SAN DIEGO, USA: Qualcomm Inc. has announced the latest addition to its line of Bluetooth solutions, which delivers an enhanced user experience and significant advantages for handset manufacturers. Its new BTS4025 system-on-a-chip (SoC) -- which is now sampling -- offers full support for the latest Bluetooth 2.1 + Enhanced Data Rate (EDR) specification, as well as improved RF performance in a significantly smaller, more power-efficient package than previous Bluetooth chips.

The technology innovations found in the BTS4025 SoC enable better Bluetooth performance, which can now be more readily available in mid- to low-tier handsets requiring lower costs and smaller form factor solutions.

The BTS4025 SoC's compact 3.2x2.9mm chip scale package is significantly smaller than any comparable solution. The SoC requires few external components and can use the existing system clock, allowing for both space savings and easy integration. It also extends battery life by reducing the stand-by current consumption by up to 50 percent when the device is scanning for other Bluetooth devices.

In addition, the BTS4025 SoC enables up to +13 dBm transmit power through efficient integration of a high- performance on-chip power amplifier. The increased output power improves the connection reliability and range between Bluetooth device pairs, such as handsets and headsets, to enhance the end user experience.

The BTS4025 SoC solution is optimized for interfacing with certain Mobile Station Modem (MSM) chipsets and Qualcomm Single Chip (QSC) solutions that provide the complete Bluetooth upper layer stack and profiles, giving device manufacturing partners complete turnkey Bluetooth solutions for mobile handsets. The first handsets using the new chips should be available on the market later this year.

Mike Concannon, senior vice president of product management for Qualcomm CDMA Technologies. "As one of the industry's smallest and more power-efficient Bluetooth devices, the BTS4025 SoC raises the bar in terms of mainstream and entry-level handset performance."