A
transceiver which keeps circuitry associated with a
receiver in a powered down state during periods when a Received
Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) indicates that a
signal being received is below a pre-determined threshold level, and which begins to power up the
transmitter as soon as it is determined that a packet being received requires a response. The RSSI
signal represents the strength of any
signal current being received, and if the RSSI signal falls below a given threshold level,
digital circuitry associated with the back-end circuitry of the
receiver system is disabled. If the RSSI signal rises above the threshold level, the
digital circuitry of the
receiver is enabled. A
control circuit within the
transceiver processes the packet as it is received to determine whether the packet requires a response. If it is determined that a response is necessary, the
control circuit provides a
control signal to the
transmitter to power up the
transmitter from a
sleep mode even before the entire packet has been received and processed. The
control circuit then continues to process the remainder of the packet as it is received while the transmitter powers up from the
sleep mode. In this manner, the transmitter will become stabilized much earlier. Accordingly, the
transceiver is able to respond more quickly than conventional devices and is thus able to increase response times and overall
data exchange rates. Moreover, battery power of the transceiver is utilized more efficiently compared to devices which must continuously maintain the receiver and transmitter in fully powered
modes.