MIPI Alliance Introduces Enhanced UniPro and M-PHY Specifications

Specifications are Core Technologies for JEDEC® Universal Flash Storage, PCI-SIG® Mobile PCIe and USB SuperSpeed Inter-chip

TORONTO, CANADA, October 8, 2013 - The MIPI Alliance, an international organization that develops interface specifications for mobile and mobile-influenced industries, announces the availability of new versions of its UniPro and M-PHY specifications. These specs address power efficient, high-speed serial links in a battery-powered environment. End markets benefitting from the specifications include handheld devices, digital cameras, video cameras, intelligent watches, tablets and smart phones.

The UniPro specification, in combination with the M-PHY specification, is used by JEDEC for the newly introduced Universal Flash Storage (UFS) v2.0 Standard. The M-PHY spec is also utilized by PCI-SIG for the Mobile PCIe (M-PCIe™) standard, and by USB-IF for the USB 3.0 SuperSpeed Inter-Chip (SSIC) standard.

“MIPI Alliance continues to be on the forefront of pushing mobile and mobile-influenced devices to higher performance while maintaining our commitment to keep cost and power as low as possible”, said Joel Huloux, Board Chairman of MIPI Alliance. “For device manufacturers using UFS, M-PCIe, SSIC or creating battery powered handheld products such as high-end cameras that consume high-speed flash memory, or require fast communication channels between two processors on the same PCB, the MIPI UniPro and M-PHY specifications offer unique features that allow them to provide added value to consumers.”

The UniPro v1.6 specification adds enhanced features to provide significant power savings, and increase system performance by doubling the link speed to 6Gbps per lane. Additionally, it reduces and simplifies the hardware overhead to allow for simpler integration and more cost-effective designs.

The M-PHY 3.0 specification doubles the current bandwidth while retaining the same distance reach as its predecessor. It also maintains the MIPI Alliance mobile priorities of low power, minimal protocol impact (modularity), and fast transitions between power states.

By using the combination of UniPro and M-PHY, device manufacturers will be able to greatly increase data rates, save power and have better EMI compliance and less radiation, allowing them to focus on adding new and indispensable features to mobile handheld devices. When used in conjunction with MIPI Alliance’s Camera Serial Interface (CSI), or other partner alliance specifications, this translates to faster booting times, extremely fast PC to handheld file transfers, fast firmware Flash upgrades, high camera resolutions and frame rates, and virtually zero shutter lag.

For more information about these specifications, or the MIPI Alliance, please contact Mike Krell – director, marketing and membership.

About MIPI

MIPI®Alliance (MIPI) develops interface specifications for mobile and mobile-influenced industries. Founded in 2003, the organization has more than 250 member companies worldwide, more than a dozen active working groups, and has delivered more than 45 specifications within the mobile ecosystem in the last decade. Members of the organization include handset manufacturers, device OEMs, software providers, semiconductor companies, application processor developers, IP tool providers, test and test equipment companies, as well as camera, tablet and laptop manufacturers. For more information, please visit www.mipi.org.