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8 Experts on Overcoming Challenges of RF Solution Design 23 system thermals. As devices become smaller, the importance of power efficiency increases. • Money. This measure is the costs that go into product development: engineering time, components, software development, certification testing, and time to market. For example, how quickly you want to get a product out helps you choose the path you take. If you need to get a product out faster, you may choose an existing device, chip, or circuitry that can reduce engineering costs and time to market. Software development takes time and money. Testing is expensive and time consuming, especially if your device is intended for a global market. In addition, you may need to design different versions of a product for different markets. When designing wireless systems, you need a feel for these numbers and the trade-offs to know if you are going in the right direction. Unless you are working in uncharted territory, the right wireless module can save a lot of time and help with power consumption and RF performance. A key factor is availability, and availability depends on the supplier's ability to guarantee delivery at the quantities you need so that you can deliver your product. The worst-case scenario is having to shut down the factory because you can't get a critical component. Another important consideration in selecting wireless modules is vendor support. Does the vendor take into account customer and industry needs? Does it follow up on support services? Factors such as firmware support, software support, and e-support become fundamental considerations when choosing a wireless module or chip. For example, some vendors can help with pre-certification testing, especially when software is involved. They can set up a module so that it transmits appropriately for compliance testing. Because of the time and cost of compliance testing, do everything you can to avoid problems. You want to go in certain that you have covered everything, but even then there will be surprises. ''Factors such as firmware support, software support, and e-support become fundamental considerations when choosing a wireless module or chip."