Qualcomm Technologies has announced the release of its most power efficient single-mode NB2 (NB-IoT) chipset, the Qualcomm 212 LTE IoT Modem. Power efficiency is a top concern for IoT devices that have to last for years in the field. Requiring less than one micro-amp (1uA) of sleep current, the Qualcomm 212 LTE IoT Modem’s cutting-edge power-efficient chipset architecture allows for extremely low average power consumption. To support wide range of batteries and longer life span of the device in the field, the modem couples ultra-low system-level cut-off voltage with provisions for adapting power usage according to varying source power levels – allowing end devices with power supply levels as low as 2.2 volts.
The Modem supports single-mode 3GPP Release 14 Cat. NB2 IoT connectivity and is able to extended coverage for delay tolerant applications on RF frequency bands from 700 MHz to 2.1 GHz for Global roaming. Housed in a compact single-chip solution including modem baseband, application processor, memory, RF transceiver with fully integrated RF front end, and power management units, the modem enables LTE modules below 100 square millimeters in size. It's high level of integration with few external components not only results in a low-cost Bill of Materials, but also facilitates quicker module design enabling faster commercialization time for OEMs.
Thanks to its integrated ARM Cortex M3 application processor, and the native set of IoT data networking protocols, the Qualcomm 212 LTE IoT Modem can enable embedded IoT applications. Qualcomm Technologies is also launching an SDK for use with the Qualcomm 212 LTE IoT Modem, which is designed to support developers in running custom software on the integrated applications processor, with an expectation to offer pre-integrated support for cloud platforms such as the Microsoft Azure IoT SDK.
The global, single-mode Qualcomm 212 LTE IoT Modem complements the industry-leading multimode Qualcomm 9205 LTE Modem, which offers Cat.NB2, Cat.M1, and GPRS connectivity in addition to GNSS support. Together, the Qualcomm 212 LTE IoT Modem and Qualcomm 9205 LTE Modem provide customers with a comprehensive portfolio of IoT modems to address many IoT ecosystem connectivity needs. The Qualcomm 212 LTE IoT Modem is expected to be commercially available in the second half of 2020.
