Micrel and Balda Battle Escalating Gas Costs With Tire Pressure Measurement System (TPMS) IC Solution

SAN JOSE, Calif. (Map) - SAN JOSE, Calif., Aug. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Micrel Inc., (Nasdaq: MCRL), an industry leader in analog, high bandwidth and Ethernet IC solutions, today announced that Balda Solutions Malaysia, has chosen Micrel's MICRF112 and MICRF211 QwikRadio(R) IC solutions as its devices of choice for inclusion into new TPMS systems for aftermarket applications. The system consists of a minimum of four sensor transmitters (MICRF112 used) and a Receiver Display system (RF211 used). The application senses the tire pressure and temperature continuously and then alerts the driver when any of the tires' pressure or temperature reaches beyond a specified set level, potentially saving the driver significant gas and associated tire "wear and tear" costs.

"We are pleased to have chosen Micrel's RF solutions for use in our most advanced applications," stated Mr. Y.M. Leong, Director of Business Development of Balda Solutions Malaysia. "Our goal is to provide our customers with cost effective, highly reliable solutions and Micrel's fully integrated IC not only allowed us to eliminate extraneous parts and keep product costs down, but the simple drop-in design enabled us to decrease time to market. We are also very pleased with the technical support from Micrel -- the performance of their RF devices is second to none."

In this system, a RF link also provides the life-saving ability to monitor the pressure and temperature of the tires and alert the driver when tire pressure becomes abnormal (exceeding preset limit). Included in the RF solutions are Micrel's QwikRadio(R) RF transmitter and receiver. Typically, a receiver would consist of an array of tuned parts, but costs were kept to a minimum with the use of Micrel's fully-integrated, single-chip solution. A transmitter is mechanically activated to transmit a coded signal to the Micrel receiver. Micrel's MICRF211 receives the RF signal and converts it to a digital signal. The decoder then interrupts the digital signal to see if an alarm situation has been reached.

"Balda is a world-leading electronics manufacturer in the Asia-Pacific region and supplies quality products to global brand-name customers such as Sony Ericsson, Nokia, Novero, Hitachi and Canon. Micrel is honored to have one of its RF solutions used by Balda in its new TPMS applications," said John T. Lee, director of mixed-signal and RF products, Micrel. "We anticipate TPMS applications will grow tremendously over the next few years because the application helps improve automobile safety and helps increases gas mileage -- a key cost savings with today's escalating gas prices."

About Micrel, Inc.

Micrel Inc., is a leading global manufacturer of IC solutions for the worldwide analog, Ethernet and high bandwidth markets. The Company's products include advanced mixed-signal, analog and power semiconductors; high performance communication, clock management, Ethernet switch and physical layer transceiver ICs. Company customers include leading manufacturers of enterprise, consumer, industrial, mobile, telecommunications, automotive, and computer products. Corporation headquarters and state-of-the-art wafer fabrication facilities are located in San Jose, CA, with regional sales and support offices and advanced technology design centers situated throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. In addition, the Company maintains an extensive network of distributors and reps worldwide. Web: http://www.micrel.com.

About Balda Solutions Malaysia (a fully owned subsidiary of Balda AG)

Balda Solutions Malaysia offers unique one-stop solution for global brands from ODM to contract manufacturing. Balda in-house services span from product design to high volume manufacturing of electronics products with special focus on radio frequency (RF) and acoustics.

Balda's strong emphasis on product quality and reliability has won accolades from its customers and helped them achieve demanding requirements from their end-customers. Customers are assured of lower product cost without sacrificing product quality and performance.

Visit us at http://www.balda.com.my

Note: QwikRadio is a registered trademark of Micrel, Inc. The QwikRadio ICs were developed under a development agreement with AIT of Orlando, FL.