ST-Ericsson has announced the launch of a new product family that it says can significantly improve the battery life of mobile handsets and other connected devices. The company says the innovative power management components of its PM3533 RF power management unit can extend the talk- or internet connection-time of a mobile device by up to 30 per cent, compared with solutions that supply power directly from the battery. 

ST-Ericssons PM3533 solution enables a devices dual-mode RF subsystem (which transmits radio signals to and from the nearest base station in the mobile network) to operate with low cut-off voltage battery technology, thereby using all the energy available in the battery. The chip, together with ST-Ericssons PM3110 DC/DC regulators for RF power amplifiers, is scheduled to be in volume production in the first quarter of 2011. The company says that both the PM3533 and PM3110 dynamically match the power supply to the needs of the RF power amplifier and significantly reduce the overall energy usage of the device.

“Matching energy supply and demand in real-time is the key to ensuring that power-hungry mobile devices can frequently connect to the internet, access multimedia services and make voice calls without exhausting their batteries,” says Patrick Dureault, vice president, and head of ST-Ericsson’s Analog and Mixed Signal business unit. “Our two new solutions push forward the frontiers of power management technology and underline ST-Ericssons leadership in this important field.”