December 11, 2025 /SemiMedia/ — Renesas Electronics has unveiled the RA6W1 dual-band Wi-Fi 6 microcontroller (MCU) and the RA6W2 MCU, which combines Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth Low Energy. The new devices target ultra-low-power IoT applications across smart home, industrial, medical and consumer markets. Renesas also introduced fully integrated modules with built-in antennas, wireless protocol stacks and pre-validated RF connectivity to accelerate development.

Ultra-low power MCUs enable always-on IoT devices

These MCUs support long-term connectivity while maintaining minimal power consumption. Features such as Target Wake Time (TWT) extend sleep periods without disrupting cloud connectivity, which is crucial for environmental sensors, smart locks, thermostats, surveillance cameras, and medical monitors. The devices consume as little as 200nA to 4µA in sleep mode, and under 50µA in DTIM10, enabling continuous connectivity with low energy draw.

Flexible architecture supports standalone and host MCU designs

Built on a 160 MHz Arm Cortex-M33 core with 704 KB SRAM, the RA6W series allows developers to create standalone IoT applications without an external MCU. They can also be used alongside a host MCU from Renesas’ RA portfolio, providing flexible options for connectivity expansion. Both MCUs are compatible with Renesas’ Flexible Software Package (FSP) and e² studio IDE, supporting software reuse across the RA family.

Dual-band Wi-Fi 6 and Matter certification enhance performance and security

The dual-band Wi-Fi 6 support provides higher throughput, low latency, and energy efficiency. Dynamic band selection maintains stable connections in dense device environments. Advanced features like OFDMA and TWT further enhance performance, making the MCUs suitable for battery-powered and urban IoT deployments.

Security features include AES-256 encryption, secure boot, key storage, true random number generation, and XiP with on-the-fly decryption. The RA6W1 is RED certified and Matter 1.4 ready, enabling interoperability across smart home platforms. Renesas offers 15-year support for MCUs and 10-year support for modules under its Product Longevity Program.

Renesas’ connectivity solutions VP Chandana Pairla said, “Customers can choose standalone Wi-Fi devices, Wi-Fi/Bluetooth LE combos, or fully integrated modules. These solutions reduce power consumption, simplify system design and lower BOM costs, allowing smooth integration into next-generation connected systems.”

The two module types, Wi-Fi 6 (RRQ61001) and Wi-Fi/Bluetooth LE combo (RRQ61051), integrate certified RF components and protocol stacks meeting global standards including FCC, IC, ANATEL, CE/RED, UKCA, Telec, KCC, SRRC and NCC. This integration reduces development complexity and accelerates time to market.