News & Events
Transmeta Endorses Intersil’s PRISM® as Wireless LANInterface for Crusoe™-based Internet Appliances
Products to be demonstrated this week at PC Expo
IRVINE, CA and NEW YORK, NY, June 27, 2000 — Intersil (NASDAQ: ISIL), the world’s leading developer of silicon technology for Wireless Local Area Networks, announced today that Transmeta Corporation has endorsed its PRISM® WLAN technology as the wireless networking interface for forthcoming mobile computing devices based on Transmeta’s Crusoe™ microprocessor.
In its booth at PC Expo (#3454), Transmeta will demonstrate OEM prototypes of ultra-light mobile PCs and Web pads powered by Crusoe, its next-generation software microprocessor unmatched in performance and low power consumption. All of the products in the booth will be linked via wireless LAN cards to a broadband Home Gateway using PRISM 802.11b technology, enabling fast wireless Internet connections at Ethernet speed, 11 million bits per second (Mbps) data transmission rate.
"We’re pleased to collaborate with Transmeta to help drive the future of the Internet with handheld, battery-powered Internet appliances wirelessly connected to broadband services," said Greg Williams, president and chief executive officer of Intersil. "Transmeta’s wireless demonstration of Crusoe-based Internet appliances at PC Expo is a good example of how PRISM is well suited for mobile Internet access throughout the home or office."
"Intersil’s high data rate 802.11b technology is an ideal choice for delivering wireless broadband to Internet appliances throughout the home or office due to its high performance, low cost and low power consumption," said Ed McKernan, director of marketing at Transmeta. "We look forward to collaborating with Intersil at PC Expo to illustrate how wireless technology will benefit the evolving class of ultra-light mobile Internet computers powered by our Crusoe chip."
Intersil’s PRISM II is the world’s most highly integrated WLAN chip set on the market today, delivering wired Ethernet-equivalent data rates and compliance to the IEEE’s 802.11b global standard. Optimized for high data rate (11Mbps) wireless networking, PRISM II-based systems are feature-rich and provide better, more reliable performance in all types of networking environments. Advanced design and silicon germanium (SiGe) process technologies reduce power consumption, design complexity and total system cost.
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 802.11b 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 Cisco, Nokia, Siemens, Compaq, 3Com, Dell, Nortel, Samsung, SpectraLink, Symbol Technologies and Zoom.
About Transmeta Corporation
Founded in 1995, Transmeta is a privately held company based in Santa Clara, California. Transmeta develops, in concert with its OEM customers, platform solutions for the Mobile Internet Computing market. Transmeta markets and sells the Crusoe processor solution as the engine for a new class of computers. Crusoe is the only x86 compatible processor solution built to run the large installed base of PC software applications with high performance and extremely long battery life.
About Intersil
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 the growing demand for wireless products 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 our 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. These forward-looking statements 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 the forward looking statements as a result of various risk factors. Important risk factors that may cause such material differences for Intersil in connection with the wireless market include, but are not limited to, 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. 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.
PRISM is a registered trademark of Intersil Corporation and Crusoe is a trademark of Transmeta Corporation.
