The way the two ultra-wideband (UWB) camps — direct sequence code division multiple access (DS-CDMA) led by Freescale semiconductor vs. multiband orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) led by Intel — are moving forward and making announcements of chips and chipsets supporting each specification, it's unlikely there will be a unified standard in the near future under the IEEE 802.15.3a task group. According to principal analyst of semiconductor research, Alan Varghese of ABI Research, “Heated discussions in the IEEE standards bodies have made one thing clear. There is not going to be a UWB standard, and the two disputing sides, the UWB Forum and the multiband OFDM Alliance (MBOA), are going to market with their separate designs.” And that is evident from the recent announcements from each group.

At the Electronica trade show in Munich, Germany this month, the MBOA special interest group (SIG) formally said that it has completed its physical layer (PHY) 1.0 specifications, which the group has been finalizing for about a year. And, it is making it available to its 170 member companies. Concurrently, it is also working on the medium access layer (MAC) specifications, which are expected to be finalized within a month.

Consequently, according to MBOA, more than 10 silicon vendors have jumped on this opportunity to offer pre-production interoperability testing, thereby ensuring interoperable products from supporters. In fact, the MBOA group is expecting products and applications based on its specs to be in the market by next year. Meanwhile, the MBOA-SIG is working in close association with the WiMedia Alliance, the Wireless USB Promoter Group, and the 1394 Trade Association to bring a variety of interoperable products to market in 2005. Application targets range from wireless USB and wireless 1394 for PCs, printers, cameras, and other peripherals, to streaming video for PVRs, displays, and other consumer devices, as well as high-speed IP connections via the WiMedia WiNet PAL.

Likewise, Freescale and its backers are going forward with their own plan. Recently, Freescale received FCC certification for its UWB communications solution. With this certification, Freescale can begin commercial shipments of its chipset, enabling its supporters to design UWB technology into their consumer electronics applications for unlicensed operation anywhere in the United States. Toward that end, two module makers have already exploited the technology to deliver modules for various video and data streaming applications in home connectivity and wireless access using the Freescale UWB chipset. These include Universal Scientific Industrial Co. Ltd. (USI) and GlobalSun Technology. While USI has readied a UWB-enabled 1394 module, GlobalSun is implementing the technology in a miniPCI module. Both the companies are working with consumer electronic manufacturers who are expected to unwrap products incorporating the UWB technology.

Additionally, Freescale's UWM roadmap shows that the company is planning to push the performance from the present 110 Mbps with three chips to 1 Gbps using a monolithic solution by next year. A company spokesman for Freescale said that you will need that kind of speed to compete with the emerging 802.11n.

The new 802.11 amendment calls for 100 Mbps speed by the end of 2005. According to ABI Research, the rival 802.11n will enter at a similar price, and it enjoys industry consensus. Its devices will interoperate and work at much higher ranges, and it is an evolution from the well-known standards, 802.11a, b and g. Obviously, multiple solutions are emerging for UWB applications. However, the consumer does not care whose PHY or MAC is used in the end product. The user will only look for application interoperability, performance and cost.

Ultimately, whomsoever provides a cost-effective solution with a performance that meets the consumer requirements with multiple interoperable sources will win the sockets. The market will dictate the standard.