Qualcomm

New processor could help reduce smartphone cost

Paul Mah — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 07:04:54 -0500

A new baseband processor for smartphones has been created by a company called Sandbridge Technologies. According to the company, this processor could bring down the prices of smartphones, as well as increase the pace of innovation in the mobile arena. What is unique about this processor is that it is based completely on software and hence easily reprogrammable. Also, integrating multiple functionalities into a single chip serves to bring down the cost of phones by as much as 15 percent, according to Tanuj Raja, VP of Business Development over at Sandbridge. While existing chips by Qualcomm and Broadcom already pack multiple functions into a single processor, the real differentiator in the Sandbridge processor is that its software heart means it could be quickly programmed to support new technologies like 4G wireless. Indeed, the company is confident that its chips can support 4G wireless technology--even before the respective standards are even finalized.

For more information about the story:
- check out the article at CNET News.com

First look: Google's Android

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 06:59:57 -0500

Did you miss DailyTechRag's online coverage of Google's big mobile announcement last week? For shame! Here's the quick lowdown, in case you're adverse to clicking on links: Google announced a mobile partnership called the Open Handset Alliance (OHA) with a number of high-profile partners including Intel, Synaptics, Marvell, Qualcomm, Motorola, Samsung, T-Mobile, Sprint, Skype, LG, HTC and DoCoMo. The OHA's first product will be Android, an open-source, next-gen mobile OS that will be offered to handset manufacturers free of charge. The catch? Android--like all of Google's other products--will be ad-supported.

At any rate, details on the OS were hazy at the time, with Google offering tantalizingly few details as to what the OS will look and feel like. Luckily, today marks the release date of the official SDK (software development kit) to developers and with that SDK comes the first peek at Android. As part of the SDK, Google has offered a series of videos to developers that demonstrate what Android is capable of. Looks like the initial reports were right: Android is very iPhone-like in a number of ways and even sports an almost identical, webkit-based browser and a suspiciously Cover Flow-like history interface. That aside, it looks very user-friendly and seems to be an extremely powerful platform, with support for 3G, touchscreens and full 3D graphics. The real selling point, however, will be the platform's open-source underpinnings. If the carriers allow customers to load their own applications on to Android devices, Android could become the enterprise platform of choice for those looking to write custom business apps.

For more on Android:
- watch these video demos
- and read last week's article and round-up of industry reactions

QUICKLINKS: Stylish Nokia E51; 2008 the year of WiMAX?;

Mon, 24 Sep 2007 06:59:55 -0400

> Stylish Nokia E51. Article

> Qualcomm still target of ITC. Article

> 2008 is the year of WiMAX? Article

> Sprint Airave moves cellular over the 'net. Article

Qualcomm ban stayed

Mon, 17 Sep 2007 06:59:56 -0400

After a year of almost unrelenting bad legal news, Qualcomm finally has a break: a federal appeals court has granted the chip-maker a stay of the ruling banning import of many of its products into the U.S. After winning the initial suit before the U.S. International Trade Commission, Broadcom sought and won a ban on imports, which the White House declined to overturn. Now, Qualcomm and its partners have a break that should give them well into 2008 to seek other solutions.

For more on Qualcomm's good legal news:
- read the complete story at CIO-Today

Lawyers in the driver's seat

Mon, 20 Aug 2007 06:59:59 -0400

Let me start by saying that many attorneys are perfectly fine people. With that said, attorneys should, in most cases, be behind the news, not making the news. This week is interesting in having three major stories that involve lots of lawyers. Nokia and Qualcomm are bringing in a judge to help their patent licensing negotiations. Some AT&T Wireless customers (that's the original AT&T Wireless) want a judge to become involved in their customer-service problems with Cingular, which is now AT&T Wireless (that's the new AT&T Wireless). And if you don't think a whole herd of attorneys are going to be involved with the 700 MHz spectrum auction that's been set for January, then you're just not paying attention.

I suppose that lots of attorneys are a sign of an industry moving out of the initial engineers-and-entrepreneurs stage of development. In this transition, though, companies have to make sure that they keep the engineers working as hard as the lawyers or they risk losing it all--just ask SCO if you don't believe me. I'm not worried that we're about to run out of innovation in the wireless industry, but I do think that C-level executives have to keep their priorities straight--and innovation has to remain priority number one in a still-developing industry. -Curtis

Nokia asks to bar Qualcomm

Mon, 20 Aug 2007 06:59:56 -0400

It's been an interesting year for Qualcomm. First, there was the Broadcom lawsuit that resulted in a ban on some Qualcomm chips in the U.S. Next came the Nokia dispute, with each company accusing the other of patent infringement and license violation. Now, Nokia has taken a page from the Broadcom playbook and has asked the U.S. International Trade Commission to ban certain Qualcomm chipsets from the U.S. Don't think you should be worried? Qualcomm chips are in many of the most popular smartphones and 3G cell phones sold in the U.S.--maybe in the ones that your users have in their pockets. Oh, and Qualcomm's suit against Nokia? A judge has put it on indefinite hold.

For more on the Nokia/Qualcomm dispute:
- read the analysis at eWeek

QUICKLINKS: Motorola mobile Linux moves out; White House leaves Qualcomm banned;

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 06:59:55 -0400

> Motorola mobile Linux moves out. Article

> White House leaves Qualcomm banned. Article

> FCC ignores WiFi lessons. Article

> Qualcomm waived patent rights. Article

QUICKLINKS: No Qualcomm stay; 2,000 added for iPhone release;

Sun, 24 Jun 2007 20:01:35 -0400

No Qualcomm stay. Article

2,000 added for iPhone release. Article

Solar jacket charges phones on the go. Press Release

Sprint Mogul makes mark. Press Release

No more Qualcomm 3G in U.S.?

Sun, 10 Jun 2007 20:01:36 -0400

After winning a court case regarding patent infringement, Broadcom asked the ITC to ban Qualcomm chipsets from U.S. markets. Late last week, the ITC said, "Yes." In its decision, the ITC broadly banned import of Qualcomm 3G chipsets in new cell phones. The ruling doesn't mean that government agents will come and rip the chipsets out of your cell phone, but if your company has decided to build its application framework on an effected phone, you may be in for some new decisions. Qualcomm has said that it will appeal the decision to President Bush; he has 60 days to affirm, veto, or modify the ruling. After working to settle patent issues with Nokia, Qualcomm might have been in the clear--now, there's no certainty for either Qualcomm or its customers.

For more information the ITC ruling:
- read the this article from FierceWireless

Nokia and Qualcomm at deadline

Sun, 08 Apr 2007 20:01:38 -0400

Nokia and Qualcomm each own patents. Each uses technology covered by the other's patents. On April 8, parts of the agreements that governed their technology sharing expire. While the two companies have been negotiating extensions of the agreements, the discussions haven't always been perfectly amicable, as Qualcomm has filed for arbitration on payments that Nokia has made for technology--payments that Qualcomm says are inadequate. Why should customers care about the agreements? Because the Qualcomm patents cover wideband CDMA--a market that Nokia has seemed reluctant to enter. Big-company contracts have a significant effect on what customers can buy--a critical issue in a market where handset functions are expanding rapidly.

For more on the negotiations:
- Read the complete article at CIO-Today.com