EINDHOVEN, Netherlands and COPENHAGEN, Denmark, July 06, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NXP Semiconductors (NASDAQ:NXPI) and Widex,
one of the world’s leading hearing aid producers, announced that they have collaborated to develop, test and integrate NXP’s
NxH2003 Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) audio streaming SoC into Widex BEYOND™ hearing aids. The two companies worked closely together
throughout the product development cycle, merging the best of hearing aid engineering and wireless audio streaming semiconductor
technology, to deliver hearing aid devices that can stream wireless audio from an iOS device, consuming only 2.8 mA current at 1.2
Volts, which is best in industry. This allows end users to enjoy music directly from their personal devices for prolonged periods
of time.
“Widex has always been well-known in the industry for low-power consumption,” said Widex CEO Jørgen Jensen. “Integrating NXP’s
NxH2003 means we are able to live up to that reputation while still supporting power-hungry Bluetooth streaming applications. We
use less power when streaming 25 percent of the time than any of the comparable hearing aids. Our competitors can’t match that even
when they don’t stream.”
“This announcement reinforces our leading position as a trusted supplier and innovator in the hearing aid industry,” said Chae
Lee, senior vice president and general manager of NXP’s secure interface and power solutions business. “Our hearing aid customers
demand the lowest energy consumption and smallest footprint while adding wireless streaming and increasing processing power. The
NXP NxH2003 meets these conflicting requirements. As NXP has proven with Near Field Magnetic Induction (NFMI) technology, and its
MiGLO solutions that enabled truly wireless stereo audio streaming, NXP expects to deploy its
industry-leading, low-power BLE audio streaming technology in the adjacent hearables market as well.”
NXP’s state-of-the-art BLE 4.1 certified solution measures only 7.25mm2 and has industry-lowest receive and transmit power
levels of 4mW and 7mW respectively. The NxH2003 forms a total solution for ultra-low power wireless audio streaming as it embeds
both an M0 microcontroller (running the protocol stack and application), as well as an embedded CoolFluxTM DSP (running
all of the required audio processing including sample rate conversion and audio [de]compression). Furthermore, this advanced IC is
highly integrated and can run directly from a Zinc-Air battery as typically used in hearing aids, which minimizes the number of
external components and consequently reduces the volume of the end product.
Technologies and solutions for hearing aids and consumer hearables are converging as both markets share closely related use
cases while at the same time facing similar end-user requirements and technology barriers. Both markets strive to design smaller
and more comfortable end devices exhibiting longer battery life. Additionally, both hearing aid and consumer hearables companies
recognize that users desire more functionality from their devices, ranging from the ability to sync with their phones, for calls,
music, and games to biometric measurements for health monitoring.
NXP offers solutions for both markets. NXP has been providing proprietary NFMI (Near Field Magnetic Induction) technology to the
hearing instrument industry for nearly a decade. And at CES earlier this year, the company debuted its NFMI-based MiGLO solutions with several OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) in smart
consumer hearables. The NXP MiGLO platform is designed to enable long battery life, exceptional audio quality and reliable wireless
experiences while enabling the development of smarter, smaller and comfortable truly wireless earbuds or hearables.
About Widex
At Widex we believe in a world where there are no barriers to communication; a world where people interact freely,
effortlessly and confidently. With sixty years’ experience developing state-of-the-art technology, we provide hearing solutions
that are easy to use, seamlessly integrated in daily life and enable people to hear naturally. As one of the world’s leading
hearing aid producers, our products are sold in more than a hundred countries and we employ 4,000 people worldwide. Read more at
www.widex.com.
About NXP Semiconductors
NXP Semiconductors N.V. (NASDAQ:NXPI) enables secure connections and infrastructure for a smarter world, advancing
solutions that make lives easier, better and safer. As a world leader in secure connectivity solutions for embedded applications,
NXP is driving innovation in the secure connected vehicle, end-to-end security & privacy and smart connected solutions markets.
Built on more than 60 years of combined experience and expertise, the company has 31,000 employees in more than 33 countries and
posted revenue of $9.5 billion in 2016. Find out more at www.nxp.com.
NXP, the NXP logo, and MIGLO are trademarks of NXP B.V. All other product or service names are the property of their respective
owners. All rights reserved. © 2017 NXP B.V.
For more information, please contact: NXP Semiconductors Tate Tran Tel: +1 408-802-0602 Email:tate.tran@nxp.com Widex Andrew Arnold Tel: +45 44 35 56 51 Email:aarn@widex.com