News & Events
Intersil Enters the 802.11a WLAN Arena with the Industry's Best Performance and Lowest Bill of Materials

-- PRISM Indigo™ enters the 5 GHz fray with a total BOM of less than $35

IRVINE, CA, September 18, 2002 – Intersil Corporation (NASDAQ: ISIL), a world leader in the design and manufacture of high performance analog and wireless networking solutions, today announced that PRISM Indigo, the industry’s lowest priced IEEE 802.11a-compliant Wireless Local Area Networking (WLAN) solution for the 5 GHz band is now in full production. Designed to meet the market’s escalating demand for high-speed wireless connectivity, PRISM Indigo delivers fast 54 megabits per second (Mbps) throughput.

“Our PRISM® 2.4 GHz chip sets are the first choice of the leading companies in the Wi-Fi (802.11b) marketplace, and PRISM Indigo ensures we will be the WLAN leader in the 5 GHz (802.11a) arena,” said Rich Beyer, Intersil’s president and CEO. “And our roadmap for success doesn’t end there. Early next month, we will be sampling PRISM Duette™, a highly integrated dual-band 802.11a, b, g WLAN solution capable of transmitting high-speed video, voice and data at speeds up to 54 Mbps while remaining 100 percent backward compatible to the existing installed base of over 30 million Wi-Fi systems worldwide.”

“Intersil has been building Wireless LAN solutions longer than any other company, and we are leveraging that rich history of system expertise, service, software, support and best-in-class radio performance into a whole new generation of high speed products,” said Larry Ciaccia, vice president and general manager for Intersil’s Wireless Products Group. “PRISM Indigo is a continuation of our proven track record for offering cost competitive, robust and high-performance WLAN products that offer exceptional value and superior features for our customers.”

PRISM Indigo employs OFDM technology and complies with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers’ (IEEE) 802.11a (5 GHz) standard. The first solution suite to be released includes a FCC-compliant Cardbus reference design, a software developer’s kit, device drivers, application and security software, manufacturing test tools and diagnostic software. A mini-PCI reference is slated for release in November. PRISM Indigo is engineered to meet the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance’s (WECA) 5 GHz interoperability guidelines.

The PRISM Indigo product family expands Intersil’s world’s leading portfolio of industry-leading WLAN integrated circuit (IC) solutions into the 5 GHz spectrum, providing WLAN system suppliers with a host of new applications opportunities. The new PRISM Indigo reference design incorporates the latest security and Quality of Service enhancements for deployment of video streaming, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and multimedia related services for the home and enterprise.

In the office environment, PRISM Indigo supports broadband infrastructure applications including building-to-building wireless bridging and high bandwidth end-user applications such as video streaming and multimedia. “PRISM Indigo will set the bar for price and performance in the WLAN chip set market. Our independent testing shows superior range and throughput characteristics versus other 5 GHz wireless networking chip set solutions available today,” added Ciaccia. “We have a broader portfolio of design aids for fast integration of wireless into a variety of products and applications that will support reliable and simultaneous, multi-channel video, voice and CD-quality audio throughout the entire home.”

The PRISM Indigo chip set includes all of the ICs required to implement a 5 GHz WLAN design: Radio Frequency to Intermediate Frequency (RF/IF) Converter, IF to Baseband Converter (IF/BB) and Baseband Processor/Medium Access Controller (BBP/MAC). For more information concerning PRISM Indigo, go to www.intersil.com/design/prism/indigo

Intersil + Elantec Means More for Our Customers
Intersil Corporation is a global semiconductor leader in the design and manufacture of high performance analog and wireless networking solutions. The acquisition of Elantec Semiconductor, Inc., expanded Intersil’s product portfolios to address four fast growing markets – flat panel displays, optical storage (CD and DVD recordable), power management, and wireless networking. Intersil brings added customer value in providing complete silicon, software and reference design solutions to new products that enhance the computing experience for people wherever they live, work or travel. For more information about Intersil or to find out how to become a member of our winning team, visit the company's web site and career page at www.intersil.com This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements are based upon Intersil Corporation’s (“Intersil”) management’s current expectations, estimates, beliefs, assumptions, and projections about Intersil’s business and industry. Words such as “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “predicts,” “believes,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “would,” “potential,” “continue,” and variations of these words (or negatives of these words) or similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections, or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, our actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statements as a result of various risk factors. Important risk factors that may cause such material differences for Intersil’s WLAN product group include, but are not limited to: the slowdown in the technology sector generally and the semiconductor industry specifically; the rate at which consumers adopt small handheld Internet appliances and portable computing devices in enterprises and in homes; the rate at which consumers purchase small handheld Internet appliances, portable computing devices, and notebook computers with embedded wireless; the rate at which our present and future customers and end-users adopt Intersil’s wireless access technologies, including Prism, Prism Indigo, and Prism Duette; the timing, rescheduling or cancellation of significant customer orders; the ability of our customers to manage inventory; the loss of a key customer; the qualification, availability and pricing of competing products and technologies and the resulting effects on sales and pricing of our products; average selling price (ASP) erosion; silicon wafer pricing and the availability and quality of our foundry capacity and raw materials; availability, pricing, and quality of third party foundry and assembly and test capacity and raw materials; fluctuations in the manufacturing yields of our third party foundries and assembly and test facilities, and other problems or delays in the fabrication, assembly, testing or delivery of our products; the risks of producing products with new suppliers and at new fabrication and assembly and test facilities; problems or delays that we may face in shifting our products to smaller geometry process technologies; the effectiveness of Intersil’s expense and product cost control and reduction efforts; the risks inherent in acquisitions, including the acquisition of Elantec Semiconductor, Inc. (including integration issues; costs and unanticipated expenditures; changing relationships with customers, suppliers, and strategic partners; potential contractual, employment, and intellectual property issues; risks of not securing regulatory approvals; accounting treatment and charges; and the risks that the acquisition cannot be completed successfully, or that the anticipated benefits of the acquisition are not realized); intellectual property disputes, customer indemnification claims, and other litigation risks; Intersil’s ability to develop, market, and transition to volume production new products and technologies in a timely manner; the quality of Intersil’s products and any repair or replacement costs; the risks and uncertainties associated with Intersil’s global operations, particularly in light of the war on terrorism; the effects of natural disasters, international conflicts and other events beyond our control; the level of orders received and the ability to fill those orders in a given fiscal quarter; and other factors. Intersil’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, recent Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other Intersil filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) (which you may obtain for free at the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov) discuss some of the important risk factors that may affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition. These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this communication and Intersil undertakes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements. PRISM is a registered trademark of Intersil Americas Inc.
PRISM Indigo and PRISM Duette are trademarks of Intersil Americas Inc.
All other trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.