Picochip system-on-a-chip expands femtocell options

Picochip's PC333 enables small base stations for urban hot-spots to be deployed at low cost

Wireless developer Picochip is pushing the boundaries of femtocell technology at the high and low ends with two new products, one aimed at femtocells for expanding public access networks and another that brings the cost of a consumer device to under $50 (£33).

Picochip, a fabless semiconductor firm, today unveiled the picoXcell PC333, the first femtocell system-on-a-chip to support capabilities closer to those of a standard carrier base station, plus the PC7300 hardware reference platform claimed to cut the bill of materials for a domestic femtocell to under $50.

Femtocells are miniature base stations for a mobile phone network, designed to cover a small area such as an office and typically using a broadband connection for backhaul to the carrier's own network.

The two new products are targeting opposite ends of the market, according to Picochip.

The PC333 will be used in femtocells that allow carriers to expand capacity in high-traffic urban hotspots, or extend coverage in rural areas, without having to deploy another full base station. It is sampling to customers now and expected to appear in devices with the next year.

Meanwhile, the PC7300 will enable carriers to cut the cost of femtocells they offer to consumers who suffer poor signal reception at home, for example.

The PC333 is designed for "a grown-up femtocell", according to Picochip's director of corporate marketing, Andy Gothard, and is able to extend a carrier's existing network to cope with the explosive growth in smartphone data traffic.

It is the first femtocell chip to support 32 channels for simultaneous voice and HSPA+ data at up to 42Mbit/s, which should allow devices to support 32 to 64 users within a 2km radius. It is also the first to conform to the Local Area Base Station standard, according to Picochip.

The PC7300 is basically a reference design built around the firm's existing PC302 chip, and enables device makers to quickly put together a low-cost femtocell for carriers to offer subscribers.

In the UK, only Vodafone currently offers a femtocell to consumers under the Sure Signal brand.