In case you were wondering about the bill of materials for the iPhone 3GS then we have the answer for that too. iSuppli has estimated that the new iPhone costs only $178.96 which is only about $4 more than what the iPhone 3G costs to make. And that’s only about $8 more than the Pre’s BOM.

Considering that Apple has upgraded some of the internal components and that the company has already sold more than 1 million units of the new phone already I’d say that Apple is going to profit yet again from its latest creation.

The iPhone 3GS has inside a Broadcom single-chip Bluetooth/FM/WLAN deives and a Dialog chip which replace the previous the Marvell Technology Group WLAN chip and the Cambridge Silicon Radio Bluetooth Integrated Circuit and the NXP Semiconducters respectively. Now that we’ve cleared the air around the 3G feature of the iPhone 3GS we can move right ahead to that digital compass. All that is possible thanks to STMicroelectronics’ accelerometer and AKM Semiconductor’s electronic compass. That new chip is provided by Infineon, and the PMB8878 baseband chip should get the job done. As for the 3G power amplifier module supplier that’s still coming from TriQuint. The storage solution comes from Toshiba’s 16GB Multilevel-Cell NAND flash while Samsung supplied the applications processor supplier clocked at 600MHz which is better than the previous 400MHz ARM RISC processor used in the 3G phone.

Now that you know what’s inside, are you even more tempted to buy a 3GS phone?

via Press

Tags: 3gs, AKM Semiconducter, Apple, Apple, BOM, Broadcom, Dialog, Infineon, iPhone, iSuppli, marvell technology, Mobile News, Mobile Software, Other Brands, Samsung, stmicroelectronics, Toshiba, TriQuint

In a move that will really allow them to expand possibilities and features for the iPhone and the iPod Touch, Apple is reportedly set to manufacture its own microchips, a strategy shift that the company hopes will create exclusive features for its gadgets and shield Apple’s work from rivals.

The iPhone now uses chips from a variety of suppliers including Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, Broadcom Corp, Marvell Technology Inc, CSR Plc and Infineon Technologies AG, analysts say. If Apple succeeds in coming up with its own chip, it could potentially dislodge at least one of these companies from the iPhone, while sending notice of its intent to take an even bigger role in the creation of its products.

Apple could use the internally developed chips to sharply reduce the power consumption of its hit iPhone and iPod touch devices, and possibly add graphics circuitry to help its hardware play realistic game software and high-definition videos.

(Source) UB News

Tags: Apple, Broadcom, broadcom corp, Business, game software, high definition, infineon technologies ag, iPhone, iPhone, iPod Touch, marvell technology, microchips, news apple, power consumption, realistic game, rivals, samsung electronics, samsung electronics co, samsung electronics co ltd, technology inc

When did this happen? I mean I know we told you Bluetooth 3.0 was officially unveiled and everyone’s excited about it but I wasn’t expecting manufacturers to show viable chips already. It looks like Broadcom did its homework and now it has the first certified Bluetooth 3.0 chip, the BCM4325. The new chip will use the new Bluetooth 3.0 protocols and it should be available soon for new devices. All it needs now is a great battery to make all those fast downloads happen.

via Broadcom

Tags: Bluetooth 3.0, Broadcom, chip, Mobile News, Other Brands, PAL

Just like we were expecting the new Bluetooth standard was presented today. It’s called Bluetooth 3.0 + HS and we hope it will replace soon the previous standard. And there’s new technology for us. Bluetooth 3.0 will use WiFi 802.11 protocols which means that it will soon be capable to interconnect various gadgets between them and we’re promised faster transfer speeds. That new 802.11 Protocol Adaptation Layer or PAL will bring us speeds of up to 24Mbps which is amazing.

The first question that came to mind was power-related. How much power will fast transfers need? And here’s where the good stuff starts. That PAL thing will remain inactive between transfers and idle power usage will be really low. Another great feature is the possibility of upgrading certain Bluetooth 2.1 modules straight to v3.0 as long as a 802.11 WiFi radio is present. That means that some mobile Bluetooth modules will never be upgraded and you will have to purchase new equipment to enjoy faster transfer speeds.

Broadcom, CSR and Atheros will offer silicon solutions to manufacturers and we might expect those future gadgets capable of Bluetooth 3.0 connectivity to arrive sometime in the next 9 to 12 months. It’s a lot to wait but I am sure it’s worth it. Check out the video above for a demo and let us know what you think.

via Press

Tags: 802.11, Atheros, Bluetooth 3.0, Bluetooth 3.0 + HS, Broadcom, CSR, Mobile News, PAL, Portable Devices, WiFi

Looking for some 802.11n WiFi for your mobile phone? Well Broadcam has a new 802.11n chip which integrates Bluetooth, and FM radio and it will get you data speeds of up to 50Mbps where available. And Broadcam says that all what will happen without that much battery consumption. Apparently the 802.11m combo chip is more efficient than 802.11g by allowing for single streams of data over a single antenna and packet aggregation.

The chips will arrive sometime late 2009 so that’s when we’ll probably playing with smartphones capable of draft-N speeds. Curious about pricing though!

via Press

Tags: 802.11n, Broadcom, draft-N, Mobile News, Portable Devices, WiFi

Broadcom, semiconductor manufacturer for both wired and wireless communications, has announced that their Broadcom BCM2048 SoC (system-on-a-chip) is in the newest Samsung MP3 players — YP-P2 and YP-T10. The Broadcom BCM2048 SoC is a combined FM radio and Bluetooth chip. This means that the chip is responsible for the MP3 players being able to connect wirelessly through Bluetooth and receive FM radio broadcasts using said MP3 player models. The BCM2048 supports Bluetooth 2.0 completely, albeit being able to support 2.1 as well. In regards to the FM radio functionality, the Broadcom BCM2048 SoC features Radio Broadcast Data Service (RBDS) processing, high receiver sensitivity, and station information enhancements through intelligent Radio Data Service (RDS).

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Tags: Broadcom, MP3 Players, Samsung