News & Events
Intersil’s PRISM® II Chip Set Selected For New GemTek Broadband Router, Mini-PCI Card and USB Wireless Networking Products

Innovative products aimed at growing home and small business markets

IRVINE, CA, November 9, 2000 — Intersil Corporation (NASDAQ: ISIL), the world’s leading provider of silicon technology for Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), today announced that GemTek Technology has integrated Intersil’s PRISM II WLAN chip set into its new wireless Broadband Router, wireless USB device and wireless LAN mini-PCI card.

"Reducing to the mini-PCI card is quite significant, considering the currently popular PCMCIA card is twice as big, " said Larry Ciaccia, vice president and general manager of PRISM Wireless Products at Intersil. "This opens the door for manufacturers who want to embed wireless cards in laptops or other devices. Also, the GemTek Broadband Router essentially opens a wireless umbrella over homes and offices, giving workers and family members fast access to either cable or DSL broadband services. This is an excellent portfolio of wireless products and it’s all based on the widely adopted IEEE 802.11 standard. "

GemTek’s new wireless Broadband Router, the WX-2000, is an all-in-one box for cable or digital subscriber line (DSL) modem-enabled locations. Named "SmartOscar, " it is ideal for small office and home office wireless networking, supporting up to 253 wireless users at the 100-350 foot range with simultaneous Internet access to all. Its features include connect-on-demand, auto-disconnect, point-to-point protocol and DHCP functionality. The WX-2000 is also equipped with a parallel port for printer and printer server management.

The GemTek WL-250 mini-PCI wireless LAN card is designed for manufacturers of laptops, PDAs, WebPads and other wireless communication devices. The mini-PCI card is only 2 by 2 3/8 inches and, installed at the factory, is a lower-priced alternative to the add-in PCMCIA card. This much smaller form factor is a key ingredient for many small, portable wireless appliances in development now. Though less than half the size of PCMCIA cards, it features full 11 Mbps speed with 100 to 360 foot range. It provides full mobility with a high-quality network link and seamless roaming from cell-to-cell.

The WL-280 USB device addresses another growing trend — the inclusion of USB ports on new desktop PCs. USB wireless LAN units such as the WL-280, make it simple to add wireless capability to a PC. The plug-and-play unit connects to an open USB port on the PC or daisy-chains off other USB peripherals.

Each of these new GemTek wireless LAN products comply to the widely adopted IEEE 802.11b global standard, providing wired-Ethernet performance of up to 11 Mbps. Each product also supports Windows98/2000, NT 4.0 and Linux operating systems. GemTek has submitted these to the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliances (WECA) certification lab to gain Wi-Fi™ compatibility assurance.

Adoption of PRISM WLAN Technology
Since introducing the PRISM WLAN chip set in 1996, over fifty companies have incorporated PRISM chips in more than 100 product designs. In a May 2000 report, the Cahners In-Stat Group called Intersil "the dominant force in the WLAN chip set marketplace with their PRISM chipsets holding the majority of market share. " PRISM technology is designed to comply with the IEEE’s 802.11 global standard, and Intersil is a founding sponsor of the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (WECA), whose Wi-Fi™ brand is a mark of compatibility for 802.11b-based systems. PRISM chips are used in WLAN systems from industry-leading companies including Alcatel, Cisco, Compaq, 3Com, Dell, D-Link, Nokia, Nortel, Samsung, Siemens, SpectraLink, Symbol Technologies and Zoom.

About GemTeK Technology
GemTek Technology is headquartered at Hukuo, Hsinchu Industrial Park, Taiwan. The company was founded in 1991, and has been a leading OEM/ODM developer and manufacturer for RF and microwave related products. The company is privately held and its wireless LAN products are distributed worldwide via OEMs and channels.

About Intersil
Irvine, California-based Intersil uses its semiconductor expertise to enable highly integrated voice, data and video communications. Intersil's integrated communications portfolio includes PRISM^® Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) chip sets that enable mobile connectivity products for the home and office; analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits for broadband access to wireless and wired Wide Area Networks (WANs); and power management products that enable 24x7 reliability in network servers, next generation PCs and information appliances. For more information about Intersil, visit the company's Internet homepage at www.intersil.com.

This press release contains information relating to certain projections and business trends concerning the WLAN market that are forward looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are based upon management’s current expectations, estimates, beliefs, assumptions, and projections about our business and industry. Words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will" and variations 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. Furthermore, any forward-looking statements and projections made by others in this press release are not adopted by Intersil Holding Corporation ("Intersil") and Intersil is not responsible for the forward-looking statements and projections of others. 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 in connection with WLAN market include, but are not limited to, the rate at which consumers adopt small handheld Internet appliances, the rate at which our present and future customers and end-users adopt Intersil’s wireless technologies and products; the timing, rescheduling or cancellation of significant customer orders; 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; silicon wafer pricing and the availability of foundry and assembly capacity and raw materials; intellectual property disputes; as well as other risk factors detailed from time to time in Intersil’s filings with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission ("SEC") which you may obtain for free at the SEC’s website www.sec.gov. These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this press release and Intersil undertakes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements.

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PRISM is a registered trademark of Intersil Corporation.

Wi-Fi is a trademark of the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance.

All other trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.