Tundra Advancement Leads to More Powerful, Smaller Communications Systems.

Business Editors

KANATA, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 28, 2000

Tundra (TSE:TUN.) announces volume shipment of QSpan ll, the industry's smallest, most versatile Motorola Processor-to-PCI Bus Bridge.

The device allows for faster and less costly deployment of advanced communications products such as routers, Ethernet and ATM switches, and access controllers.

Tundra Semiconductor Corporation, a leader in System Interconnect for the Internet and communications infrastructure market, today announced that QSpan ll, the industry's most advanced version of PowerQUICC(TM)-to-PCI interconnect, is now available in production volumes. The device's proven performance and stability help companies such as Motorola, Cisco Systems, and Nortel Networks bring embedded products to market faster, at less cost, and with high performance.

Developed as part of an ongoing strategic relationship with Motorola, QSpan ll is the industry's most effective device for connecting the range of Motorola 8xx and other host processors to standard PCI buses in the latest embedded telecommunications and data communications applications.

"Communications systems designers trying to build more powerful, sophisticated networks are continuously trying to manage greater numbers of data and voice channels while lowering the overall cost per channel," said Rick O'Connor, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development at Tundra. "QSpan ll solves these problems. Its advanced features, including its integrated PCI arbiter, and the industry's smallest package enable designers to develop lower cost, sophisticated systems with increasingly higher channel density."

QSpan ll has secured more than 500 design wins with tier-one communications vendors such as Motorola, Cisco, Nortel, Lucent Technologies, and Alcatel. It is used extensively in access controllers, cellular-base stations, routers, network access and LAN/WAN internetworking equipment, and Ethernet and ATM switches. Its strategic importance continues to grow as Motorola processors increasingly dominate a broader range of embedded communications applications, including SOHO multi-protocol routers and set-top boxes.

"The QSpan II is a key companion device for the PowerQUICC family," said Mike Shoemake, Motorola PowerQUICC Product Marketing Manager. "The QSpan ll highly integrated feature set and comprehensive development tools make it possible for our customers to realize the full potential of PowerQUICC processors when used in PCI-based architectures."

About QSpan ll

QSpan II is a direct-connect (SF1)PCI bridge for the Motorola PowerQUICC(TM) (MPC860/850/821), the QUICC(TM) (MC68360), and the M68040. It supports processor-bus traffic at speeds of up to 50 MHz, with programmable parity and burst/prefetch capability.

A key feature of QSpan ll is its integrated PCI Bus Arbiter. It supports up to seven external masters, allowing designers to save board real estate. The PCI bus arbiter uses a fairness algorithm to prevent deadlocks. Bus parking is supported on the last bus master or on a pre-determined bus master. CompactPCI Hot Swap Friendly rounds out the PCI features of this device. QSpan II also provides flexible data flow management through its Intelligent Input/Output (I2O) messaging and DMA/IDMA support.

QSpan II does all this in two physical packages: a 17 x 17 mm (with a 1.0mm ball pitch) with a 256-pin PBGA, and a 27 x 27 mm (with a 1.27mm ball pitch) with a 256-pin PBGA.

QSpan ll is compatible with the original QSpan, meaning software investments are preserved and long-term development costs minimized. QSpan II is now available in volume production with a suggested volume price of $16 U.S.

About System Interconnect

System Interconnect is the technology to connect components and subsystems in almost any embedded system. It includes chips on a board and boards on a backplane. System Interconnect is a vital enabling technology for the networked world. The convergence of voice, video, and data traffic, the need for more secure communications, and the exploding demand for high-speed network access are putting communications infrastructure vendors under intense pressure to provide faster, well-managed bandwidth that also integrates smoothly with existing technology. Tundra System Interconnect helps these vendors address their customer needs. It enables them to build standards-based network equipment that can scale to multi-gigahertz speeds and beyond, and also integrate with existing infrastructure.

About Tundra

Tundra Semiconductor Corporation (TSE:TUN) designs, develops, and markets advanced System Interconnect for use by the world's leading Internet and communications infrastructure vendors. Tundra chips provide the latest interface and throughput features to help these vendors design and deliver more powerful equipment in shorter timeframes. Tundra products are essential to a range of applications, including telecommunications, data communications, wireless communications, industrial automation, and ruggedized systems. Tundra headquarters are located in Kanata, Ontario, Canada, and sales offices are based in Mountain View, California and Maidenhead, U.K. Tundra sells its products worldwide through a network of direct sales personnel, independent distributors, and manufacturers' representatives. More information is available on-line at www.tundra.com.

PowerQUICC is a trademark of Motorola.

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