Sequans announces new WiMAX chip for handsets and tablets

CTIA WIRELESS 2011, ORLANDO, USA: 4G chipmaker Sequans introduced its newest Mobile WiMAX chip, the SQN1310, at CTIA’s Wireless 2011 annual trade show.

The new chip leverages the architecture and software of Sequans’ SQN1200 series technology while providing higher levels of integration, enabling a smaller design footprint and reduced system cost.

“The new SQN1310 Mobile WiMAX chip is a reflection of the maturing WiMAX industry and the need of designers for more highly integrated chip solutions for WiMAX devices, especially handsets and tablets,” said Craig Miller, Sequans’ VP of marketing. “WiMAX-enabled handsets and tablets are proliferating rapidly and with the new SQN1310, Sequans makes it easier and more cost-effective to add WiMAX to these designs.”

The SQN1310 delivers baseband and dual-band RF in a single 65 nm die and its tiny 9x9 mm package includes memory. In addition to the very low power consumption enabled by its core 65 nm architecture, the SQN1310 employs state-of-the-art power reduction techniques to further reduce power consumption, especially in idle mode, extending the battery life of mobile devices.

The SQN1310 comes with a comprehensive software package – Sequans’ 4G-EZ software suite – that includes a turnkey solution for both Android and Microsoft platforms, and seamless 3G/4G handover. Sequans’ 4G-EZ software is based on seven years of Sequans’ field experience and is running in all major WiMAX deployments, making it one of the most mature solutions in the global WiMAX ecosystem.

“The smartphone category was the dominant application for 4G in 2010, with award winning products such as the HTC EVO 4G smartphone achieving mass-market status,” said Richard Webb, directing analyst of WiMAX, Microwave and Mobile Devices, Infonetics Research Inc. “Sequans is demonstrating its commitment to the category by continuing to optimize its solutions for mobile platforms.”

SQN1310 Mobile WiMAX system-on-chip is sampling now and will be generally available in Q2.