Broadcom looks to unify devices down its road to the Internet of Things (via Broadcom)
Are you in the market to acquire new mobile devices, TVs or PCs with integrated high-speed Wi-Fi access? Then Broadcom has good news for you as the company has recently announced that they are set to release three new chips for everything from tablets to desktop PCs. Sure everybody wants to have a high-speed connection for their electronics but sometimes a wired connection just will not cut it, which is where Wi-Fi shines. Broadcom’s recent announcement focuses on their new 2X2 5G Wi-Fi chips including their BCM4350, BCM43556 and BCM43558 that are centered more for home electronics rather than mobile devices. More and more people are streaming HD content (Netflix, Hulu+, etc.) to their home electronics, and as such, require more bandwidth when doing so over a Wi-Fi connection. This is where the BCM series excels as each chip features a 2X2 MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) 5G antenna capable of speeds up to 866Mbps over WLAN. Beamforming also gives the chips an edge over the current generation already on the market as they transmit LDPC (error correcting) codes for minimal packet loss over a phased directional array that is great for a Wi-Fi connected home. Broadcom’s BCM4350 is meant just for PCs/laptops, tablets and TVs and features support for PCI-E as well as SDIO 3.0 (Secure Digital Input Output) and features a Bluetooth 4.0 for gestural and voice input. The chip also features multi-room DVR, gaming and internet browsing support along with integration for Windows and Android OS functionality.
Broadcom’s other two chips (BCM43556 and BCM43558) are being marketed for manufacturers of digital TVs, regular set-top boxes as well as PCs (no tablets or other mobile devices). These chips feature support for USB3.0, interoptibility with other 5G (802.11ac) devices, support for Windows 7/8 platforms and have low-power modes for battery optimization. Broadcom expects to have all three available to manufacturers sometime in the second half of 2013 so chances are we won’t see any new electronics outfitted with the chips until sometime after the Holidays. The company has spent most of its time developing 802.11ac chips for mobile devices such as their BCM28150 SoC for smartphones that feature a dual-core ARM Cortex A9 processor along with an integrated 4G HSPA+ modem to stream media in 1080p HD. It’s rather refreshing to see the attention of companies’ transition over to home Wi-Fi networks for a change instead of strict attention to the mobile device market. It’s not that its bad, but it seems little to no attention at all has been paid by companies to develop wireless infrastructures in the home especially when desktop PCs have taken a backseat to mobile devices. While a wired home connection is still incredibly fast when compared to Wi-Fi, the prospect of running cables all through the home is a headache most people choose to avoid. However as wireless technology inches toward faster speeds it will not be long for wireless to reach the current speeds of a wired connection.
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