TI Makes ZigBee Available for Mass Market with Free Software Stack

New Versions of ZigBee Development Kits and ZigBee 2006 Stack Now Available; Z-Stack Includes Support for TI's MSP430 Ultra-Low-Power MCUs

DALLAS -- April 19, 2007 -- Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) (NYSE: TXN) today announced the release of their industry leading ZigBee^TM stack, Z-Stack, for free download at www.ti.com/zigbee. Z-Stack has been awarded the ZigBee Alliance golden unit status by the ZigBee test house TÜV Rheinland and is used by thousands of ZigBee developers worldwide. Z-Stack is compliant with the ZigBee 2006 specification and supports multiple platforms including the CC2430 System-on-Chip solution for IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee and a new platform based on the CC2420 transceiver and TI's MSP430 ultra-low-power microcontrollers (MCUs).

In addition to being fully compliant with the ZigBee 2006 specification, Z-Stack supports new extended features like over-the-air-download, which allows updates of nodes wirelessly over a ZigBee mesh network. Z-Stack also supports the CC2431 which features location awareness. This enables the users to create new ZigBee applications that can change behavior based on the nodes' current location.

"The MSP430 is the leading low-power MCU family and is already used in many wireless networking solutions. It is a great complement to the CC2430 SoC and gives our customers great flexibility in selecting the optimal solution for their application," said Kobus Marneweck, general manager, low-power RF software development at TI.

In conjunction with the Z-Stack release, TI is also re-introducing the company's ZigBee Development Kits. The price of the development kits has been reduced to enable more designers to evaluate TI's ZigBee solution.

"ZigBee is not only an excellent solution for large OEMs but also for smaller companies who require a wireless link in their products," added Kobus Marneweck. "Running the Z-Stack on a module from one of our development partners is an easy way to add wireless networking to a product without the need for extensive knowledge in RF or wireless networking protocols."

TI's Low-Power RF Developer Network enables customers to find a suitable partner to assist with hardware design, modules, embedded software, gateways, commissioning tools, etc. The Low-Power RF Developer Network consists of recommended companies, RF consultants, and independent design houses that provide a series of hardware module products and design services.  See www.ti.com/lprfnetwork. 

Z-Stack and the Low-Power RF Developer Network are part of TI's wide-ranging support infrastructure for engineers that includes training and seminars, design tools and utilities, technical documentation, evaluation modules, an online KnowledgeBase, a product information hotline and a comprehensive offering of samples that ship within 24 hours of request. For more information on TI's complete analog design support, see www.ti.com/analogelab.