Actel Expands IP Offering with New High-Performance DDR Memory Controller Core

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., November 15, 2004 — Actel Corporation (Nasdaq: ACTL) today announced a new intellectual property (IP) core optimized for Actel field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) that provides a high-performance, synchronous interface to double data rate (DDR) SDRAM memories. The new Actel CoreDDR supports up to 1024 Mbytes of memory with a fully pipelined architecture that enables extremely fast data rates for consumer, communication, industrial and military applications. In addition, the memory controller can be customized based on system and memory-specific requirements, allowing the designer to maximize memory bandwidth and overall system performance.

"CoreDDR can be configured at run-time, enabling designers to customize the core for their application requirements, allowing them to use standard DDR SDRAM memory devices to keep system costs down," said Yankin Tanurhan, senior director of applications and IP solutions at Actel. "As the latest member of Actel's DirectCore family of verified and fully supported IP solutions, CoreDDR simplifies overall system design by allowing the designer to focus on the system as a whole, rather than individual IP components, resulting in faster time to market."

CoreDDR is part of the growing family of memory control solutions available from Actel that also includes the CoreSDR controller for single data rate SDRAM memories. The new CoreDDR controller, which is optimized for Actel's antifuse-based Axcelerator and RTAX-S FPGAs, supports standard SDRAM chips and dual in-line memory modules (DIMMs) with up to 1024 Mbytes of memory and up to eight chip selects. To simplify system design, the controller performs all initialization and refresh functions for the SDRAM memories.

The core accepts read and write commands using the simple local bus interface and translates these requests to the command sequences required by the SDRAM devices. The local bus interface also allows CoreDDR to be easily connected and used with Actel's CorePCIX solution in PCI applications. The core supports cascading of read and write requests, enabling up to 100 percent throughput, maximizing SDRAM bandwidth and overall system performance. To further increase performance, the CoreDDR controller's bank management logic monitors the status of up to four SDRAM banks to minimize access delays.

Pricing and Availability

Netlist and RTL source versions of Actel's CoreDDR, with a comprehensive test bench, are available now. The netlist version simplifies system integration while the RTL version allows full user customization. Pricing starts at $4,000. In addition, a free evaluation version is available for download at Actel's Web site, www.actel.com/products/ip.

Actel DirectCore and CompanionCore Solutions

Actel offers its own system-level IP solutions, called DirectCores, specifically designed and optimized for use with Actel devices. The company also offers third-party IP blocks, called CompanionCores that have been tested and verified in Actel FPGAs. Covering applications ranging from embedded systems to consumer and communications, the offered cores include bus interfaces, communication controllers and interfaces, processors and peripherals, encryption and memory controllers, as well as multimedia and error correction.

Actel DirectCore and CompanionCore products offer seamless implementation through Actel's suite of internal and third-party EDA development tools and quality documentation service and support, thereby streamlining the design process and minimizing time to market, design costs and risks. Customers may access and download free evaluation versions of cores from Actel's broad IP portfolio through its Web-based IP evaluation program at www.actel.com/products/ip.

About Actel

Actel Corporation is a supplier of innovative programmable logic solutions, including field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) based on antifuse and flash technologies, high-performance intellectual property (IP) cores, software development tools and design services, targeted for the high-speed communications, application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) replacement and radiation-tolerant markets. Founded in 1985, Actel employs more than 500 people worldwide. The Company is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol ACTL and is headquartered at 2061 Stierlin Court, Mountain View, CA, 94043-4655. Telephone: 888-99-ACTEL (992-2835). Internet:: http://www.actel.com.

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