WiFi/DAB/FM platform accesses over 16,000 audio services

19th March 2007

ES Admin

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Frontier Silicon has released a new low-cost WiFi radio reference platform for its Venice 6 (FS2026) four-in-one module, enabling radio manufacturers to quickly develop portable and clock radio products incorporating Internet radio, DAB, FM and music streaming capabilities. The Jupiter 4 (FS4024) platform is production-ready with a very low bill of materials (BOM). OEM manufacturers need only add industrial design tooling to produce complete high-quality audio systems that meet a range of competitive retail price points from only $79.

The platform design includes the Frontier Silicon Venice 6 WiFi/DAB/FM module, display with optional icons, keys, antenna, printed circuit boards (PCB), connectivity sockets (USB/headphone/Aux out), and all other passive components. As the platform uses a highly-integrated module containing all the complex elements of the system, assembly and integration of the final product is much simpler for manufacturers, ensuring lower manufacturing cost and quicker time-to-market.

In addition to the ability to play audio via WiFi, DAB and FM, another unique feature of the platform is its capability to support the new DAB+ standard. The Venice 6 module is able to run both the MP2 layer 2 audio decoder used in the current DAB implementations, and the high-efficiency AAC codec required by the new DAB+ standard. The emergence of DAB+, which enables more efficient utilisation of DAB bandwidth, has sparked new interest in DAB from several countries looking to adopt DAB+ as their broadcast standard for digital radio.

Jupiter 4 extends our proven capability to offer customers rapid market entry with new and innovative audio products, says Steve Evans, Frontier Silicon's VP for digital audio products. Our Jupiter range of complete digital audio platforms has been instrumental in Frontier Silicon capturing over 70 percent of the DAB receiver market, and Jupiter 4 will further enhance our position as the global number one supplier of digital radio technology by offering manufacturers a complete low-cost solution for WiFi radio and DAB+.

Jupiter 4 is available now, and comes complete with a detailed user interface specification, schematics, gerbers, BOM, and customisable software. Its highly-flexible architecture also enables it to be modified or used as a starting point for the development of custom OEM products.

Venice 6, which was demonstrated at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics show earlier this year, is a digital audio module containing receivers for WiFi, DAB and FM. Included in its firmware are several audio decoders, including Real Audio, WMA and MP3, as well as a portal linking the module to over 16,000 internet-based audio services. Using the Venice 6 module, a manufacturer can add sophisticated features such as internet radio and audio streaming as well as DAB/FM to their products.