Micrel Announces True Single Chip FSK Transceiver

San Jose, Calif., Oct. 4, 2004 -- Micrel Inc., (Nasdaq:MCRL), an industry leader in Power, Connect and Protect™ IC solutions, today announced the MICRF506, a true single chip FSK transceiver solution designed to operate in the unlicensed 433MHz ISM band. The chip supports data rates up to 200kbps and is part of Micrel’s recently launched RadioWire family covering the low UHF band. The chip is aimed at the automotive, alarm and security, telemetry and Personal Area Network (PAN) and advanced toy markets. The IC is suited for a wide variety of applications including gas, water and energy meters; home, building and security monitors; industrial controls, wireless headset and sports equipment, and remote control and game pads. The MICRF506 is currently sampling with quantities available within 8 weeks. Pricing starts at $4.50 in 1K quantity.
“There is a tremendous market focus on utilizing RF technology in a wide variety of consumer, automotive and industrial applications,” noted Stein Eskerud, managing director, Micrel Norway. “This is because RF successfully addresses the cost sensitive nature and high level of integration/low cost required for these applications. The MICRF506, with its low bill of materials, small board requirements, high performance, and low power consumption fits perfectly into this application space.”
The MICRF506 features a high level of integration in a tiny 5x5mm MLF™ package. The chip also offers a fully integrated T/R switch, integrated clock recovery circuit, and digital crystal trimming capability. The MICRF506 has a fully-programmable PLL for frequency hopping, programmable transmit power and offers extremely competitive low power consumption and extended battery life.
“The global market for applications using RF transceiver technology continues to grow at an aggressive rate,” said, Bob Whelton, executive vice president, Micrel. “In tandem with this continued growth, Micrel continues to expand its popular line of RF receivers to address the ever expanding variety of applications, particularly in Asia and Europe.”
Micrel Inc., is a leading manufacturer of advanced, high performance communications, clock management, Ethernet switch and physical layer transceiver, mixed signal, analog and power ICs. These products include devices for fiber-optic telecommunications and networking, cellular telephones, servers, portable computer systems, computer peripherals, process control systems, consumer electronics and power supplies. Web: http://www.micrel.com.

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Note: MLF is a trademark of Amkor Technology. Power, Connect and Protect is a trademark of Micrel, Inc.

Contact:
Julieanne DiBene, Marketing Communications
1-408-474-1276
Julie.DiBene@Micrel.com