Broadcom Launches New Mobile Combo Chip Integrating 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 +HS, and FM

- Expansion of the wireless ecosystem through support for new P2P, wireless sensors, and monitoring
- Providing new multimedia applications for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets

March 29, 2011 – Broadcom, a global leader in wired and wireless semiconductors, announced today the launch of a new wireless combo chip capable of supporting more media and data applications without compromising the size or battery life of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. The newly introduced BCM4330 integrates Broadcom’s latest 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and FM radio technologies onto a single silicon die to suit mobile devices, offering significant benefits in terms of cost, size, power, and performance.


Broadcom’s newly introduced BCM4330 plans to support new and exciting applications by incorporating the latest standards for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The BCM4330 is the industry’s first combo-chip solution certified for the Bluetooth 4.0 standard, which includes low-power Bluetooth technology. By providing low-power Bluetooth technology, the BCM4330 is an ideal solution for systems requiring long battery life, such as wireless sensors, medical devices, and fitness equipment. Furthermore, the BCM4330 enables mobile devices to communicate directly without going through traditional network access point connections, thereby facilitating a wider range of applications and user models between wireless devices.

Broadcom plans to continue supporting major operating system (OS) platforms, including Microsoft Windows and Windows Phone, Google Chrome, and Android, through the BCM4330 as well as all Bluetooth, WLAN, and GPS chipsets.
The Broadcom BCM4330 is a third-generation combo chip device that provides the highest level of integration for mobile or portable wireless systems. The BCM4330 includes IEEE 802.11a/b/g and single-stream 802.11n (Media Access Controller (MAC)/Baseband/Radio), Bluetooth 4.0+HS, and FM radio transmission and reception capabilities. Additionally, it provides integrated Power Management Unit (PMU), Power Amplifier (PA), and Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) functions for small mobile devices requiring minimal power consumption.

The BCM4330 provides a small form factor solution requiring minimal external elements for cost reduction, and is flexible in terms of size, form factor, and functionality.
The integration provided by the BCM4330 reduces power consumption and makes the overall solution size more than 40% smaller compared to previous products.
Dual-band enables Wi-Fi users to distribute the less congested 5GHz spectrum for media applications requiring faster guaranteed bandwidth. The BCM4330 integrates 2.4GHz and 5GHz power amplifiers to reduce BOM costs while providing performance equal to or better than solutions using external power amplifiers.
Bluetooth 4.0, which includes low-power Bluetooth wireless technology, consumes less power than conventional Bluetooth radios. Low-power Bluetooth enables many wireless sensor devices to operate for several years on a small, coin-sized battery without the need for battery replacement. By integrating low-power Bluetooth into the Broadcom combo chip, smartphones and tablets equipped with the BCM4330 can more efficiently collect data from various sensors found in low-power lineage meters or colorimeters.

Broadcom continues to support the widely adopted Bluetooth and software for Android, providing a more robust carrier through richer Bluetooth profiles with low-power Bluetooth for next-generation sensor applications.
Broadcom enables devices to communicate directly without going through an access point through Wi-Fi Direct support. This not only makes communication between devices simple and fast but also enables devices to connect anytime, anywhere. The BCM4330 combo chip allows mobile devices to communicate across multiple networks rather than just a single one, enabling one-to-one connections when needed.

Ultra-fast Bluetooth enables Bluetooth applications to be used at Wi-Fi speeds over a Wi-Fi connection. Users connect Bluetooth devices using standard Bluetooth pairing, and the BCM4330 combo chip runs on either Bluetooth or Wi-Fi depending on bandwidth usage.
Broadcom combo chip products support Android and Windows Phone. Broadcom’s OneDrive™ software stack is the most advanced in the industry and includes source code that is part of standard sales for Android and Windows Phone. Trust in the OneDrive software provided with the BCM4330 and other Wi-Fi and Bluetooth combo products offers the following features to Android and Windows-based phones.

Supports software and hardware for WAPI.
In addition, the sales of Android and Windows Phone are 'soft