Texas Instruments has been ranked at the top of the latest Vendor Matrix released by ABI Research.

Freescale Semiconductor and NXP Semiconductors claimed the second and third spots in the company’s most recent evaluation of worldwide IEEE 802.15.4 integrated circuit vendors.

The Vendor Matrix is an analytical tool developed by ABI Research to provide a clear understanding of vendors’ positions in specific markets. Vendors are assessed on the important parameters of “innovation” and “implementation” across several criteria unique to each vendor matrix.

“Texas Instruments held onto the top spot in the IEEE 802.15.4 Vendor Matrix this year by benefiting from a strong combination of innovation and implementation across its range of its 802.15.4 IC offerings,” says Principal Analyst Jonathan Collins. “Freescale, in second place overall, did gain the top spot within the Implementation category. NXP’s third place ranking is courtesy of its Jennic acquisition, but it’s too early to tell whether NXP’s backing will have a significant impact on Jennic’s marketplace standing.”

For this particular matrix, under "innovation," ABI Research examined the vendors’ product feature sets, their device power consumption, their Rx sensitivity, memory sizes offered, if any, and Microcontroller Units (MCU) offered, if any. Form factor integration and variety were also assessed, as well as protocol stack availability.

Under "implementation," ABI Research scrutinized vendors’ overall market positions, their vertical market focus, and their levels of customer support.

To view a chart showing the rankings of the nine firms in this Vendor Matrix, please visit IEEE 802.15.4 IC Vendor Matrix. Registration on the ABI Research website (free) is required. Access to the rankings and profiles of all companies surveyed is available to clients of ABI Research.

This Vendor Matrix forms part of two ABI Research Services: Wireless Sensor Networks and Wireless Connectivity.