A big-picture look at our new WiLink 8.0 family

As someone that’s been a part of the TI family for more than 20 years, I am incredibly proud to see the progress that we continue to make in providing customers with the best semiconductor technologies. When I started with the connectivity team, we were just starting to tout our combo connectivity products, and starting to see customers ask for single-chip solutions that integrated more than one radio without sacrificing performance or increasing power requirements. We stood ready to address these needs then, and have shipped more than 400 million WiLink units to fuel the most sought-after mobile devices.

Today, we took the next leap forward in delivering on our mission  to lead next-generation mobile capabilities via combo connectivity solutions. With great excitement, we lifted the curtain on the WiLink™ 8.0 family: a collection of 45-nanometer single-chip solutions that integrates up to five different radios. The WiLink 8.0 architecture supports various combinations of mobile Wi-Fi®, GNSS, NFC, Bluetooth® and FM transmit/receive applications, and allows for customized solutions that address the unique needs and price points of all mobile markets. You can check out full WiLink 8.0 family details in our multimedia news release (click here).

This milestone is a huge deal for consumers, our customers, partners, and last but not least the TI team . Since it’s sometime difficult to translate chip-level product announcements into “everyday speak,” I wanted to take the chance to explain some consumer benefits that will ensue as a result of WiLink 8.0-based devices coming to market later this year.

The big picture: More connectivity for more people

At the high end, the five-radio WL189x solutions usher in the highest-performance, most robust connectivity features the mobile industry has ever seen, from multimedia-rich streaming via mobile MIMO and mobile payments via NFC technology, to best-in-class GNSS positioning and more. For consumers that seek out the highest-end smartphones and tablets, eBooks and ultrathin computing devices – this one’s for you.

Leading at the highest end is only one part of the equation though. In a world that’s more connected than ever, all price tiers of mobile devices markets represent incredible opportunities for  connectedness. With that in mind, we offer the WL187x, WL185x and WL183x solutions provide additional options for higher- to mid-tier devices, while the WL180x solutions address lower-cost mobile markets.

This means that we’re now taking capabilities that were previously only available in very high-end devices and making them a reality on more mobile products. The scalable WiLink 8.0 family doesn’t just open up new connected use cases – it connects more people and more devices over the mobile air waves, which in turn provides more choices and opportunities for consumers to link to the outside world.

If you build it…why will they come?

Once the radios come together on a mobile device – whether all five of them or a combination of a few – consumers will use them. It comes down to context: Where am I, and what’s important to me? The path to these answers has been treaded by a select few, but not implemented for the mass market. Let’s take a look at some ways the WiLink 8.0 family will determine those answers:

Hybrid-location “shopping”: WiLink 8.0 solution-based devices blend partial and full data from the Wi-Fi and sensor systems, complimented by Bluetooth low energy, ANT and NFC augmentation mechanisms, to recognize a device’s exact location. The ability to use various inputs allows users to pin-point their location when no single solution is able to do it. This truly opens the door for unprecedented amount of options for the consumer to make buying choices.

Commercialized NFC: We’re starting to see NFC come to mobile devices today, but there is still a major barrier: the cost of the implementation. With the industry’s first solutions to integrate an NFC controller, the WiLink 8.0 family removes this barrier completely, transforming NFC from a high-end feature to one that’s relatively free for manufacturers to include. The door is officially open for NFC to come to more mobile devices.

Not your grandma’s FM: WiLink 8.0 lets users receive and transmit FM signals, in parallel with running other connectivity features. Hook up to the TVs at the gym via FM signals to enjoy jams during a work out. Transmit content from your smartphone to home stereo – or even to your car sound system (this feature is made possible only with Bluetooth today, but not all of us have new cars with Bluetooth inside).

Five radios…and then some: WiLink 8.0 solutions also support ANT+ and Bluetooth low energy, and the simultaneous use of these with other radios on chip. Today’s devices only run one protocol at a time. With WiLink 8.0, you track your miles on an ANT+-enabled mountain bike, with also using Bluetooth low energy to monitor your heart rate on the ride.  

Harmony in it all

Integrating five radios – with additional support for Bluetooth low energy and ANT+ protocols – onto a single chip is no small feat to make all the radios “play nice while simultaneously operating.” Similar to members of a choir, the radios need to “sing” with each other, not over each other. Seamless integration and user experiences, is where our team’s 10+ years of experience  shines.

This harmony is key to the best user experiences, and to unlocking possibilities that I only dreamed of when I first walked into these TI doors two decades ago. What an exciting time, and an exciting team to be a part of!

If you’re heading to Mobile World Congress, come to our TI booth (Hall 8, Stand 8A84) to see the WiLink 8.0 chips in action in at-home, at-play and at-work settings. I’ll be there, looking forward to great discussions about what the future holds for our connected, mobile lifestyles!