LONDON — WiQuest tops the list of global Ultra Wideband chip providers by market research group ABI, with Alereon and Pulse~LINK claiming second and third position based on a matrix that takes into account factors such as implementation as well as innovation.
"The top vendors in the Ultra Wideband IC Vendor Matrix are established start-up companies that have totally dedicated themselves to the UWB and Wireless USB market opportunities," comments senior analyst Douglas McEuen. "The key success in terms of innovation for the top vendors was the ability to offer complete chipset solutions, or MAC and PHY chips combined with an RF transceiver."
Others in the top-ten, in descending order according to the ABI (Scottsdale, AZ) ranking, are Wisair, Realtek Semiconductor Corp, Sigma Designs Inc, TZero, WiLinx, Staccato Communications and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems.
Under "innovation," ABI Research examined the availability of single-chip (MAC + PHY) solutions, RF transceiver offerings, and complete (MAC + PHY + RF) solutions. It considered products' data rates, their high-speed Bluetooth integration, and their wire/coax/Ethernet capabilities.
Under "implementation," criteria scrutinized included market share, key customer announcements, financing (public or private), the suppliers' market tenure, the current product generation, and their WiMedia certification status.
