Broadcom, Samsung team for wireless SoC

News
Jun 1, 20263 mins

The partnership yields four new processors for different use cases.

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Broadcom and Samsung Electronics are collaborating on a new, broadband-optimized reference platform for the global fixed wireless access (FWA) market, integrating Broadcom’s Wi-Fi 8 System-on-Chip (SoC) with Samsung’s 5G modem.

The platform unifies 3GPP Release 17 connectivity — a major update to the global 5G standard — with the emerging Wi-Fi 8 (IEEE 802.11bn) standard. Development of Wi-Fi 8 is expected to be completed by 2028, with products appearing the following year.

While previous versions focused on speed, Wi-Fi 8 focuses on ultra-high reliability (UHR), lower latency, and better performance in crowded or interference-heavy environments. The standard is aimed at delivering roughly 25% better throughput in difficult conditions, 25% lower latency, and 25% fewer dropped packets compared with Wi-Fi 7.

The new platform is designed for mass-market scalability, provides a high-performance, cost-competitive blueprint that allows mobile operators to offer fiber-level broadband to accelerate service innovation and ecosystem growth.

There are multiple chips in this offering, starting with Broadcom’s new BCM68850, a 50G ITU ITU-PON home gateway SoC. It features an integrated neural processing unit (NPU) and offers native Wi-Fi 8 compatibility. The device is deployed at the intelligent edge and provides a range of NPU-accelerated solutions across cable, PON, Wi-Fi and set-top box platforms.

Then there is the BCM6772, a core foundation for Broadcom’s mass-market Ethernet routers, extenders, and repeaters. It features integrated 2×2 2.4-GHz and 2×2 5-GHz radios, a versatile memory controller (DDR4 & DDR5) and comes in a compact 15×15 mm FCBGA package.

The BCM6774 is optimized for high-volume ethernet routers and extenders. It includes integrated 2×2 2.4-GHz and 4×4 5-GHz radios, versatile memory controller (DDR4 & DDR5) and offers a compact 15×15 mm FCBGA package.

The BCM6776 is aimed at premium Ethernet tri-band routers and extenders (when paired with BCM6718). It features integrated 2×2 2.4-GHz & 4×4 5-GHz radios, offers dual PCIe Gen3 controllers, versatile memory controller (DDR4, DDR5, LPDDR4, and LPDDR5) and is housed in a compact 19×19 mm FCBGA package.

The three new SoCs share other innovations to maximize performance and minimize complexity as well. Each chip includes a high-performance quad-core CPU complex and a dedicated Network Processing Engine, offloading intensive networking tasks for smooth operation in the most demanding home environments.

They also feature on-chip 2.4 GHz power amplifiers (iPAs) and 3rd generation digital pre-distortion (DPD) technology, which significantly reduces the total bill of materials (BOM) and enables lower power consumption in the 5 GHz band.

Andy Patrizio is a freelance journalist based in southern California who has covered the computer industry for 20 years and has built every x86 PC he’s ever owned, laptops not included.

Andy writes the Data Center Explorer blog for Network World. His work has appeared in a variety of publications, including Tom's Guide, Wired, Dr. Dobbs Journal, Tech Target, Business Insider, and Data Center Knowledge. Earlier in his career, he held editorial positions at IT publications like InternetNews, PC Week and InformationWeek.

Andy holds a BA in Journalism from the University of Rhode Island.

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