Keithley Instruments recently completed a product development effort, using Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) measurement requirements from QUALCOMM Incorporated which led to the introduction of Keithley's Model 2800 RF Power Analyzer, a test solution targeted at the needs of manufacturers of wireless phones, RFIC power amplifiers, and related RF devices.

Walt Strickler, business manager for Keithley's telecommunications group, said, "As a leading developer of chipsets for wireless phones based on CMDA technology, QUALCOMM was able to offer Keithley invaluable insights into key challenges involved in testing CDMA-based products, especially the test times associated with making RF power measurements. We coupled this insight with that received from the leaders of the other wireless protocols to provide a complete test solution for advanced CDMA wireless handsets."

Ben Norton, staff manager/engineer for QUALCOMM, noted, "It is important to allow handset manufacturers to develop and test CDMA-based products easily; our efforts with Keithley have helped make such ease possible. The Keithley Model 2800 RF Power Analyzer can address a critical part of RF testing strategy by reducing test times and equipment costs. We are pleased to help handset manufacturers ramp up their production test yields quickly and reduce test times, particularly for those who are building production lines for third-generation (3G) CDMA wireless devices."

The Model 2800 RF Power Analyzer is engineered specifically for production test of wireless phones, RFIC power amplifiers, and related RF devices designed to the AMPS, cdmaOne, North American digital cellular (TDMA), GSM, GPRS, EDGE, PDC, CDMA2000 1X and WCDMA standards. It is an alternative to general-purpose, display-based spectrum analyzers and communication test sets, which are relatively slow, large, more expensive, and better suited to research and development applications. In contrast, the Model 2800 RF Power Analyzer is a compact, production-oriented instrument designed to make only those RF measurements essential to manufacturing mobile phones. As a result of this focus, the Model 2800 is faster, more accurate, easier to use, and lower in cost than current alternatives. As wireless communication protocols grow more complex and the mobile handset market matures, the handset production process must evolve in ways that reduce costs while accommodating emerging technical requirements for test and measurement. The Model 2800 satisfies both these needs.