With the race for telecommunications and tech companies to offer their own Near Field Communications services beginning to resemble the tablet war, radio chip manufacturer Broadcom is throwing their digital hat in the ring. The Irvine, California based firm announced today their intention to construct an NFC chip developed in a 40-nanometer Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS), reported Eweek today. Theirs is a market differentiation technique; Broadcom would like their chip to consume less power and provide a smaller form factor than chips currently on the market.
Google Wallet, the leading NFC maker, has taken flack for having a too-short battery life. Many a customer whose phones had died and whose wallets weren’t readily available were left unable to pay for goods. Craig Ochikubo, Broadcom’s VP and General Manager, maintains that the CMOS can cut power consumption by 90%, use 40% fewer components, and shave 40% off the standard board size. Furthermore, Broadcom’s device boasts an impressive energy harvesting component that allows it to draw power from the environment even if the battery is spent.
“NFC, for it to have any degree of utility, has to be on 100 percent of the time. It’s just going to spend the majority of its time just listening to make some type of transaction, whether it’s a data file transfer or making a payment. That’s why we’re really attacking this whole power consumption piece,” says Ochikubo.
The chip is designed to partner with Maestro software, enabling it to access Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities.
The chip is slated to be available for mass consumption mid-2012 and is expected to be in high demand for TV, tablet, and other electronics manufacturers looking for a smaller and more energy efficient chip.
