Oxford Semiconductor Announces Industry's First Single-Chip Combination USB and Memory Host Controller; New Chip Improves Performance and Utilization; Supports USB and CE-ATA Ideal for Portable Applications

Business Wire, March 13, 2006

MILPITAS, Calif. -- Oxford Semiconductor Inc., a leading provider of high-performance connectivity solutions for consumer, storage and multimedia applications, today announced the industry's first controller with full-speed host and high-speed peripheral USB connectivity combined with support for multiple storage interfaces. The OXU140CM, Oxford Semiconductor's new all-in-one connectivity solution is ideal for consumer electronics devices that require high-performance connectivity for data transfer and access to expanded memory for additional storage.

The OXU140CM supports both USB and multiple storage interfaces including the new CE-ATA (Consumer Electronics-Advanced Technology Attachment) interface, which was designed specifically for small form factor disk drives targeted at handheld and consumer electronics applications. Offering the dual benefits of full-speed host and high-speed peripheral USB connectivity, the OXU140CM offers the performance and flexibility required by consumers to transfer photos, music and video at a higher speed and in a shorter time. Multiple storage interfaces allow the OXU140CM high-speed bridging to CE-ATA, MMC and SD memory for expanded storage capabilities.

"Today's portable consumer products require their USB to handle a broader range of media content than ever before. These products also require USB data to be efficiently transferred across a growing number of storage interfaces. The OXU140CM was specifically designed to meet this emerging industry need," said Paul Liu, Oxford Semiconductor product marketing director. "We are well-known in the USB arena and have leveraged our USB expertise to design the first controller that supports high-performance USB, combined with support for multiple storage interfaces."

The OXU140CM utilizes the proven design of Oxford's TD1120, the company's single-chip, high-speed peripheral and full-speed host USB controller, which was introduced in 2004. The high-speed USB connectivity in the OXU140CM enables a device to transfer data at high speeds when connected to a host (such as PC). The full-speed host capability enables a portable device to interface with a wide range of other USB applications such as mass storage devices (thumb drives, hard drives), digital-still-cameras and MP3 players. Oxford Semiconductor's forward-looking design supports MMC and SD memory as well as an interface to CE-ATA, a new standard in the early stages of adoption by manufacturers of consumer electronics products.

Features provided by the OXU140CM include:

--Two-in-one USB connectivity - Full-speed host and high-speed peripheral provides cost, board space and power savings and minimizes system design by replacing two discrete USB controllers with one single chip.

--CE-ATA/MMC/SD memory host controller - Supports multiple storage interfaces enabling expanded mass storage for portable applications.

--High-speed data bridging - High-speed USB peripheral data transfer to CE-ATA/MMC/SD storage devices for fast synchronization between a PC and the portable device. Improves performance and lowers CPU utilization.

--Low power design saves battery life - a key requirement for consumer electronics devices.

--128pin LQFP (14x14mm) and 100-ball BGA (8x8mm) - Two types of packaging offers cost and board space savings.

The OXU140CM is sampling now with production volumes available in the second quarter of 2006.

About Oxford Semiconductor

Oxford Semiconductor designs and markets high-performance connectivity solutions for the storage, multimedia communication, computing, and industrial markets. Founded in 1992, Oxford is a privately owned company with headquarters in Milpitas. Oxford recently acquired TransDimension, a fabless semiconductor company based in Irvine, Calif. TransDimension provides USB connectivity solutions and software for embedded applications.

As the market leader in IEEE1394 (FireWire) and USB interface controllers for direct attached storage applications, Oxford Semiconductor has shipped more than 10 million devices, and today supplies all of the world's major external storage manufacturers.

Oxford Semiconductor also has a strong reputation in high-speed serial communication chips, and offers complete solutions for bridging between a wide range of standard computer interfaces.

Through its FireWire audio controllers, Oxford Semiconductor has led the development of breakout boxes, external sound cards and multi-channel speaker systems, providing laptop users with quality sound for the very first time. More information about Oxford Semiconductor can be found at http://www.oxsemi.com.