The device identified in a 2004 EE Times report as the world’s first single-chip 5.8 GHz FSK transceiver was Micro Linear’s ML5800. That “first” status was attributed to the company, not independently established by the report. The ML5800 combined key radio functions on one IC, but still required external components to make a complete radio.
What is the ML5800?
The ML5800 is a 5.8 GHz frequency-shift-keyed (FSK) transceiver IC made by Micro Linear. A transceiver both transmits and receives radio signals. Micro Linear’s datasheet describes the part as integrating frequency generation, receive, and transmit functions intended for digital cordless telephone designs.
EE Times reported on January 13, 2004, that Micro Linear was producing what the company said was the “world’s first single-chip 5.8 GHz FSK transceiver.” The wording matters: the historical source records Micro Linear’s claim, but does not independently verify that no earlier device met the description. Read the EE Times report.
What did the chip integrate—and what remained external?
The ML5800 was a highly integrated radio IC, not a complete radio in a single package. Its low-IF receiver architecture, frequency-generation functions, transmit functions, and IF and data filtering were integrated. A complete radio design still needed an external power amplifier and antenna switch, as well as an antenna.
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This distinction explains the “single-chip” description: it referred to the transceiver’s radio functions, not every component needed to transmit and receive over the air. The Micro Linear ML5800 datasheet describes its architecture and external-component requirements.
What were the ML5800’s published specifications?
The following figures are manufacturer specifications in Micro Linear’s 2006 datasheet, not independent test results:
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| Specification | Published value | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Operating frequency range | 5.725–5.850 GHz | Unlicensed ISM band, as stated in the datasheet |
| Data rate | 1.536 Mbps | Datasheet-listed high data rate |
| Receive sensitivity | −94 dBm typical | At 0.1% BER |
| Transmit output power | 0 dBm typical | Typical datasheet specification |
| Input-referred noise figure | 4 dB typical | Typical datasheet specification |
FSK encodes information by shifting a carrier between frequencies. The datasheet says the ML5800 could support direct-sequence or frequency-hopping spread-spectrum radios, two approaches to spreading a radio signal across frequencies.
What was the chip designed for?
Digital cordless telephones were a central target. The 2004 report also discussed wireless streaming audio and video; Micro Linear’s datasheet lists game controllers and high-speed data links as other intended applications. These are stated use cases, not evidence that every application had a finished product or design using the chip.
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What is known about shipments, price, and availability?
In 2004, EE Times reported that Micro Linear said it had shipped about 20 million devices. That is a company-reported figure, not an independently audited count. The same report gave a historical price of $5.60 at a 10,000-unit quantity; it is not a current price.
The datasheet lists ML5800DM and ML5800DM-T as orderable variants, but the available historical documentation does not establish whether the part is still manufactured, where it can be bought today, what current inventory or pricing may be, or which evaluation hardware is compatible. Treat the datasheet as a record of the device’s published design and specifications, not confirmation of present-day supply or suitability for a new design.
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