Intel Announces New Internet Client Architecture for Wireless Devices.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

Intel Developer Forum Conference

TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 20, 2000

Designed to Accelerate Hardware and Software Development

and Advance Processing Capabilities of

Next-Generation Personal Internet Clients

Intel Corporation today introduced a new architecture designed to accelerate the development of next-generation Internet applications for wireless devices.

The Intel(R) Personal Internet Client Architecture (Intel(R) PCA) defines specifications for building new wireless client solutions capable of processing advanced Internet applications such as those envisioned for next-generation, Internet-ready cell phones and handheld devices.

Ron Smith, vice president and general manager of Intel's Wireless Communications and Computing Group, unveiled the new architecture at the Intel Developer Forum Conference in Japan. A preliminary specification detailing the architecture has been distributed to key wireless companies, and a final specification and software developers kit will be available to the industry by the end of the year.

Designed to allow the industry to focus on the demands of next-generation Internet applications for wireless devices, the new architecture is a development blueprint that entails independent hardware and software development cycles for computing and communications subsystems to allow wireless applications to be brought to market more quickly.

"Today's application development environment for wireless devices is a serial and slow process," said Smith. "To help keep pace with the advent of next-generation wireless devices, hardware and software must be allowed to develop in parallel. The Intel Personal Internet Client Architecture has been designed with this objective in mind."

Intel PCA also provides manufacturers the necessary processing power to run next-generation wireless Internet applications. Wireless clients increasingly must handle data-rich applications and Internet content such as streaming audio, video and data that put intense demands on the data processing capabilities of handheld devices. However, current handheld device designs rely on microcontrollers and digital signal processors (DSPs) that are designed to manage the communication signal path, not to carry out advanced computing functions. Intel's Personal Internet Client Architecture will allow applications to be written to reprogrammable microprocessors, such as those built on the low-power, high-performance Intel(R) XScale(TM) microarchitecture design.

"Application developers know that applications written to a microprocessor will scale in performance as the microprocessor scales upward," said Smith. "There's a large base of developers who know how to write to microprocessors. By adopting the Intel PCA, developers can use the Intel XScale microarchitecture to stimulate new and exciting content and make the Internet a reality on personal wireless clients."

A Standards-Based Architecture for Broadly Interchangeable Designs

Intel PCA is a standards-based architecture supporting leading operating systems and global wireless standards between major components for easy integration and expansion.

The architecture also scales to allow device manufacturers to modify hardware performance and software content configurations all using the same architecture. This results in manufacturers adopting Intel PCA to build flexible, low-cost product lines that span multiple market segments and reuse applications across various products.

Additionally, the parallel hardware and software development environment accelerates product time-to-market and maximizes engineering resources by allowing applications to be written to a general-purpose processor.

Intel's Wireless Components for the Intel Personal Internet Client Architecture

Intel's wireless building block components can also be used to develop handheld devices taking advantage of Intel PCA. The Intel(R) StrongARM(1) processor and future processors using the Intel XScale microarchitecture are ideal processing solutions featuring high performance and low power capabilities. Intel also offers cellular baseband chipsets and high-speed flash memory. Finally, Intel delivers Intel(R) Integrated Performance Primitives for Intel StrongARM and Intel XScale processors that enables designers to quickly develop applications that can be ported to run on any Intel processor, and Flash Data Integrator Software, Intel(R) FDI 3.0 that helps designers enable handheld devices to handle the complex features and demands of Internet storage data. This combination allows highly optimized platforms for wireless handheld devices that incorporate all the benefits of Intel PCA.

"Intel's engineers have designed Intel PCA with a complete platform perspective for all hardware and software components," said Smith. "The end result for wireless device manufacturers is an extremely flexible product line that offers ideal price-performance."

About IDF 

The Intel Developer Forum Conference is Intel's premier technical forum, attracting thousands of hardware and software developers worldwide. The semi-annual conference provides hardware OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), IHVs (independent hardware vendors), and ISVs (independent software vendors) with in-depth information on Intel technologies and initiatives. More information on the Intel Developer Forum can be found at http://developer.intel.com/idf. Updated information is available between Intel Developer Forums by subscribing to the Intel Developer Update Magazine at http://developer.intel.com/update/.

Intel, the world's largest chip maker, is also a leading manufacturer of computer, networking and communications products. Additional information about Intel is available at www.intel.com/pressroom.

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