NATIONAL SEMICONDUCTOR INTRODUCES MacPHYTER 10/100 ETHERNET CONTROLLER

Integrated Single-Chip MAC/PHY Device Provides High-Performance Solution for Next-Generation Windows-Based Terminals, PCI Adapter Cards and Information Appliances

August 16, 1999 - With focus on providing Ethernet capability for networking products and information appliances, National Semiconductor® Corporation (NYSE:NSM) today launched its DP83815CVNG MacPHYTER™ single-chip 10/100 PCI Ethernet controller and physical layer transceiver. The MacPHYTER draws from National's strength in mixed-signal technology, and is designed for easy implementation of 10/100 Mb/s Ethernet LANs for adapters, LAN-on-motherboard (LOM), and information appliance applications like set-top boxes and Windows-based terminals (WBTs).

The DP83815CVNG MacPHYTER offers customers a cost-competitive single-chip solution that leverages the quality and performance of National's new DSP-based physical layer. The MacPHYTER tops the performance scale with error-free reception at upwards of 140 meters and features extremely low power consumption of only 170 mA (560 mW) during full operation and 10 mA (33 mW) in sleep mode. In addition, it provides industry-leading remote management features with wake-on-LAN (WOL) and PXE 2.0 support, and the latest power management support for advanced configuration and power interface (ACPI) systems.

"With its industry standards certifications and composite best-in-class feature set, the MacPHYTER provides a robust building block for the information appliances that populate mainstream corporate environments and that we expect to see in heavily networked homes," says Vikram Karvat, marketing manager of National Semiconductor's Network Products Group. "The MacPHYTER combines National's analog engineering strengths with the DSP expertise from the ComCore acquisition, setting the stage for the expansion of our networks portfolio."

Standards and Support
The MacPHYTER is a fully IEEE 802.3 compliant MAC and PHY with a PCI 2.2 compliant bus. It supports ACPI 1.0, Wake-on LAN (WOL), Magic Packet and Virtual LAN (VLAN) standards. The device's PXE 2.0, or Pre-Boot eXecution Environment, allows for remote management of LAN clients, including remote installation of operating system and applications. In addition, the MacPHYTER is Microsoft® PC 99 and Novell-certified, and works with all leading operating systems: Windows® 95 and 98, Windows 2000, Windows NT®, Windows CE, Novell, Wind River Systems VxWorks® RTOS and Linux®.

National provides a full manufacturing kit, the MacPHYTER Accelerated Adoption Package (MAAP), allowing customers to greatly reduce design and qualification cycles. The MAAP kit consists of a PCI adapter, evaluation schematics, PCB Gerber files, part layout, multi-source bill of materials, and sample executable drivers.

Price and Availability
The DP83815CVNG MacPHYTER 10/100 Ethernet controller is available and priced at $11.10 for volume quantities of 10,000. It has been sampling to key OEMs and is in volume production now. For more information visit www.national.com.

About National Semiconductor
National Semiconductor provides system-on-a-chip solutions for the information age. Combining real-world analog and state-of the-art digital technology, the company's chips lead many sectors of the personal computer, communications and consumer markets. With headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., National has annual sales of $2 billion and 11,000 employees worldwide. Additional company and product information is available on the World Wide Web at www.national.com.