Renesas Electronics has expanded its connectivity portfolio with two new microcontrollers aimed at meeting surging demand for ultra-low-power, always-connected IoT devices.
The Japanese semiconductor group unveiled the RA6W1, a dual-band Wi-Fi 6 MCU, and the RA6W2, which integrates Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth LE. Renesas also introduced fully integrated wireless modules with built-in antennas, protocol stacks, and pre-validated RF connectivity, targeting developers seeking shorter design cycles and lower compliance risk.
The launches come as manufacturers of smart-home, industrial, medical, and consumer devices face growing pressure to improve battery life while maintaining uninterrupted cloud connectivity. Renesas said its Wi-Fi 6 MCUs support Target Wake Time, allowing devices to remain connected while operating in extended sleep modes — a feature suited to products such as sensors, locks, cameras, thermostats, and medical monitors.
The devices consume between 200nA and 4µA in sleep mode and under 50µA in DTIM10, according to the company. This “sleepy connected” capability enables systems to meet tightening energy-efficiency standards.
Both MCUs are built on Arm’s Cortex-M33 core running at 160MHz with 704KB of SRAM, enabling standalone IoT designs without an external controller. They integrate directly with Renesas’s Flexible Software Package and e2 studio development environment, marking the RA family’s first Wi-Fi-enabled products and allowing developers to reuse software across the line.
Support for 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands enables higher throughput and lower latency, while features such as OFDMA and TWT are intended to improve performance in congested wireless environments. Security functions include AES-256, secure boot, key storage, TRNG, and execute-in-place decryption.
The RA6W1 is certified under Europe’s Radio Equipment Directive and supports Matter 1.4, easing interoperability with major smart-home ecosystems. Renesas is offering 15-year longevity for the MCUs and 10 years for the modules.
“We’re offering our customers the flexibility to design with a standalone Wi-Fi device, a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth LE combo, or fully integrated modules depending on their needs,” said Chandana Pairla, Vice-President of Connectivity Solutions at Renesas. She added that the approach reduces system complexity and bill-of-materials cost.
The new RRQ61001 (Wi-Fi 6) and RRQ61051 (Wi-Fi/Bluetooth LE) modules come with global RF certifications across major markets, including the UK, Europe, the US, Canada, Japan, China, South Korea, and Brazil. Renesas said the integration of certified components would help customers accelerate time to market.
The company has paired the new MCUs with several of its so-called Winning Combinations, such as wireless HMIs for household appliances and automated pet-tracking systems, which combine mutually compatible components into vetted system architectures.
The RA6W1 is now available in FCQFN and WLCSP packages, alongside the two modules. The RA6W2, supplied in a BGA package, is scheduled for release in Q1 2026. Evaluation kits, SDKs, and development tools are available, including power-profiling capabilities and production-line test support.
Renesas, listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, supplies microcontrollers, analogue, power, and connectivity solutions for automotive, industrial, infrastructure, and IoT applications.
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