LitePoint Announces First Volume Manufacturing Test Solution for NFC Devices at Mobile World Congress

BARCELONA, Spain--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

LitePoint^®, an award-winning provider of wireless test solutions, today released its LitePoint^® IQnfc^®, the first volume production-optimized test system designed to measure and verify the physical layer performance of Near Field Communication (NFC) enabled devices. LitePoint will be demonstrating its IQnfc solution at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, February 24^th – 27^th in booth 5H31 Hall 5.

Until today, the primary method for production testing of NFC-enabled devices such as smartphones was a “pass/no-pass” approach, often utilizing an off-the-shelf NFC card reader or “passive tag.” This method, however, provides little useful data about system performance, allows marginal or even defective devices to ship to consumers and offers no information about the failure mechanism of devices that do not pass the production test.

“The IQnfc provides quantitative NFC physical layer operation data, allowing the manufacturer to measure NFC device performance, ensure unit-to-unit consistency and ultimately deliver a quality user experience,” said Curt Schmidek, vice president of Marketing for LitePoint. “The IQnfc is designed for efficient testing in a high-volume manufacturing environment. We made it flexible in terms of standards coverage, reliable and easy-to-use for the operator.”

NFC is a wireless technology used for very close proximity connections between wireless devices. The technology is being added to smartphones to enable “wave and pay” point-of-sale transactions, which could virtually eliminate the need to carry credit cards and cash. However, the very implementation that gives NFC its short-range, secure operation, also makes it highly sensitive to variations in component performance. This makes production testing, based on parametric measurements, critical for the reliable manufacture of NFC-enabled devices.

Schmidek added, “The availability of NFC-capable devices is continuing to grow. While momentum is building, the technology's ability to sustain momentum and achieve ongoing mainstream adoption will depend on the devices delivering a reliable customer experience. This consistent, first-time-right, NFC user experience is even more critical to retailers and financial institutions who are investing heavily in NFC infrastructure. Anything less risks the brand image of device makers and the credibility of NFC as a technology.”

LitePoint will be demonstrating its IQnfc system and other wireless test solutions for both cellular and connectivity devices at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain February 24^th – 27^th in booth 5H31 Hall 5. The IQnfc will be available for shipment April 2014.

About LitePoint

LitePoint, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Teradyne, Inc. TER, is based in Sunnyvale, California. The company designs, develops and supports advanced wireless test solutions for developers of wireless devices and consumer electronics, contract manufacturers and wireless integrated circuit designers. LitePoint solutions have enabled optimization and verification of the operation of more than one billion wireless devices worldwide. LitePoint products are used in development and high-volume manufacturing, providing its customers with improved ROI, time-to-market, manufacturing yields, and product quality. For more, go to www.litepoint.com.