--Asus Windows RT tablet will use Nvidia's Icera 4G cellular
chip along with Nvidia's Tegra application processor
--Tablet will be one of the first devices to use Nvidia LTE
technology
--Asus initially previewed a Windows RT tablet at Computex
By Shara Tibken
NEW YORK--Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) chips will power a 4G tablet later
this year, giving the company a boost in the cellular chip market
and posing a threat to wireless processor rival Qualcomm Inc.
(QCOM).
Asustek Computer Inc. (ASUUY, 2357.TW) plans to release a
version of its Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) Windows RT tablet that uses
an Nvidia 4G Long Term Evolution chip, said Mark Aevermann, an
Nvidia product manager overseeing the chip maker's notebook
graphics chip business and its Windows RT push.
The tablet will use a standalone chip for cellular connectivity,
as well as Nvidia's mobile application processor, Mr. Aevermann
said in an interview Monday. He noted the company plans to
eventually integrate its Icera cellular chips with its Tegra
application processor.
Mr. Aevermann said the LTE and WiFi versions of the Asus tablet,
currently dubbed the "Tablet 600," will likely be available at the
same time Windows is released. It will be one of the first devices,
if not the first, to use Nvidia's 4G chips from its Icera
acquisition.
"Fundamentally, it's up to [Asus], but there's nothing
preventing it," he said.
The new version of Windows, dubbed Windows RT, will be the first
to run on chips based on ARM Holdings PLC (ARMH, ARM.LN)
architecture. PC makers and ARM-based chip providers such as Nvidia
are counting on the operating system, expected this fall, to help
them regain lost ground against Apple Inc. (AAPL).
Nvidia has been a leader in providing ARM-based chips for
tablets, but it has struggled more in devices that have a cellular
connection, such as smartphones. The Santa Clara, Calif., company
has had troubles pairing its Tegra mobile chips with third-party
modems, something that has limited its reach.
Qualcomm, meanwhile, dominates the cellular chip industry,
controlling nearly half of the market share last year amid strength
in its 3G and 4G chips, according to Strategy Analytics. While it's
one of the few providers of 4G LTE chips and is successful in
phones, it has been weaker in tablets. Windows RT tablet partner
Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) late last month said it had set aside
immediate plans to release a Windows RT device when it unveiled its
next generation of tablet computers.
Qualcomm wasn't immediately available to comment Monday.
H-P's decision, though not entirely unexpected, was a setback
for ARM and chip makers that license its technology. However, other
companies such as Asus and Toshiba Corp. (TOSYY, 6502.TO) have said
they'll have devices available at the time Windows is released.
Asus initially unveiled its Windows RT tablet--which it called a
product preview--in June at the Computex tradeshow in Taiwan,
becoming the first company to announce a Windows RT device. At the
time, the company said the 10.1-inch tablet would use Nvidia's
Tegra 3 quad-core processor, but it didn't provide details about
cellular connectivity or the use of an Nvidia cellular chip. Asus
wasn't immediately available to comment Monday.
Nvidia noted in a blog post during Computex that Tegra-powered
Windows RT devices will be thin and light, silent with no fan and
offer days of battery life. Mr. Aevermann on Monday said Windows RT
tablets will have a minimum of 10 hours battery life. Along with
the Asus device, Tegra is also powering Microsoft's own branded
Windows RT tablet, dubbed the Surface.
Nvidia is best known for chips called graphics processing units,
or GPUs, that generate visual effects in videogames played on
personal computers and consoles. Faced with worries about slowing
computer sales and heightened competition in graphics, it has
placed a major bet that it can move beyond PCs and into smartphones
and tablets with Tegra.
To help its mobile push and compete with chip makers such as
Qualcomm and Intel Corp. (INTC), Nvidia a year ago purchased
wireless technology start-up Icera. The Icera business has started
to gain some traction with customers of late, with the first phones
using Icera wireless processors launching earlier this year. Nvidia
has said there would be LTE phone chips from Icera early next year
and LTE tablets later this year.
The Icera LTE chip has already been certified by AT&T Inc.
(T) for data use and is in the process of being certified with "a
bunch" of European carriers, Mr. Aevermann said Monday.
Nvidia shares, down 10% over the past three months, closed up 4
cents, or 0.32%, at $12.60.
Write to Shara Tibken at shara.tibken@dowjones.com