One of the most difficult things to achieve on today's overcrowded market is to actually manage to go against one of the most well-established technologies on the market and stand a chance at taking it down. But that's exactly what Ozmo Devices, and their Wi-Fi Personal Area Network (Wi-Fi PAN) solution, is trying to do, since it eyes pretty much the exact segment currently occupied by Bluetooth.

The OZMO2000 chip is touted as the first Wi-Fi solution to overcome the battery life, cost and compatibility issues that have limited the broad adoption of Wi-Fi for HID (human interface device) applications. Moreover, the OZMO2000 is currently available for use in Wi-Fi mouse, keyboard and remote control designs, and it's the first to take advantage of Windows 7 SoftAP (Software-based Access Point) functionality to attach peripherals to personal computers.

According to its developer, one of the main selling points of the OZMO2000 chip is the fact that it connects seamlessly with the Wi-Fi chip in the notebook and, unlike proprietary 2.4GHz solutions, doesn't take up a USB port with a dongle. Plus, since it's a System-on-a-Chip (SoC), the OZMO2000 only requires a few external components, which results in a cost-effective solution compared to Bluetooth and proprietary 2.4GHz technology.

Additionally, the OZMO2000 supports up to 24Mbps data rates with very low power consumption. This provides an ideal solution for low data rate applications like mouse and keyboard, as well as for advanced designs with higher data rate requirements like touch features or integrated video and audio.

Samples of this new chip are now available to qualified customers, while production volumes will be available in the fourth quarter. Pricing for this very innovative solution is set at US$3.00 in 10,000 unit quantities, which makes it affordable enough for system and accessory builders to become seriously interested in this solution.


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