News & Analysis

Wi-Fi chip set sales forecast to boom

John Walko

12/18/2002 3:31 PM EST

Wi-Fi chip set sales forecast to boom
OYSTER BAY, N.Y. — Shipments of chip sets for Wi-Fi wireless LANs are set to hit 23 million to 25 million units this year, up from 7.9 million in 2001, according to market research group Allied Business Intelligence Inc.

This forecast is considerably higher than initial expectations for 14 million to 15 million chip sets, and points towards significant adoption of 802.11-based wireless LANs.

ABI researchers say in a just published report, "Wi-Fi Integrated Circuits: Industry Dynamics, Market Segmentation and Vendor Analysis for 802.11a/b/g," that:

  • By 2004 revenue from dual-band chip sets will exceed those from 802.11g and 802.11b;

  • The entry of Taiwanese IC players in 2003 will place further pressure on 802.11b pricing;

  • The 802.11b market will have legs beyond 2004, but chip sets will increasingly be targeted for embedded implementations particularly in very battery-constrained devices such as PDAs and eventually mobile handsets;

  • 802.11g will have a significant impact in the SoHo/retail market and will comprise 18 percent of IC shipments in 2003, much of it backend-loaded;

  • The pattern of continuous price declines will quickly extend beyond the existing 802.11b chip market into 802.11g and dual-band segments;

  • CMOS and Zero-IF architectures will be important in enabling lower cost architectures, including a potential single-chip solution.

    ABI says the entry of several competitors, the emergence of multiple 802.11 protocols, and constant innovations in chip design are combining to create an extremely dynamic WLAN IC market. Not surprisingly, ABI's latest study into this sector pays particular attention to the growing importance of dual-band and multiprotocol solutions.

    Beyond the RF and baseband/MAC blocks the study also examines WLAN power amplifiers and provides forecasts for them.



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