Test equipment company PCTel saw its revenues drop 16% year-over-year, but overall profits were up compared to the same period in 2019, the company reported this week.
Total company revenues for the second quarter were $19.8 million, compared to nearly $23.4 million during the same period last year. Revenues were down 19% in PCTel’s test and measurement segment, and down 13% year-over-year for its antenna products. However, CEO David Neumann noted that second quarter 2020 revenues improved over the year’s first quarter, when PCTel reported $17.5 million in revenue.
Net income for the most recent quarter was nearly $1.2 million, compared to about $940,000 in the year-ago period.
“We’re pleased with the sequential growth in revenue, non-GAAP earnings per share and in overall gross margins in the second quarter, especially given the challenges presented with the COVID pandemic,” said Neumann in a statement. “We continue to focus on the health and well-being of our employees and to support our customers that rely on us for connectivity solutions. We’re confident in our long-term growth prospects with strong 5G test and measurement demand, success with our industrial IoT products, and a strong balance sheet to support inorganic growth.”
PCTel announced separately this week that it has expanded its relationship with Welotec, which will now serve as the company’s master distributor in Europe as well as the Middle East and Africa, to expand the company’s presence in those regions.
In other test news:
–Keysight Technologies said this week that it collaborated with Qualcomm to bring a cellular vehicle-to-everything test plan to fruition through the Global Certification Forum, with test cases certified by GCF’s conformance agreement group in July. Prashant Dogra, VP of engineering atQualcomm Technologies, called the development a “significant milestone toward realizing a certification program the automotive industry can rely on to commercialize reliable C-V2X products.”
In other company news, Keysight said it worked with Chinese company Cambridge Industries on inter-operability development testing of open RAN radio units, using a Cambridge O-RU and Keysight’s Open RAN Studio, signal source and analyzer solutions to put together an environment for 5G New Radio modulation analysis. “As a result, CIG and other vendors of O-RUs can accelerate design verification of products based on specifications set by the O-RAN Alliance,” Keysight said.
Keysight also unveiled a new N7005A optical-to-electrical converter, for use with its Infiniium UXT-series of oscilloscopes, to enable real-time analysis and debugging on up to four channels simultaneously. Keysight said that the new solution supports the needs of efficient testing for high-speed technologies including 5G, cloud services, high-definition streaming and IoT-based applications.
–Tektronix launched a new entry-level oscilloscope to its portfolio, aimed at educational institutions, embedded design engineers and the “maker community.” The TBS1000C Digital Storage oscilloscope expands on Tek’s TBS1000 series of entry-level equipment, and has an integrated courseware system that integrates lab exercises with step-by-step instructions for student use, according to the company. It has a seven-inch color display , sample rate up to 1 GS/s and bandwidths from 50 MHz to 200 MHz.
–Anritsu has a new family of vector network analyzers that are available in models up to 43.5 GHz. The test company said that the ShockLine ME7868A family of modular 2-port vector network analyzers can conduct full-vector S-parameter measurements over distances of up to 100 meters. The set-up consists of two two MS46131A 1-port VNAs (used as portable VNAs that can connect directly to devices under test) with a PhaseLync synchronization option hardware and accessories. Anritsu said that the VNAs “offer multiple advantages compared to traditional solutions that use 2-port VNAs with very high dynamic range and require long and expensive phase stable microwave cables to reach the DUT.”
-In the latest test collaboration between Viavi Solutions and L3 Harris Technologies, the latter’s XG025M, XG-25P and XG-15P two-way radio products are supported with automated testing by Viavi’s 3920B Radio Test Platform and 8800SX Digital Radio test set. Viavi supports testing for all of L3 Harris’ public safety radios.
Viavi also recently launched its Xgig 5P8 Analyzer Platform for PCI Express 5.0, which it says provides protocol analysis for PCIe 5.0 traffic at all layers of the protocol stack, with link widths of up to eight lanes and link speeds to 32 GT/s.
-Component distributor Digi-Key has launched an expanded U.S. marketplace that includes test and measurement gear, IoT solutions and automation tools, with items indicated with a “Marketplace” label able to ship within 1-5 days. The Marketplace currently serves customers located in the U.S., but Digi-Key is planning regional launches as well.
-South Korea’s 5G networks are showing speeds about four times the speed of its LTE networks — and that isn’t nearly as fast as the 20-times speeds that operators have talked about, according to local press reports. Read the full story here.
