CSR SiRFprimaII SoC powers China’s RoadRover next-gen in-vehicle infotainment platform

CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND & SAN JOSE, USA: CSR plc announced that Shenzhen RoadRover Technology Co. Ltd (RoadRover), a recognised market leader in mainland China, has extended its strategic collaboration with CSR and adopted the SiRFprimaII solution as its next-generation platform for a new family of mid- to high-end in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) systems.

RoadRover chose the SiRFprimaII solution for these in-dash products because it provided the best combination of performance, reliability and cost effectiveness while delivering robust location, connectivity and multimedia capabilities.

“The second-generation SiRFprimaII platform is the right solution for the China market, offering not only the speed, accuracy, reliability and cost-effectiveness that we have come to expect from CSR multifunction SoC platform solutions, but also the local support we require,” said Zongtao Zhang, GM of RoadRover Technology.

“The complete CSR platform solution enables us to quickly develop and bring to market a range of highly differentiated, location-aware IVI systems with rich connectivity and multimedia features. With the SiRFprimaII solution, we are able to deliver an outstanding user experience that will set a new standard for mainstream in-vehicle infotainment systems.”

According to Zhang, RoadRover’s experience with the first SiRFprima SoC, which is at the heart of their current market-leading Changxin and LC series products, was a major factor in their decision to adopt the new SiRFprimaII SoC. The high-performance ARM Cortex-A9 application processor and integrated multimedia and graphics engines, as well as integrated multi-GNSS baseband can meet the demands of future RoadRover in-vehicle infotainment products.

RoadRover can easily combine the SiRFprimaII SoC with the CSR8311 Bluetooth and CSR6031 Wi-Fi solutions as needed for different product categories, thanks to the pre-integration of complete hardware and software in the platform and local support offered by CSR. The complete CSR platform solution is also supported by all the CSR location, connectivity and audio enhancement software, including aptX high-fidelity wireless audio technology, CVC noise reduction and echo cancellation, SiRFInstantFix and SiRFDRive location advances and more.

RoadRover was one of China’s pioneers in the automotive GPS products market, and today is one of the top three manufacturers in China of aftermarket IVI systems, designing and manufacturing off-the-shelf as well as customisable products for mainland and global markets.

“Our relationship with RoadRover, a leader in this high-growth market, is very important to us, and we are pleased to be able to extend this strategic collaboration with them as they develop and manufacture a new family of products based on our SiRFprimaII platform,” said Rob Yeh, director of APAC marketing for the Auto Group at CSR. “Through our dedicated team in Shanghai, CSR has worked closely with RoadRover to ensure they can quickly bring innovative in-dash navigation and infotainment systems to market that are affordable for mainstream consumers.”

According to published reports, vehicle sales in mainland China are expected to increase to 23 million units in 2015 from 18.1 million in 2010, an increase of 27 percent.

The SiRFprimaII auto infotainment platform is a comprehensive solution that raises the bar for the next generation of connected, location-aware in-vehicle infotainment systems, and helps IVI makers like RoadRover reduce their product development, manufacturing and BOM costs and quickly bring the features of premium navigation and infotainment systems to the mainstream automotive market.

The complete platform solution combines CSR core competencies in location, connectivity and multimedia technologies and integrating software to form the heart of a robust, touchscreen-based system that lets drivers navigate reliably and passengers entertain themselves with DVDs or streaming video, enjoy hi-fi stereo audio through speakers or wireless headsets, use a remote to control everything, connect their laptops via Wi-Fi and much more.