Fresco and Honestar lower cost of analog TV

TORONTO, CANADA: Fresco Microchip Inc., a developer of leading edge RF, mixed-signal and digital signal processing integrated circuits (ICs), announced a new build-to-print analog TV design in collaboration with Honestar Technologies Co., Ltd, a leading solution provider to major TV manufacturers in China. The platform eliminates costly redundant circuits and accelerates time to market for new flat screen products using Fresco Microchip's FM2150 silicon tuner.

Driven by continued demand in China, India, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia, analog-only televisions continue to account for one-third of the 250 million TVs shipped globally. The ability to reduce system solution costs and product cycles are two key requirements for component selection by major TV set manufacturers. Honestar's new analog TV platform meets this demand by eliminating redundant circuits in existing silicon tuners that are already integrated in popular TV system-on-chips (SoCs), yielding savings in the overall bill-of-materials and development time.

"Our customers include the largest Chinese TV manufacturers who demand robust, field-proven solutions, particularly in non-standard broadcast conditions," said Lite Li, vice president, consumer business unit, Honestar. "Fresco's vast field experience and significant system cost advantage are highly valued in China."

The Honestar reference design seamlessly interfaces Fresco's FM2150 silicon tuner with the latest TV SoCs, which integrate analog demodulation and other functions. The platform offers a very small footprint that is well-suited to meet increasing consumer demand for ultra-thin flat panel televisions.

Available in an ultra-small 4x4 package, Fresco's silicon tuner requires no expensive baluns or wirewound inductors, minimizing the printed circuit board (PCB) area required for the tuner function. As the first true RF-only silicon TV tuner, Fresco's innovative FM2150 eliminates the effects of digital noise from microprocessors and digital processing commonly found inside silicon tuners.

"Honestar is widely recognized as a leading provider to tier one TV makers in China," said Brian Burns, VP of sales, Fresco Microchip. "Our collaboration with Honestar enables Fresco to accelerate our adoption in mainstream TV in China."
The analog TV design kit includes a comprehensive hardware and software package, available to qualified customers today.