Altera Ships New DSP Development Kit for High Performance Signal Processing Applications; Kits Begin at $995 and Include Wireless Modulator/Demodulator Reference Designs.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 26, 2001

Altera Corporation (Nasdaq:ALTR) is now providing DSP engineers new to the world of programmable logic a comprehensive kit for designing, prototyping and debugging high performance DSP designs. The DSP development kit for APEX(TM) devices, made available today, includes a development board, system-reference designs and Altera's DSP Builder software. Combined with a newly released wireless modulator/demodulator intellectual property (IP) suite for the broadband wireless market, this package significantly reduces the time from concept to hardware implementation.

Altera's new DSP Builder provides a design methodology that is similar to the system algorithm development, design verification, and debugging tools familiar to designers of software for traditional DSP processors. Altera's DSP Builder seamlessly links The MathWorks MATLAB(TM) and Simulink(R) environments familiar to DSP engineers with Altera Quartus(R) II design software.

The three system reference designs contained in the kit specifically target high-speed filtering, forward error correction, and wireless base station systems necessary for designers of broadband wireless applications. Also included is a direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) reference design.

"The DSP development kit for APEX devices includes everything designers needs to start developing systems on programmable logic," said Justin Cowling, director of IP Marketing at Altera. "Designers can jump-start their designs for broadband wireless applications by implementing the various DSP IP cores and reference designs in hardware prior to licensing them."

Pricing And Availability

The DSP development kit for APEX devices is available in both a Starter version and a Professional version. The Starter version features a development board with an APEX 20K200E (200K gates logic) device, two 10-bit 40 MHz A/D's, two 10-bit 125 MHz D/A's, 128 Kbytes of external high-speed SRAM, a license for the Quartus II development software limited edition, and a 30 day evaluation of MATLAB and Simulink from The MathWorks. As a special introductory offer, the DSP Builder will be bundled with the Starter version at no cost. The starter version of the DSP development kit for APEX devices (ordering code: DSP-BOARD/A2E) is priced at $995.

The Professional version features a development board with APEX 20K1500E (1.5M gates logic) device, two 12-bit 65 MHz A/D's, two 14-bit 125 MHz D/A's, and 256 Kbytes of external high-speed SRAM, and a 30 day evaluation of MATLAB and Simulink from The MathWorks. The professional version of the APEX DSP development kit (ordering code: DSP-BOARD/A15E) is priced at $3,995.

All these products can be purchased from the IP Megastore(TM) web site at http://www.altera.com/IPmegastore. Detailed documentation about these products can be found on the IP Megastore web site.

About Altera

Altera Corporation, The Programmable Solutions Company(R), was founded in 1983 and is a leading supplier of programmable logic devices (PLDs). Altera's CMOS-based PLDs are user-programmable semiconductor chips that enhance flexibility and reduce time-to-market for companies in the communications, computer peripheral, and industrial markets. By using high performance devices, software development tools, and sophisticated intellectual property cores, system-on-a-programmable-chip (SOPC) solutions can be created with embedded processors, memory, and other complex logic together on a single PLD. Altera common stock is traded on The Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol ALTR. More information on Altera is available on the Internet at http://www.altera.com.

Note to Editors: Altera, The Programmable Solutions Company, the stylized Altera logo, specific device designations and all other words that are identified as trademarks and/or service marks are, unless noted otherwise, the trademarks and service marks of Altera Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. Simulink is a registered trademark of The MathWorks. MATLAB is a trademark of The MathWorks. All other product or service names are the property of their respective holders.