IDT Extends PCI Express Gen2 Leadership with Four New Switch Solutions

Business Wire, Nov 13, 2007

Proven IDT Technology and Interoperability Helping to Accelerate PCIe Gen2 Adoption in the Volume and Value Server Markets

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- IDT([R])(Integrated Device Technology, Inc.)(NASDAQ:IDTI), a leading provider of essential mixed signal semiconductor solutions that enrich the digital media experience, continues to extend its Gen2 PCI Express([R]) (PCIe([R])) switch leadership position with the ongoing development and delivery of high-performing devices. IDT today introduces four new PCIe switching solutions optimized to address the I/O connectivity challenges faced in the volume and value server markets. Specifically, the new IDT PCI Express Gen2 devices provide industry-leading performance-per-watt and lowest total power consumption critical for server markets. Moreover, the devices enable the cost-effective development of new systems by simplifying board layout, reducing system design and manufacturing cost, thus speeding time to market.

The four new PCIe Gen2 switching solutions - a 24-lane, 6-port; a 24-lane, 3-port; a 6-lane, 6-port; and a 4-lane, 4-port join the company's existing portfolio of PCIe Gen2 switches, as announced in May (see http://idt.com/?id=4275), which are now shipping in volume.

"Intel applauds IDT for bringing PCI Express 2.0 technology switching solutions to market that support our next generation server, workstation, and storage platforms," said Hemant Dhulla, general manager of Intel's server chipsets strategy. "Tapping the full performance potential of Intel's Quad-Core Intel([R]) Xeon([R]) processors requires increasing I/O bandwidth at the system level, and we expect that IDT switching solutions will help systems designers achieve new levels of I/O performance to support our processors."

The IDT Gen2 PCIe switches are fully compliant with the PCI-SIG([R]) PCIe base specification 2.0 and provide customers the option of doubling the throughput bandwidth of existing PCIe lanes to 5 gigabits per second of data transfer for cutting edge designs or allowing a 50 percent reduction in the number of PCIe lanes and board traces necessary to support link throughput requirements for a more cost effective design.

"We are very enthusiastic about our market momentum for PCIe Gen2 products. We have shipped significant quantities of our first Gen2 products to several Tier-1 Server OEMs and we are actively working with these and other customers on additional designs, providing samples, system development kits and technical support," said Mario Montana, VP and GM of the IDT serial switching division. "IDT continues to lead the transition to Gen2 technology and we are pleased to be providing our customers and partners with proven, quality switching solutions to accelerate the adoption of PCIe Gen2 interconnect technology."

The newest IDT PCIe switches deliver the industry's best performance-per-watt and provide features optimized for the volume and value server segments. The solutions demonstrate the IDT corporate initiative to provide devices that are "power smart" by incorporating advanced features to minimize power consumption, maximize performance-per-watt and reduce total cost of ownership and thermal design complexity. These new additions to the industry's broadest portfolio of PCIe Gen2 solutions decrease time-to-market and reduce system validation testing by utilizing the proven IDT switch and interface technology employed in the existing family of IDT PCIe Gen2 switches.

"As Broadcom continues to drive enterprise Ethernet solutions, we have worked closely with IDT to reduce our customers' product development time and establish interoperability between Broadcom's PCIe Gen2 Ethernet products and IDT's PCIe Gen2 switches," said Vinod Lakhani, Senior Director and General Manager of Broadcom's High-Speed Controllers line of business. "We're pleased to see IDT leading with PCIe Gen2 switching solutions and aggressively providing platforms for interoperability testing of current and future system I/O devices."

"AMD's graphics cards pair perfectly and have demonstrated successful interoperability with the IDT PCIe 2.0 switch chips," said Victor Peng, VP of Design Engineering, AMD Graphics Products Group. "The ATI Radeon[TM] HD 2600 series of products can take advantage of the performance boost of PCIe Gen2 which effectively doubles the link bandwidth. We are pleased to be a part of enabling standards for the industry that delivers leading-edge technology to our customers."

Each of the IDT PCIe switching solutions has a dedicated evaluation and development kit for device testing and analysis, and system emulation. Each kit consists of a hardware evaluation board with representative upstream and downstream connectivity, and an IDT-developed, GUI-based software environment that enables the designer to tune system and device configurations to meet system requirements. Moreover, to ensure that each OEM system design is optimized for production and meets its time to market objectives, IDT provides customers with extensive, collaborative technical support including system modeling and signal integrity analyses, and schematic and layout review services.