Date:9th Dec 2011

Broadcom Bluetooth chips keeps wireless keyboard on for lifetime with AA battery pair

Broadcom Corporation has introduced a new reference design and accompanying software that will dramatically increase battery life for wireless keyboards based on the "classic" Bluetooth basic rate radio.

Broadcom says its new design, featuring updated firmware and innovative techniques designed to minimize power consumption, will yield a new generation of keyboards and other Human Interface Devices (HIDs) that could operate for the life of the product on a single pair of AA batteries.

The new reference design is based on the Broadcom BCM20730 65nm low-power HID chip. With integrated support for USB HID Emulation (UHE) and Broadcom's ZeroTouch configuration technology, these peripherals can be used right out of the box with no special pairing procedure, making them ideal for "all-in-one" desktop PCs, suggests Broadcom.

Broadcom explains Bluetooth continues to gain momentum as the technology of choice for wireless mice, keyboards, 3D glasses and consumer electronics remote controls with more than 4 billion standard Bluetooth chips already installed in popular electronics to which these HIDs can connect. HIDs based on the Broadcom BCM20730 can enjoy the same battery life as those based on Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) technology, even when connected to existing devices that have shipped with older versions of Bluetooth.

The new BCM20730-based ultra low power HID reference design is available now and sampling to customers.

Tom Ramsthaler, Senior Director, Marketing, Wireless Personal Area Networks says "Broadcom innovations continue to expand the usefulness of standard Bluetooth, allowing consumers to take further advantage of one of the most ubiquitous wireless technologies in the world. By boosting the battery life of keyboards to as long as 10 years, this new design satisfies consumer preferences for HIDs that could potentially never need new batteries."

The BCM20730 Bluetooth chip is compliant with the Bluetooth 4.0 Core Specification and includes support for Unicast Connectionless Data (UCD) and Enhanced Power Control (EPC) introduced in Bluetooth Core Specification 3.0 + HS.
Compatible with Bluetooth smart ready and other HID host devices such as computers, smartphones, tablets, televisions, game consoles and set-top boxes which include Bluetooth HID support conforming to Bluetooth Core Specification versions from 1.1 through 4.0.

The design also supports the upcoming upgraded HID Profile 1.1, which enhances support for Secure Simple Pairing and Sniff Subrating, which allows the radio to dynamically adapt its performance to optimally trade-off power consumption and performance, as needed.

The BCM20730 integrates multiple off-chip components for a lower bill of materials cost to deliver superior and more affordable HID products than those based on competing solutions, claims Broadcom.