Chip Serves As Bridge Between PCI And Hi-Speed USB 2.0

Said to be the worldÕs first PCI-to-Hi-Speed USB 2.0 device controller, the NET2280 chip provides an outside-the-box means of tapping the plug-and-play benefits of USB while retaining the high performance of PCI-based systems, such as video, data acquisition, and wireless network systemsÑthe traditional way of accomplishing this is by installing the PCI card inside the PC. Providing a direct bridge between a PCI ASIC or CPU and Hi-Speed USB 2.0, which runs at speeds of up to 480 Mbps, the new IC includes a 32-bit, 33-MHz PCI bus master or slave interface, a 4-channel DMA controller, an analog Hi-Speed USB 2.0 transceiver, a Serial Interface Engine (SIE), 12 endpoints, memory, an 8051 CPU, and a 30-MHz PLL. The 120-pin TQFP chip is sampling now, with production to begin in Q3. Price: $7 each/100,000. NETCHIP TECHNOLOGY INC., Seattle, WA. (650) 526-1490.