SiTel Semiconductor developed a single-chip DECT (News - Alert) / CAT-iq IC, which is the first DECT solution to break the 1 mA cordless phone standby current barrier. The energy-saving solutions achieved cordless phone standby currents of just 900 µA, which translates to standby times of over one month with standard 700 mAH NiMH batteries. This solution gives consumers relief from charging the flat batteries frequently.
In a press release, John Pol, product marketing manager at SiTel, said, “SiTel is synonymous with environmentally friendly performance. Our innovation allows our customers to deliver green solutions that offer the features and functionality consumers want. Applying the technology we co-developed for wireless sensor networking to standard cordless phones is another example of this. And by reducing system standby currents by more than 50 percent, we've shown once again that our solutions outperform anything else on the market.”
Currently, the state-of-the-art for cordless phone standby currents is around 2 mA, enabling phone standby times of around one to two weeks. SiTel's latest single chip DECT / CAT-iq ICs reduce this current by over 50 percent. This Ultra Long Standby (ULS) feature is made possible by applying the energy-saving functionality of DECT ULE - an ultra-low-energy operating mode of the familiar DECT standard developed for wireless networking applications.
DECT ULE was created by SiTel and RTX Telecom. It combines the traditional range, reliable transmission and data throughput advantages of DECT with a power consumption low enough to allow sensor nodes to operate autonomously for years on a single battery.
Recently, SiTel was in news when it announced that it is actively expanding its customer care call center in the city of Las Cruces, New Mexico. The call center has begun a recruitment drive that will expand its staff by more than 140 associates by August 2011 to work with a new banking client.
Sujata Garud is a TMCnet freelancer with three years of writing/editing experience and two years of market research experience. As an editor she has covered the IT, electronics, banking, pharma, construction, mining and healthcare industries. To see more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.
Edited by Jaclyn Allard
