consumer and enterprise devices," said Amir Faintuch, senior vice president and general manager, consumer business unit, Qualcomm Atheros. "By incorporating 60 GHz multi-gigabit transfer with proven 802.11n Wi-Fi technologies, Qualcomm Atheros and Wilocity are creating an even more valuable offering for customers looking to expand their presence in the market. AR9004TB will allow users to enjoy new generations of rich applications in the home and at work while also helping keep their devices and information fully synchronized."

"As the promise of multi-gigabit wireless technology becomes reality, Wilocity is proud to take its place, with Qualcomm Atheros, at the head of the long line of future WiGig and draft 802.11ad products that will follow," said Mark Grodzinsky, vice president of marketing, Wilocity. "The AR9004TB solution is the first to offer multi-gigabit Wi-Fi and wireless bus extension, coupled with dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 for a truly wireless experience for a wide range of applications from I/O to networking to video. For the first time, the fastest way to access data from products that implement this groundbreaking technology will be wireless."

The AR9004TB solution is the first tri-band Wi-Fi chipset to integrate support for 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 60 GHz bands. As such, it is the first chipset to bring standards-based, multi-gigabit wireless networking to the market, integrating 802.11n and WiGig/802.11ad technologies in the same form factor. Consumers utilizing devices based on this technology will enjoy 802.11n Wi-Fi for whole home connectivity along with 802.11ad for networked synchronization of HD movies in seconds (versus tens of minutes), I/O connection to USB3/SATA hard drives, instant "sync and go" between mobile platforms, streaming display to projectors/TVs/monitors, and high-performance wireless docking.

The 60 GHz technology found in AR9004TB is based on the latest specifications from the Wireless Gigabit Alliance and IEEE 802.11ad and will be Wi-Fi Alliance certified. The AR9004TB also supports the latest Bluetooth 4.0 specification, which includes both high-speed and low-energy operation to extend personal area connectivity to a variety of devices. It includes a new message-based coexistence interface that allows superior interference avoidance and cancellation for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth coexistence.

Qualcomm Atheros and Wilocity will be demonstrating the AR9004TB tri-band Wi-Fi solution in Taipei, Taiwan in conjunction with the COMPUTEX TAIPEI trade show, with product sampling expected to begin in summer 2011.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including the features, benefits and performance of Qualcomm Atheros' and Wilocity's products and technologies, including the AR9004TB chipset, the expected sampling of the AR9004TB beginning in summer 2011, and the anticipated growth of the multi-gigabit wireless market, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to, difficulties in the development of new and enhanced products, general economic conditions, the effects of competition and technological change, and the risks detailed in Qualcomm Atheros' (formerly Atheros Communications, Inc.) Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010, as amended, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2011 , as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and in other reports filed with the SEC by Qualcomm Incorporated from time to time.

About Wilocity

Wilocity is a leading developer of next-generation 60 GHz multi-gigabit wireless chipsets for the mobile computing, consumer electronics and peripheral markets that will enable mobile device manufacturers to deliver the thin and light platforms that consumers want without sacrificing the performance and functionality that consumers need. Based on the Wireless Gigabit Alliance (WiGig) specification, Wilocity's wireless bus extension technology will enable truly multi-gigabit wireless for a wide range of applications from I/O to networking to video. For more information, please visit www.wilocity.com.

About Qualcomm Atheros

Qualcomm Atheros Inc., the networking and connectivity subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, is a leading provider of wireless and wired technologies for the mobile, networking, computing and consumer electronics markets. The organization is focused on inventing technologies that connect and empower people in ways that are elegant and accessible to all. With its broad connectivity portfolio, Qualcomm Atheros provides its global customer base with high-performance, end-to-end solutions, featuring Wi-Fi®, GPS, Bluetooth®, Ethernet, HomePlug® powerline and PON technologies. Qualcomm Atheros leverages its substantial expertise in RF, signal processing, software and networking to deliver highly integrated, low-power, system-level solutions that enable customers to create high-performance, differentiated products. For more information, go to www.qca.qualcomm.com.

Qualcomm Atheros is a trademark of Qualcomm Atheros Inc. HomePlug is a registered trademark of the HomePlug Powerline Alliance. All other trademarks are the sole property of their respective owners.

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Qualcomm Atheros Announces Highly Integrated Connectivity Solution for Superior Performance in Smartphones and Tablets
WCN3660 Combo Chip Brings Dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and FM Radio Connectivity to Qualcomm's 28nm Snapdragon Family of Mobile Processors

TAIPEI, Taiwan and SAN JOSE, Calif. – May 31, 2011 - Qualcomm Atheros Inc., the networking and connectivity subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM), today announced it has begun sampling its new WCN3660 combo chip, which is designed to bring expanded connectivity options to the Qualcomm Snapdragon™ family of mobile processors. Optimized for use in smartphone and tablet devices, the WCN3660 supports an extensive suite of advanced Wi-Fi connectivity options with multiple Wi-Fi standards. The WCN3660 chip also supports Bluetooth 3.0 and Bluetooth 4.0 and the worldwide FM radio frequency band. Designed to interface with Qualcomm's 28nm Snapdragon mobile processors, the new WCN3660 is a highly integrated solution, enabling customers to provide enhanced connectivity in mobile devices, while reducing the board area required for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth® and FM radio support by up to 50 percent over existing solutions.

"With the launch of the WCN3660, Qualcomm Atheros is demonstrating its commitment to provide an extensive connectivity portfolio of discrete, combo and integrated platform solutions to our smartphone and tablet customers," said Amir Faintuch, senior vice president and general manager, consumer business unit, Qualcomm Atheros. "Qualcomm Atheros is pleased to help enable a new generation of mobile devices that connect users to the growing array of must-have social, media and cloud applications."

The WCN3660 chip features single-stream, 802.11n with dual-band (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) operation to enhance mobile wireless multimedia applications. The chip also supports mobile hotspot functionality for up to 14 clients with industry standards-based Wi-Fi Direct™ for peer-to-peer wireless connections without an access point present. The WCN3660 also will support the emerging Wi-Fi Display™ standard for streaming video directly from a smartphone or tablet to a Wi-Fi-enabled display or television.

The WCN3660 chip has an integrated dual-band power amplifier, transmit antenna switch and on-chip matching circuit, which allows the chip to meet the most stringent carrier requirements while minimizing solution size and power consumption. Bluetooth standards supported by the WCN3660 chip include high-speed Bluetooth 3.0 for audio streaming and device connectivity, and low-power Bluetooth 4.0, which is designed to work with low-power sensors, health monitoring devices and other low data-rate applications. The FM radio capabilities of the WCN3660 include support for both FM receiver and transceiver functionality; worldwide FM band support (76 to 108 MHz); RDS support for Europe and RBDS support for the U.S.; autonomous search, seek and manual tuning; and active noise cancellation.

The WCN3660 chip is compatible and directly interfaces with Snapdragon devices manufactured in the 28nm process, including the MSM8960™, MSM8270™, MSM8x30™ and APQ8064™. It uses a fully calibrated, wafer-level package smaller than 15mm-squared for direct mounting to a PCB for ease of design and implementation. The WCN3660's small size and low power consumption in both active and standby modes help provide excellent battery life in mobile devices. To minimize interference and provide high LTE data throughput and optimal audio quality, the WCN3660 interfaces directly with the centralized coexistence manager in the Snapdragon device to provide real-time, intelligent packet arbitration and scheduling, providing an LTE/ISM coexistence solution that is optimized beyond the capabilities of standard filtering approaches.

"Qualcomm Atheros is utilizing its systems expertise to deliver a highly innovative and integrated architecture for connectivity solutions in smartphones and tablets," said David Favreau, vice president of product management, Qualcomm Atheros. "The new WCN3660 combo chip with the Qualcomm Snapdragon mobile processors provides a powerful solution for always-connected mobile devices that support WAN, WLAN and WPAN connections."

The WCN3660 is optimized to work with a broad range of mobile operating systems including Android, next-generation Windows and Windows Phone, Palm® WebOS™ and QNX®. Samples of the WCN3660 chip are available now, with a commercial release scheduled for late 2011.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including the features, benefits and performance of Qualcomm Atheros' products and technologies, including its WCN3660 combo chip, and the expected timing of commercial release of the WCN3660 chip in late 2011, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to, difficulties in the development of new and enhanced products, general economic conditions, the effects of competition and technological change, and the risks detailed in Qualcomm Atheros' (formerly Atheros Communications Inc.) Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010, as amended, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2011 , as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and in other reports filed with the SEC by Qualcomm Incorporated from time to time.

About Qualcomm Atheros

Qualcomm Atheros Inc., the networking and connectivity subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, is a leading provider of wireless and wired technologies for the mobile, networking, computing and consumer electronics markets. The organization is focused on inventing technologies that connect and empower people in ways that are elegant and accessible to all. With its broad connectivity portfolio, Qualcomm Atheros provides its global customer base with high-performance, end-to-end solutions, featuring Wi-Fi®, GPS, Bluetooth®, Ethernet, HomePlug® powerline and PON technologies. Qualcomm Atheros leverages its substantial expertise in RF, signal processing, software and networking to deliver highly integrated, low-power, system-level solutions that enable customers to create high-performance, differentiated products. For more information, go to www.qca.qualcomm.com.