Packaging
RFMD(R) Receives Production Orders for POLARIS(R) 3 Silver
Monday 21. April 2008 - Strong Growth Forecasted for POLARIS 3 RF Solutions
RF Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:RFMD), a global leader in the design and manufacture of high-performance radio systems and solutions, today announced it has received production orders for its POLARIS(R) 3 Silver RF solution — the recently introduced addition to the POLARIS family of GSM/GPRS/EDGE RF solutions. RFMD(R) anticipates production volumes of POLARIS 3 RF solutions to increase sequentially throughout calendar year 2008.
POLARIS 3 Silver leverages the performance advantages of POLARIS 3 and features RFMD’s patent pending MicroShield(TM) integrated RF shielding. The Company’s highly integrated, ultra-compact POLARIS 3 integrates all the necessary functions of the RF section of quad-band EDGE cellular handsets, including the power amplifier, switch, SAW filters, crystal oscillator and transceiver. With the addition of RFMD’s MicroShield integrated RF shielding, POLARIS 3 Silver delivers POLARIS 3 performance without sensitivity to board placement and at a significant reduction in both product volume and profile. This unparalleled ease-of-use allows manufacturers to release mobile devices to market faster and with less RF design effort.
“We are very pleased to receive our first production orders for POLARIS 3 Silver from this valued tier-one handset OEM,” said Eric Creviston, president of RFMD’s Cellular Handset Product Group (CPG). “POLARIS 3 Silver extends the value proposition for our POLARIS RF solutions by adding the benefits of MicroShield integrated RF shielding to the proven performance of POLARIS 3. Handset manufacturers using MicroShield technology will enjoy the benefits of improved RF performance, lower total cost, reduced board space requirements and overall ease of RF implementation. Based on current customer forecasts for our POLARIS 3 RF solutions, we expect POLARIS production volumes to extend multiple years and support meaningful profitability for RFMD.”
Assembly of POLARIS 3 Silver, including tape and reel, production test and application of RFMD’s MicroShield integrated RF shielding, is performed at RFMD’s recently expanded, primary assembly facility in Beijing, China. The internal assembly, test and shielding of POLARIS 3 Silver represents a cost advantage over POLARIS 2 and POLARIS 3, for which these functions are currently outsourced.