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Press Release
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January 9, 2002
Broadcom and Palm Announce Collaboration on Advanced
Bluetooth Solutions for Next-Generation Handheld Computers
Palm Selects Broadcom Products to Enable Wireless Communications for Personal
Area Networks
LAS VEGAS, Consumer Electronics Show (CES) - Jan. 9, 2002 - Broadcom Corporation
(Nasdaq:BRCM), the leading provider of integrated circuits enabling broadband
communications, and Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq: PALM), a leader in handheld computing,
today announced a collaborative agreement to develop an advanced Bluetooth
architecture for use in a next-generation Palm handheld computer. Palm will
use this architecture, which is based on Broadcom's Blutonium line of
transceivers, as a building block for creating innovative Personal Area
Networks.
Bluetooth, an international standard for short-range wireless data
communications, allows devices to communicate and share data without the use of
wires. Together with infrared (IrDA), Bluetooth will enable Palm handheld users
to interact with a variety of devices, creating innovative Personal Area
Networks. Users of Palm handhelds equipped with Broadcom's Bluetooth chips will
be able to synchronize their handhelds and send documents to a Bluetooth-enabled
printer without having to connect to a docking station or other wired interface.
Bluetooth-equipped Palm handhelds also can be combined with Bluetooth phones to
provide high-speed wireless access to email, the Internet or a corporate data
network while on the road or outside the office. Bluetooth will allow these
interactions to take place without a line-of-sight connection, enabling
synchronization and downloads at data rates approaching 1 megabit per second
(Mb/s), even while devices are stowed in a briefcase or laptop bag.
"As the recognized leader in the handheld market, Palm's continued
commitment to Bluetooth provides a vital piece of the Personal Area
Network," said Jeff Thermond, vice president and general manager for
Broadcom's Home Networking Business Unit. "Palm's selection of Broadcom's
Bluetooth technology demonstrates our leadership in providing high-performance
silicon and system solutions to the short-range wireless marketplace."
The Blutonium family of products consists of Bluetooth Qualification Board (BQB)
Version 1.1-qualified single-chip system solutions as well as stand-alone
radios, which provide high-performance connectivity for short-range wireless
data communications. The single-chip Broadcom® BCM2033
is optimized for use in handheld computers, mobile phone handsets and laptop
computers. As part of the new collaboration, Broadcom and Palm will design a
wireless solution for a future Palm handheld using the BCM2033.
"Palm handhelds adhere to highly restrictive space and power requirements
in order to optimize size and battery life," said Angel Mendez, senior vice
president of Global Operations at Palm, Inc. "Broadcom's Bluetooth products
are a best-value solution meeting our cost, size, performance and power
requirements, while also meeting Bluetooth specifications."
Among wireless standards, Bluetooth is uniquely suited to add full-featured
wireless connectivity to handheld devices without changing existing usage
models. Because Bluetooth has a low impact on handheld battery life, the breadth
of applications offered by adding wireless connectivity comes without
compromising the user experience. The short-range omni-directional Bluetooth
standard will provide the ability for collaboration and sharing of personal
information data, as well as seamless connections to the Internet, without
compromising battery life.
About Palm, Inc.
Palm, Inc. is a pioneer in the field of mobile and wireless Internet solutions
and a leading provider of handheld computers, according to IDC (December 2000).
Based on the Palm OS® platform, Palm's handheld solutions allow people to carry
and access their most critical information wherever they go. Palm handhelds
address the needs of individuals, enterprises and educational institutions
through thousands of application solutions.
The Palm OS platform is also the foundation for products from Palm's licensees
and strategic partners, such as Acer, Franklin Covey, HandEra (formerly TRG),
Handspring, IBM, Kyocera, Samsung, Sony and Symbol Technologies. Platform
licensees also include AlphaSmart, Garmin and Nokia. The Palm Economy is a
growing global community of industry-leading licensees, world-class OEM
customers, and approximately 175,000 innovative developers and solution
providers that have registered to develop solutions based on the Palm OS
platform. Palm went public on March 2, 2000. Its stock is traded on the Nasdaq
National Market under the symbol PALM. More information is available at
www.palm.com.
About Broadcom
Broadcom Corporation is the leading provider of highly integrated silicon
solutions that enable broadband communications and networking of voice, video
and data services. Using proprietary technologies and advanced design
methodologies, Broadcom designs, develops and supplies complete system-on-a-chip
solutions and related applications for digital cable set-top boxes and cable
modems, high-speed local, metropolitan and wide area and optical networks, home
networking, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), carrier access, residential
broadband gateways, direct broadcast satellite and terrestrial digital
broadcast, digital subscriber lines (xDSL), wireless communications, SystemI/O
server solutions and network processing. Broadcom is headquartered in Irvine,
Calif., and may be contacted at 949-450-8700 or at www.broadcom.com.
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