Broadcom Introduces New Wi-Fi Router

Broadcom Corporation announced a new Wi-Fi router solution that combines the company's 54g wireless LAN baseband and MAC with an IEEE 802.11g (2.4 GHz) radio, Fast Ethernet switch and MIPS processor, all in a single chip.

The new Broadcom BCM5354 Wi-Fi router combines high-performance 54g technology, an all-CMOS 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi radio, Fast Ethernet switching, built-in support for USB 2.0, a MIPS instruction-set processor and support for multi-BSSID (which allows users to create and access multiple networks through a single access point) into a single system-on-a-chip. This high level of integration eliminates the need for up to 125 components required for a Wi-Fi router and reduces the number of printed circuit board layers by 50 percent. Board designs based on the BCM5354 are also simplified due to the fewer number of components required and associated software that has been optimized to further lower cost and complexity in the development of Wi-Fi router products.

The BCM5354 features a new range-enhancement technology from Broadcom that improves the range of wireless devices by up to 50 percent, with no increase in power usage. With built-in support for 125 High Speed Mode, 10/100 Ethernet routing and improved CPU processing power, the BCM5354 provides superior performance while enabling lower cost. In addition, the BCM5354 delivers advanced wireless LAN security, with built-in support for Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA), WPA2 and IEEE 802.11i specifications.

The BCM5354 is expected in the fourth quarter of 2006.