Teridian Extends Popular 73S12xx Family, Delivering the Industry's Best Performance-Cost Ratio for Smart Card Readers.

Only Company Offering Single-Chip, Low-Cost Smart Card Reader ICs with High-End Features and Support for New Memory Requirements and EMV Standards

PARIS -- At CARTES 2006 this week, Teridian Semiconductor Corp. will further expand its well-received 73S12xx family of dedicated controller-based ICs for smart card readers with the introduction of the 72S1217F 8-bit PINpad smart card reader System-on-Chip (SoC), and the 73S1209F and 73S1210F turnkey smart card reader ICs. These three new family members extend the success of the 73S1215F, which enabled the industry's first USB-connected smart card readers. Teridian will be showcasing these smart card solutions at stand 4 J 112 at CARTES 2006, held on Nov. 7-9 in Paris, France.

The 73S1217F is a single-chip PINpad smart card reader with power management features and USB and serial connectivity, ideally suited for handheld PINpads, critical in e-banking and digital identification for corporate and government ID applications, and USB-connected peripherals. The 73S1209F and 73S1210F ICs are state-of-the-art, self-contained smart card reader ICs ideally suited for set-top-box, wireless internet device (WiMax smart phones and home gateways), payphone, point of sales terminal, vending machine, and residential meter applications.

"With these three new 12xx ICs, we are the only silicon provider offering low-cost smart card reader ICs with high-end features that are ready to support new requirements and new standards," said Jean-Christophe Doucet, senior product line manager for Teridian. "It's no accident that we're the first and only company to offer a single-chip solution for PINpad readers, and these latest additions to the 12xx portfolio demonstrate our continued commitment to providing intelligent integration to this exploding market."

Doucet continued, "Not only do we provide the most comprehensive level of firmware and driver software on the market, we also developed, support and maintain it ourselves, eliminating support delays and royalty costs associated with third-party software alternatives."

73S1217F

This unique, single-chip smart card terminal solution incorporates embedded 64K of flash memory, and is therefore optimized to build low-cost, handheld PINpad card readers, in particular combination devices that can be used alternatively in standalone mode (un-connected) or attached to a computer (USB-connected). With the 73S1217F, personal PINpads for applications like E-banking and digital identification, including secure login, authentication and certification for corporate ID-badges, and citizen IDs, can now take advantage of the USB connectivity, with almost no cost impact compared to traditional unconnected solutions.

The 73S1217F builds upon the feature set of the Teridian 73S1215F with the addition of a DC-DC converter, plus several built-in power management features. In USB applications, the device enables operation from a single power supply, that can be either the USB bus power (VBUS = 4.40V to 5.50V) or a set of battery cells (VBAT 4.0V to 6.5V). In standalone applications, the 73S1217F requires a single 2.7V to 6.5V power supply source. In addition, the IC features built-in switches between VBUS and VBAT, and hardware support for a main system ON/OFF switch. In OFF mode, the circuit typically draws less than 1[eth]-A, making it ideal for applications where battery life must be maximized, and eliminating the need for several discrete components and ICs in the design process.

73S1209F and 73S1210F

These solutions are built around the Teridian 80515 CPU core, and can run either Teridian turnkey embedded firmware or customer code. The Teridian 73S1209F and 73S1210F ICs, used in conjunction with Teridian ready-to-use PC/SC firmware and optional host drivers will help dramatically simplify the design and shorten development and certification timescales for compliance with applicable standards like EMV or most popular conditional access schemes in audio/video applications. In addition to the easy-to-implement host serial interface available on both devices, the 73S1210F offers a wide voltage range of 2.7V to 6.5V, ideal for battery-powered applications that involve lower-power modes.

The Teridian 73S12xx family provides one of the broadest selections of semiconductor products for today's smart card applications, and the company's extensive firmware libraries and reference designs significantly shorten development and certification time. For more information on CARTES 2006, visit http://www.cartes.com/en/2006/index.htm.

Pricing and Availability

The 73S1217F, 73S1209F and 73S1210F solutions will be sampling this month, with volume production expected in Q1, 2007; pricing is available upon request. Data sheets and development kits for all three devices are also available now, and include a ready-to-use board with an actual 73S12xx IC, an in-circuit emulator, a CD with firmware and software libraries, and a reference design. For additional information, contact any Teridian sales representative, authorized worldwide distributor, or visit Teridian's Web site at http://www.teridian.com/sales.

About Teridian Semiconductor

Teridian Semiconductor Corporation brings intelligence and integration to real-world designs. The company's best-in-class analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits play a primary role in energy and automation, networking, and secure access applications. Teridian solutions can be found in smart card readers, VoIP gateways, set-top boxes, point-of-sale equipment, utility meters and factory floor automation across the globe, enabling customers to get to market quickly with advanced applications that are tailored to meet the specific needs of their target markets. For more information, visit http://www.teridian.com.