Broadcom's 54g(TM) Wireless LAN Reference Designs Achieve Wi-Fi(R) Certification for 802.11b Interoperability
Wednesday February 26, 8:08 am ET
Broadcom Releases Software Compliant With Latest Draft of IEEE 802.11g Specification and Demonstrates Interoperability With Shipping Products
IRVINE, Calif., Feb. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Broadcom Corporation (Nasdaq: BRCM - News), the leading provider of integrated circuits enabling broadband communications, today announced that reference designs and customer products based on the 54g(TM) wireless LAN chipset have achieved Wi-Fi® certification for 802.11b interoperability. The Wi-Fi certification demonstrates that wireless LAN products based on 54g(TM) technology can achieve 100% compatibility with existing 802.11b products while also providing almost five times the bandwidth when operating in 54g(TM)-only environments. 54g(TM) is Broadcom's maximum performance implementation of the IEEE 802.11g draft specification.
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Broadcom also announced a new OneDriver(TM) software release for all 54g(TM) hardware. The software release, which is compliant with the latest 802.11g draft specification version 6.1, is interoperable to 54 Mbps with all previous releases of 54g(TM) software and confirms that changes to the 802.11g draft specification may be implemented through software updates.
Wi-Fi Certification of 802.11b products is provided through testing managed by the Wi-Fi Alliance, a non-profit organization formed in 1999 to certify interoperability of IEEE 802.11 products. The Wi-Fi logo on a product ensures that the product is officially Wi-Fi CERTIFIED by the Wi-Fi Alliance for guaranteed interoperability and compatibility with the more than 500 other Wi-Fi CERTIFIED products on the market today. Broadcom's reference designs, the BCM94306CB and BCM94306-GAP, achieved Wi-Fi certification for 802.11b interoperability. Buffalo Technology, (USA), one of the first Broadcom customers to ship products based on these reference designs, recently announced their 54g(TM) products have also achieved Wi-Fi 802.11b certification.
Achieving Wi-Fi certification means that a 54g(TM) product has been demonstrated to work seamlessly as an 802.11b product up to 11 Mbps, maintaining complete compatibility with existing 802.11b networks. This certification signals to network managers that they can feel confident equipping notebook users with 54g(TM) products today, connected at 802.11b speeds, and significantly improve performance over time as the wireless infrastructure is upgraded to high-speed 802.11g or 802.11a/g solutions. Moreover, because of the rigorous radio performance requirements necessitated for 54 Mbps communications, devices based on 54g(TM) technology when operating in 'b' mode, provide better performance than 802.11b-only clients.
For additional information on the 802.11g draft specification, and expected 54g(TM) performance, please see www.54g.org/802.11gwhitepaper .
"Consumers are rapidly adopting high-speed wireless LAN products based on our 54g(TM) chipsets, and Wi-Fi certification for our reference designs will provide them with added assurance that 54g(TM) equipment will interoperate with their existing 802.11b devices," said Jeff Abramowitz, Senior Director of Marketing for Broadcom's wireless LAN products. "Our latest OneDriver(TM) software release also provides a significant industry confidence boost in 802.11g draft specification products. We have demonstrated interoperability to 54 Mbps with all competing chips on the market, and this release confirms expectations that 802.11g draft specification changes can be accommodated with a simple software upgrade."
Software Release Demonstrates Interoperability
Recently, the IEEE 802.11g draft specification was updated to version 6.1. Broadcom has released driver software compliant with this new draft 6.1 of the specification, making it available to Broadcom's PC OEM, retail and broadband modem partners providing end users the option of upgrading their existing 54g(TM) hardware with the latest software. Existing 54g(TM) products can interoperate at up to 54 Mbps with all 54g(TM) products, whether or not they are upgraded. Users should check with their product provider for recommended course of action.
Broadcom has also conducted extensive tests with draft 802.11g products based on silicon from other semiconductor providers. The testing has demonstrated interoperability to 54 Mbps across all versions of released software. In addition, Broadcom continues to work within the Wi-Fi Alliance to ensure that all 802.11g-based products will be interoperable as they come to market.
Broadcom's AirForce(TM) Wireless LAN Product Family
Broadcom's high performance WLAN product line, AirForce(TM), features the greatest breadth and depth in the industry. In addition to transceivers that provide IEEE 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11a and dual-band 802.11a/g solutions, Broadcom integrates wireless network processors, communications technologies and software solutions into reference designs that speed customer time to market. Broadcom partners are developing 54g(TM) client solutions, access points, routers, cable modems, DSL modems, Bluetooth(TM) solutions and GPRS cellular products.
All the wireless chipsets in the AirForce product line enjoy unique performance advantages that improve throughput and range via Broadcom's SmartRadio(TM) technology. In addition to advanced signal processing techniques, the all-CMOS solutions are capable of self-calibrating based on usage temperature and other environmental conditions, reconfiguring constantly for optimum performance. Competing radios are statically calibrated at the point of manufacture and are unable to adapt to changing environmental influences.
About Broadcom
Broadcom Corporation is the leading provider of highly integrated silicon solutions that enable broadband communications and networking of voice, video and data services. Using proprietary technologies and advanced design methodologies, Broadcom designs, develops and supplies complete system-on-a- chip solutions and related hardware and software applications for every major broadband communications market. Our diverse product portfolio includes solutions for digital cable and satellite set-top boxes; cable and DSL modems and residential gateways; high-speed transmission and switching for local, metropolitan and wide area networking; home and wireless networking; cellular and terrestrial wireless communications; Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) gateway and telephony systems; broadband network processors; and SystemI/O(TM) server solutions. These technologies and products support our core mission: Connecting everything®.
Broadcom is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and may be contacted at 1-949-450-8700 or at www.broadcom.com .
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:
All statements included or incorporated by reference in this release, other than statements or characterizations of historical fact, are forward- looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs, and certain assumptions made by us. Forward-looking statements can often be identified by words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "predicts," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will," "should," "would," "potential," "continue," similar expressions, and variations or negatives of these words. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof, and are based upon the information available to us at this time. Such information is subject to change, and we will not necessarily inform you of such changes. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, our actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statements as a result of various factors.
Important factors that may cause such a difference for Broadcom in connection with its wireless LAN products and reference designs and other AirForce products include, but are not limited to, general economic and political conditions and specific conditions in the markets we address, including the continuing significant economic slowdown and volatility in the technology sector and semiconductor industry, trends in the broadband communications markets in various geographic regions, and possible disruption in commercial activities related to terrorist activity or armed conflict in the United States and other locations; the timing and successful completion of technology and product development through volume production; the rate at which our present and future customers and end-users adopt Broadcom's technologies and products in the markets for high speed wireless networking applications; delays in the adoption and acceptance of industry standards in those markets; the effects of new and emerging technologies; competitive pressures and other factors such as the qualification, availability and pricing of competing products and technologies and the resulting effects on sales and pricing of our products; our ability to retain and hire key executives, technical personnel and other employees in the numbers, with the capabilities, and at the compensation levels needed to implement our business and product plans; our ability to specify, develop or acquire, complete, introduce, market and transition to volume production new products and technologies in a timely manner; the timing of customer-industry qualification and certification of our products and the risks of non-qualification or non- certification; the timing, rescheduling or cancellation of significant customer orders and the ability of our customers to manage their inventories; the loss of a key customer; the volume of our product sales and pricing concessions on volume sales; changes in our product or customer mix; intellectual property disputes and customer indemnification claims and other types of litigation risk; the availability and pricing of third party semiconductor foundry and assembly capacity and raw materials; fluctuations in the manufacturing yields of our third party semiconductor foundries and other problems or delays in the fabrication, assembly, testing or delivery of our products; the risks of producing products with new suppliers and at new fabrication and assembly facilities; problems or delays that we may face in shifting our products to smaller geometry process technologies and in achieving higher levels of design integration; the quality of our products and any remediation costs; the effectiveness of our expense and product cost control and reduction efforts; the risks and uncertainties associated with our international operations, particularly in light of recent events; the effects of natural disasters, international conflicts and other events beyond our control; the level of orders received that can be shipped in a fiscal quarter; and other factors.
Our Annual Report on Form 10-K, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, recent Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other Securities and Exchange Commission filings discuss some of the important risk factors that could contribute to such differences or otherwise affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statement for any reason.
Broadcom®, the pulse logo, Connecting everything®, 54g(TM), AirForce(TM), OneDriver(TM), SmartRadio(TM) and SystemI/O(TM) are trademarks of Broadcom Corporation and/or its affiliates in the United States and certain other countries. Wi-Fi® is a registered trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance. Bluetooth(TM) is a trademark of the Bluetooth SIG. All other trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.
Broadcom Trade Press Contact:
Henry Rael
Sr. Communications Specialist
949-585-5734
hrael@broadcom.com
Broadcom Business Press Contact:
Bill Blanning Sr. Director, Corporate Communications
949-585-5555
blanning@broadcom.com
Broadcom Technical Contact
Jeff Abramowitz
Sr. Director, Marketing
Wireless LAN Products
408-543-3311
jeffa@broadcom.com
Broadcom Investor Relations Contact
Glenn Josephson
Investor Relations
949-585-6663
glennj@broadcom.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: Broadcom Corporation
Wednesday February 26, 8:08 am ET
Broadcom Releases Software Compliant With Latest Draft of IEEE 802.11g Specification and Demonstrates Interoperability With Shipping Products
IRVINE, Calif., Feb. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Broadcom Corporation (Nasdaq: BRCM - News), the leading provider of integrated circuits enabling broadband communications, today announced that reference designs and customer products based on the 54g(TM) wireless LAN chipset have achieved Wi-Fi® certification for 802.11b interoperability. The Wi-Fi certification demonstrates that wireless LAN products based on 54g(TM) technology can achieve 100% compatibility with existing 802.11b products while also providing almost five times the bandwidth when operating in 54g(TM)-only environments. 54g(TM) is Broadcom's maximum performance implementation of the IEEE 802.11g draft specification.
ADVERTISEMENT
Broadcom also announced a new OneDriver(TM) software release for all 54g(TM) hardware. The software release, which is compliant with the latest 802.11g draft specification version 6.1, is interoperable to 54 Mbps with all previous releases of 54g(TM) software and confirms that changes to the 802.11g draft specification may be implemented through software updates.
Wi-Fi Certification of 802.11b products is provided through testing managed by the Wi-Fi Alliance, a non-profit organization formed in 1999 to certify interoperability of IEEE 802.11 products. The Wi-Fi logo on a product ensures that the product is officially Wi-Fi CERTIFIED by the Wi-Fi Alliance for guaranteed interoperability and compatibility with the more than 500 other Wi-Fi CERTIFIED products on the market today. Broadcom's reference designs, the BCM94306CB and BCM94306-GAP, achieved Wi-Fi certification for 802.11b interoperability. Buffalo Technology, (USA), one of the first Broadcom customers to ship products based on these reference designs, recently announced their 54g(TM) products have also achieved Wi-Fi 802.11b certification.
Achieving Wi-Fi certification means that a 54g(TM) product has been demonstrated to work seamlessly as an 802.11b product up to 11 Mbps, maintaining complete compatibility with existing 802.11b networks. This certification signals to network managers that they can feel confident equipping notebook users with 54g(TM) products today, connected at 802.11b speeds, and significantly improve performance over time as the wireless infrastructure is upgraded to high-speed 802.11g or 802.11a/g solutions. Moreover, because of the rigorous radio performance requirements necessitated for 54 Mbps communications, devices based on 54g(TM) technology when operating in 'b' mode, provide better performance than 802.11b-only clients.
For additional information on the 802.11g draft specification, and expected 54g(TM) performance, please see www.54g.org/802.11gwhitepaper .
"Consumers are rapidly adopting high-speed wireless LAN products based on our 54g(TM) chipsets, and Wi-Fi certification for our reference designs will provide them with added assurance that 54g(TM) equipment will interoperate with their existing 802.11b devices," said Jeff Abramowitz, Senior Director of Marketing for Broadcom's wireless LAN products. "Our latest OneDriver(TM) software release also provides a significant industry confidence boost in 802.11g draft specification products. We have demonstrated interoperability to 54 Mbps with all competing chips on the market, and this release confirms expectations that 802.11g draft specification changes can be accommodated with a simple software upgrade."
Software Release Demonstrates Interoperability
Recently, the IEEE 802.11g draft specification was updated to version 6.1. Broadcom has released driver software compliant with this new draft 6.1 of the specification, making it available to Broadcom's PC OEM, retail and broadband modem partners providing end users the option of upgrading their existing 54g(TM) hardware with the latest software. Existing 54g(TM) products can interoperate at up to 54 Mbps with all 54g(TM) products, whether or not they are upgraded. Users should check with their product provider for recommended course of action.
Broadcom has also conducted extensive tests with draft 802.11g products based on silicon from other semiconductor providers. The testing has demonstrated interoperability to 54 Mbps across all versions of released software. In addition, Broadcom continues to work within the Wi-Fi Alliance to ensure that all 802.11g-based products will be interoperable as they come to market.
Broadcom's AirForce(TM) Wireless LAN Product Family
Broadcom's high performance WLAN product line, AirForce(TM), features the greatest breadth and depth in the industry. In addition to transceivers that provide IEEE 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11a and dual-band 802.11a/g solutions, Broadcom integrates wireless network processors, communications technologies and software solutions into reference designs that speed customer time to market. Broadcom partners are developing 54g(TM) client solutions, access points, routers, cable modems, DSL modems, Bluetooth(TM) solutions and GPRS cellular products.
All the wireless chipsets in the AirForce product line enjoy unique performance advantages that improve throughput and range via Broadcom's SmartRadio(TM) technology. In addition to advanced signal processing techniques, the all-CMOS solutions are capable of self-calibrating based on usage temperature and other environmental conditions, reconfiguring constantly for optimum performance. Competing radios are statically calibrated at the point of manufacture and are unable to adapt to changing environmental influences.
About Broadcom
Broadcom Corporation is the leading provider of highly integrated silicon solutions that enable broadband communications and networking of voice, video and data services. Using proprietary technologies and advanced design methodologies, Broadcom designs, develops and supplies complete system-on-a- chip solutions and related hardware and software applications for every major broadband communications market. Our diverse product portfolio includes solutions for digital cable and satellite set-top boxes; cable and DSL modems and residential gateways; high-speed transmission and switching for local, metropolitan and wide area networking; home and wireless networking; cellular and terrestrial wireless communications; Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) gateway and telephony systems; broadband network processors; and SystemI/O(TM) server solutions. These technologies and products support our core mission: Connecting everything®.
Broadcom is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and may be contacted at 1-949-450-8700 or at www.broadcom.com .
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:
All statements included or incorporated by reference in this release, other than statements or characterizations of historical fact, are forward- looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs, and certain assumptions made by us. Forward-looking statements can often be identified by words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "predicts," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will," "should," "would," "potential," "continue," similar expressions, and variations or negatives of these words. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof, and are based upon the information available to us at this time. Such information is subject to change, and we will not necessarily inform you of such changes. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, our actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statements as a result of various factors.
Important factors that may cause such a difference for Broadcom in connection with its wireless LAN products and reference designs and other AirForce products include, but are not limited to, general economic and political conditions and specific conditions in the markets we address, including the continuing significant economic slowdown and volatility in the technology sector and semiconductor industry, trends in the broadband communications markets in various geographic regions, and possible disruption in commercial activities related to terrorist activity or armed conflict in the United States and other locations; the timing and successful completion of technology and product development through volume production; the rate at which our present and future customers and end-users adopt Broadcom's technologies and products in the markets for high speed wireless networking applications; delays in the adoption and acceptance of industry standards in those markets; the effects of new and emerging technologies; competitive pressures and other factors such as the qualification, availability and pricing of competing products and technologies and the resulting effects on sales and pricing of our products; our ability to retain and hire key executives, technical personnel and other employees in the numbers, with the capabilities, and at the compensation levels needed to implement our business and product plans; our ability to specify, develop or acquire, complete, introduce, market and transition to volume production new products and technologies in a timely manner; the timing of customer-industry qualification and certification of our products and the risks of non-qualification or non- certification; the timing, rescheduling or cancellation of significant customer orders and the ability of our customers to manage their inventories; the loss of a key customer; the volume of our product sales and pricing concessions on volume sales; changes in our product or customer mix; intellectual property disputes and customer indemnification claims and other types of litigation risk; the availability and pricing of third party semiconductor foundry and assembly capacity and raw materials; fluctuations in the manufacturing yields of our third party semiconductor foundries and other problems or delays in the fabrication, assembly, testing or delivery of our products; the risks of producing products with new suppliers and at new fabrication and assembly facilities; problems or delays that we may face in shifting our products to smaller geometry process technologies and in achieving higher levels of design integration; the quality of our products and any remediation costs; the effectiveness of our expense and product cost control and reduction efforts; the risks and uncertainties associated with our international operations, particularly in light of recent events; the effects of natural disasters, international conflicts and other events beyond our control; the level of orders received that can be shipped in a fiscal quarter; and other factors.
Our Annual Report on Form 10-K, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, recent Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other Securities and Exchange Commission filings discuss some of the important risk factors that could contribute to such differences or otherwise affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statement for any reason.
Broadcom®, the pulse logo, Connecting everything®, 54g(TM), AirForce(TM), OneDriver(TM), SmartRadio(TM) and SystemI/O(TM) are trademarks of Broadcom Corporation and/or its affiliates in the United States and certain other countries. Wi-Fi® is a registered trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance. Bluetooth(TM) is a trademark of the Bluetooth SIG. All other trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.
Broadcom Trade Press Contact:
Henry Rael
Sr. Communications Specialist
949-585-5734
hrael@broadcom.com
Broadcom Business Press Contact:
Bill Blanning Sr. Director, Corporate Communications
949-585-5555
blanning@broadcom.com
Broadcom Technical Contact
Jeff Abramowitz
Sr. Director, Marketing
Wireless LAN Products
408-543-3311
jeffa@broadcom.com
Broadcom Investor Relations Contact
Glenn Josephson
Investor Relations
949-585-6663
glennj@broadcom.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: Broadcom Corporation
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