BusinessWire
November 30, 2005 02:00 PM US Pacific Timezone

Renesas Technology's SH-Mobile is Now Supported by Wipro's Linux-based Mobile Phone Reference Framework, AQUA; Linux Solution For SH-Mobile Reduces Software Development Burden for Mobile Phone Manufacturers

BANGALORE, India & TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2005--Renesas Technology Corp. and Wipro Technologies today announced that they have succeeded to port Wipro's AQUA - a Linux based mobile phone reference framework- onto Renesas' SH-Mobile Series application processors for 2.5G and 3G mobile phones. This enables mobile phone manufacturers to utilize Linux solution for SH-Mobile, in addition to solutions for Symbian OS and iTRON. Renesas Technology will propose Linux solution based on AQUA from January 2006.

Linux is an open source and general-purpose operating system including sophisticated multitasking and networking functionality. Linux is becoming widely adopted as an embedded OS in communication equipment such as network servers and network terminals. Many mobile phones incorporate real time operating systems (RTOS) due to features such as speed and modest memory utilization. However, it costs more to develop applications, thereby fueling the adoption of Linux which has rich applications.

As Linux has a large-scale standard framework and was designed as a general-purpose OS for PCs, it has faced challenges to customize optimally for mobile phones. Also software specialized for mobile phone needs to be developed for Linux. Wipro Technologies, one of the world's largest R&D service providers with expertise in developing applications for Linux, has developed AQUA and ported onto SH-Mobile to solve these problems. AQUA is a reference framework designed to be compact for mobile phones, having rich applications. Customers willing to use the AQUA platform can significantly reduce the burden of software development for mobile phones embedding SH-Mobile. Customers will also be provided with system integration services including Linux kernel and applications from Wipro.

"AQUA is a reference framework for Linux that contains a small scale application framework for mobile devices, a small graphics tool kit and a communication function abstraction layer. The environment of AQUA requires only few resources, so it is easy to develop the user interface for embedded equipment. Also, various reference applications make the development of multimedia mobile phones easier," said Vijayakumar I, Vice President, Wireless Networks and Devices, Wipro Technologies.

"SH-Mobile is an application processor LSI for mobile phones that handles functions related to games, audio playback, video distribution, and the like. It is already well established in the world market, having been adopted by approximately 30 companies for use in some 90 mobile phone models," said Hideaki Chaki, General Manager of the System Design Div., Renesas Technology. "We are very pleased that by collaborating with Wipro, we will now be able to extend the range of SH-Mobile solutions to Linux as well. By applying Wipro's AQUA for SH-Mobile, a reference design for Linux-based mobile phone functions will be easily developed and reduce the software development cost for customers. We plan to continue to offer a broad range of SH-Mobile system solutions to meet the diverse requirements of our customers."

Renesas Technology and Wipro will work together to provide Linux-users with mobile phone solutions as well as solutions for consumer products in the future.

About Renesas Technology Corp.

Renesas Technology Corp. designs and manufactures highly integrated semiconductor system solutions for mobile, automotive and PC/AV markets. Established on April 1, 2003 as a joint venture between Hitachi, Ltd. (TOKYO:6501)(NYSE:HIT) and Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TOKYO:6503) and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, Renesas Technology is one of the largest semiconductor companies in the world and the world's leading microcontroller supplier globally. Besides microcontrollers, Renesas Technology offers flash memories, system-in-package and system-on-chip devices, Smart Card ICs, mixed-signal products, SRAMs and more. http://www.renesas.com

About Wipro Limited

Wipro Limited is the first PCMM Level 5 and SEI CMM Level 5 certified IT Services Company globally. Wipro provides comprehensive IT solutions and services, including systems integration, Information Systems outsourcing, package implementation, software application development and maintenance, and research and development services to corporations globally.

In the Indian market, Wipro is a leader in providing IT solutions and services for the corporate segment in India offering system integration, network integration, software solutions and IT services. Wipro also has profitable presence in niche market segments of consumer products and lighting. In the Asia Pacific and Middle East markets, Wipro provides IT solutions and services for global corporations. Wipro's ADS' are listed on the New York Stock Exchange, and its equity shares are listed in India on the Stock Exchange - Mumbai, and the National Stock Exchange, among others.

Product names, company names, or brands mentioned are the property of their respective owners.