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Apr. 1, 2009

Ericsson says it is rapidly increasing its product portfolio in the embedded broadband wireless module space.

The company will now offer two laptop modules, with the newest one being its F3607gw new-generation module.

Ericsson's new F3607gw is the second product in its line-up since the swedish company announced its intentions to get into the embedded laptop/netbook space in May 2008.

The new product is for HSPA/GPRS/EDGE networks and it will be introduced on June 10, Ericsson said. More modules are expected from the handset maker later in September.

Jan Backman, director of marketing at Ericsson Mobile says "laptops and netbooks represent a big opportunity for both Ericsson and the computer industry. However, Ericsson believes speed of performance and getting a fast connection are not going to be enough to compete over time, so it’s adding these other features as well."

Besides Intel, Ericsson is working with Dell, Lenovo and LG Electronics for embedding modules into laptops and netbooks.

Ericsson uses chipsets from ST Ericsson, the relatively new venture combining Ericsson Mobile Platforms and ST-NXP Wireless.

A great new feature of the F-3607gw is a wake-on wireless feature.

The handset maker and mobile app developer has been working with Intel to incorporate its Anti-Theft PC Protection Technology into products. The wake-on feature allows users to remotely wake up a notebook so that it can be locked down or made completely unusable, depending on the situation.

When the notebook is recovered, an unlock message can be sent to make data accessible again.

For years, Ericsson’s main competitor has always been and continues to be Qualcomm. Both companies are members of a global GSMA-led initiative that will use a Mobile Broadband service mark to help consumers quickly identify notebooks that are ready to surf straight out of the box, a bit like Intel did in the early 1990's with its "Intel Inside" service mark.

Ericsson's new F3607gw laptop and netbook module most likely will start showing up in models in the second half of 2009.

In the U.S., Ericsson’s main wireless carrier channel is AT&T. “The operator channel will be a significant channel for netbooks and notebooks in the future,” said Backman.

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Source: Ericsson.