Pixelworks Debuts New Family of All-In-One ImageProcessor ICs Optimized for Mainstream Monitors and Smart Panels.Business Editors/High Tech Writers TUALATIN, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 24, 2002 World's First 0.18-Micron Fully Integrated ImageProcessor ICs Incorporate World-Leading Flat Panel Interface Technology from Analog Devices Pixelworks, Inc. (Nasdaq:PXLW) debuted today a new family of ImageProcessor ICs that are the highest performing products designed specifically for rapidly growing smart panel applications and the mainstream LCD monitor market. The highly integrated ImageProcessor ICs combine Pixelworks' award-winning image processing technology with world-leading, flat panel interface technology from Analog Devices to deliver a complete, low-cost flat panel monitor See flat panel display. electronics solution on a single chip. Using an advanced 0.18-micron CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) Pronounced "c-moss." The most widely used integrated circuit design. It is found in almost every electronic product from handheld devices to mainframes. process, the new family of `all-in-one' ImageProcessor ICs are architected to supply the flat panel monitor industry with competitively priced state-of-the-art products. This new system-on-a-chip ImageProcessor Architecture uses an embedded microprocessor, on-chip memory, digital signal processing See DSP. Digital Signal Processing - (DSP) Computer manipulation of analog signals (commonly sound or image) which have been converted to digital form (sampled). circuitry and Pixelworks' unique Panel IQ technology that allows the ImageProcessor IC to connect directly to the LCD panel electronics. This innovation reduces costs by eliminating components and streamlining manufacturing. Analog Devices provided the high-performance analog and mixed-signal design expertise required to implement a high-speed, triple 8-bit analog-to-digital converter, low-jitter PLL PLL - phase-locked loop and DVI (1) (Digital Video Interactive) An earlier compression technique that provided up to 72 minutes of full-screen video on a CD-ROM. Acquired by Intel in 1988 from RCA's Sarnoff Research labs, Princeton, NJ, DVI never caught on. receiver in 0.18 micron CMOS that will operate up to 170 Mhz. The result is a series of fully integrated, pin-compatible system-on-a-chip ICs that deliver outstanding image quality up to UXGA-resolution (1,600 by 1,200 pixels), broad compatibility, ease of use and rapid time to market. Ross Young, President and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of DisplaySearch, the worldwide leader in flat panel display A thin display screen for computer and TV usage. The first flat panels appeared on laptop computers in the mid-1980s, and the LCD technology became the standard. Stand-alone LCD screens became available for desktop computers in the mid-1990s and exceeded sales of CRTs for the first time market research, said: "The combination of Pixelworks and Analog Devices is a formidable team. This family of high performance chips is optimized for the rapidly growing LCD monitor market. We expect the LCD monitor market to exceed 27 million units in 2002. Monitors manufactured using the newer smart panel and smart integration model are expected to grow by 388 percent this year." "Many of our customers already use Analog Devices' display interface chips together with our products, so integrating the technologies onto a single piece of silicon makes sense and allows us to extend our broadly adopted ImageProcessor Architecture into the mainstream monitor market," said Allen Alley, President, CEO and Chairman of Pixelworks. "We selected Analog Devices because of the company's number one share in the display interface marketplace and leadership in analog and mixed-signal technology." New Family of ImageProcessor Chips Targeted for LCD Monitor Segments The PW13X series features Analog Devices' state-of-the-art, high-speed triple 8-bit analog-to-digital converter that handles signals ranging up to UXGA (Ultra XGA) A screen resolution of 1600x1200 pixels. See PC display modes.  resolution and their industry proven ADI DVI
receiver.The PW13X family of ImageProcessor ICs incorporates Pixelworks' unique Panel IQ technology, which allows direct connection to the display source and column drive electronics, thus reducing overall system cost. The Panel IQ suite of features combines an industry leading programmable TCON TCON The Chronicles Of Narnia (book series by C.S. Lewis) TCON Timer/Counter Control Register (Intel 8051 Microcontroller register) TCON Telephone Consults TCON Trailer Contents with advanced EMI (ElectroMagnetic Interference) An electrical disturbance in a system due to natural phenomena, low-frequency waves from electromechanical devices or high-frequency waves (RFI) from chips and other electronic devices. Allowable limits are governed by the FCC. reduction technologies as well as other features developed by Pixelworks supporting a broad range of LCD panels for smart panel and smart integration LCD monitor applications. The initial products in this family are as follows: -- PW135 ImageProcessor featuring integrated analog and digital interfaces and embedded Panel IQ technology; -- PW133 ImageProcessor featuring an integrated analog interface and embedded Panel IQ technology; -- PW131 ImageProcessor featuring integrated analog and digital interfaces; and -- PW130 ImageProcessor featuring an integrated analog interface. All products are offered in speed-graded versions from XGA (EXtended Graphics Array) A screen resolution of 1,024x768 pixels. The term stems from IBM's XGA display standard introduced in 1990, which extended VGA to 132-column text and interlaced 1,024x768x256 resolution. XGA-2 later added non-interlaced 1,024x768x64K. to UXGA input resolutions. The PW13X family extends Pixelworks award-winning ImageProcessor Architecture into mainstream monitor applications with these key features: -- Image Scaling - Second-generation up and down scaling with high-quality, independent horizontal and vertical DSP (1) (Digital Signal Processor) A special-purpose CPU used for digital signal processing applications (see definition #2 below). It provides ultra-fast instruction sequences, such as shift and add, and multiply and add, which are commonly used in math-intensive scalers that provide programmable sharpness, supporting input resolutions up to UXGA resolution and output resolutions up to UXGA; -- Automatic Image Optimization - Perfectly adjusted images with no user intervention, regardless of the input source; -- Enhanced Fail-Safe(TM) - Pixelworks expands its patent-pending Fail-Safe(TM) mode which extends monitor compatibility and is designed to minimize user frustration while reducing support requirements and costs for monitor manufacturers. The new Fail-Safe(TM) mode supports a full-color screen that ensures users can always see their computer desktop even when the graphic signals driving the monitor are set at resolutions or refresh rates beyond the monitor's capabilities; -- Video Interface Support - Integrated YUV The color encoding system used for analog television worldwide (NTSC, PAL and SECAM). The YUV color space (color model) differs from RGB, which is what the camera captures and what humans view. to RGB (Red Green Blue) The computer's native color space, which is the color system for capturing and displaying images. RGB was derived from our own perception of color because human eyes are sensitive to red, green and blue (see trichromaticity). converter and on-chip deinterlacer gives manufacturers a low-cost option for video inputs, enabling low-cost, feature-rich multimedia monitors; -- On-screen on·screen or on-screen adj. & adv. 1. As shown on a movie, television, or display screen. 2. Within public view; in public. Display - Manufacturer can implement a customized user interface with bitmap graphics using a palette of 64,000 colors; -- On-chip Microprocessor and Memory - The PW13X series includes an x86-compatible microprocessor with integrated RAM; and -- Complete Software Development Environment - Pixelworks includes the embedded operating system An operating system used in special-purpose applications (embedded systems). Embedded operating systems are typically very compact and often designed for real time operations. See embedded Linux, QNX, OS-9, Windows XP Embedded, Windows CE, VxWorks and Symbian OS. , source code and proprietary software tools needed to customize display devices. The PW13X chips will be sampling later in the first quarter of 2002 and will be available in a 208-pin PQFP (Plastic Quad Flat Package) Refers to many varieties of QFP chip packages, which are molded in plastic. See QFP. package. About Pixelworks, Inc. Pixelworks, headquartered in Tualatin, Oregon, is a leading provider of system-on-a-chip ICs for the advanced display market. Pixelworks' solutions process and optimize video, computer graphics and Web information for display on a wide variety of devices used in business and consumer markets. Pixelworks ImageProcessor Architecture powers the world's most highly regarded flat panel display products, including monitors and projectors marketed by Compaq, Dell, NEC-Mitsubishi, Samsung, SANYO, Sharp, Sony and ViewSonic. For more information, please visit the company's Web site at www.pixelworks.com. Pixelworks is a trademark of Pixelworks, Inc. All other trademarks and registration marks are the property of their respective corporations. Safe Harbor Safe Harbor 1. A legal provision to reduce or eliminate liability as long as good faith is demonstrated. 2. A form of shark repellent implemented by a target company acquiring a business that is so poorly regulated that the target itself is less attractive. Statement This press release contains statements, including statements concerning the acceptance of the combined technologies by leading manufacturers, that are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Securities Litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the company's business. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Actual results could vary materially from the description contained herein due to many factors including the non-acceptance of the combined technologies by leading manufacturers as well as the risks detailed from time to time in the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date on which they are made, and the company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this news release. If the company does update one or more forward-looking statements, investors and others should not conclude that the company will make additional updates with respect thereto or with respect to other forward-looking statements. |
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