Ultrawideband 2007: PCs Finally Hit the Global Market

The market for Ultrawideband (UWB) silicon is finally beginning to take off in 2007. Though regulatory hurdles still persist worldwide, the first UWB-enabled notebook PCs have shipped this year from Dell, Lenovo, and Toshiba. In addition, hub and dongle solutions are shipping in the aftermarket from vendors such as Belkin, D-Link, and IOGear.

The primary question for UWB now is: Will other product segments follow where PCs lead? UWB is a very flexible technology in that it supports multiple standards, including WUSB, Bluetooth 3.0, IP over UWB, and Video over UWB. This should enable the technology to gain design wins in a wide range of product segments, including PC peripherals, Consumer Electronics (CE), and mobile phones.

This report contains analysis and annual shipment forecasts through 2011 for the penetration of UWB into 26 separate applications within the following product segments: PC, PC peripheral, CE, Communications, and Industrial/Medical. The forecast for UWB into each application is broken down by WiMedia UWB and proprietary UWB penetration. Profiles of leading UWB chip vendors and IP suppliers are included.