PowerWise - FAQs Home->PowerWise

Frequently Asked Questions

  1.  What is the PowerWise® brand?
    National Semiconductor is designating its energy-efficient products under one umbrella, the National PowerWise brand.

  2.  Which products does the PowerWise family include?
    It includes products --both power management and signal path-- that deliver the highest performance at the lowest power for energy-efficient designs whether customers are looking for:
    • An individual product: Products with individually outstanding performance-to-power ratios
    • System: Products that provide an energy-efficient design when combined with other integrated circuits
    • Intellectual property (IP): National's Adaptive Voltage Scaling IP

  3.  How will National's PowerWise brand help customers?
    With the PowerWise brand, customers can easily find products that will solve their toughest energy-efficiency challenges without sacrificing functionality and performance.

  4.  What positions National to take this lead in delivering energy-efficient products and systems?
    National is singularly positioned to enable energy-efficient systems because its expertise, heritage and solid accomplishments have been built by consistently demonstrating and delivering:
    • Leadership in power management products
    • Innovation and expertise in high-performance, analog signal-path products
    • Proprietary low-power process technology (including VIP50 and BiCMOS8) and packaging design
    • A rich portfolio of intellectual property with over 2900 patents (260 issued in 2006 alone)
    • The ability to produce products in volume when customers need them at competitive prices
    • An extensive suite of tools, online simulators and documentation to assist customers with their energy-efficient designs

  5.  How many products are included in the PowerWise family?
    National has released a few hundred PowerWise products to date. This number is expected to grow substantially as National develops new energy-efficient products and designates existing products under the National PowerWise brand.

  6.  Why aren't all of National's products in the PowerWise family?
    Customers have a broad set of analog needs in addition to energy-efficient products. These may include:
    • Highest performance with power not being an issue in certain designs
    • Requirements for the lowest-cost solution independent of performance or power
    • Products that are highly competitive but not necessarily at the leading edge of energy efficiency