Exar Launches Two Industry First Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitters (UARTs) With Integrated Level Shifters

FREMONT, Calif., and MUNICH, Nov. 9, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- electronica 2010 -- Exar Corporation (Nasdaq: EXAR), released two industry first UARTs with integrated level shifters. With a maximum data rate of 24 Mbps, the XR16M890 and XR20M1280 are the industry's fastest UARTs with 8-bit/VLIO and I2C/SPI interfaces, respectively.  These devices are the latest additions to Exar's market proven 8-bit/VLIO and I2C/SPI family of products.  These new offerings are targeted toward a cross-section of portable applications including smart phones, Bluetooth, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), GPS systems, and other battery operated devices.

"As the functionality and features of portable devices are continually enhanced, the demand for multiple voltage rails onboard increases," said Levent Ozcolak, vice president, Interface Product Line. "The XR16M890/XR20M1280 can act as a seamless bridge between two or more components that require different operating voltages, thereby eliminating the need for costly external components."

Product Details

The main difference between the XR16M890 and XR20M1280 is the CPU bus interface.  The XR16M890 has a selectable 8-bit Intel, Motorola or VLIO bus interface.  The XR20M1280 has a selectable I2C/SPI bus interface.  The maximum clock frequency on the SPI interface is 26 MHz.  Both devices share a common set of features including Auto RTS/CTS Hardware Flow Control, Auto XON/XOFF Software Flow Control, TX/RX FIFO Counters, selectable or programmable transmit and receive FIFO trigger levels, and Fractional and Independent TX/RX Baud Rate Generators. They also have Auto RS-485 Half-Duplex Direction Control, Multidrop mode with address detect, 128-Byte TX/RX FIFOs, and Infrared mode. Additionally, these devices have Sleep and PowerSave modes to minimize power consumption, and up to 16 GPIO pins are available.

"Capitalizing on trends in emerging markets, and responding to customer demands, Exar has extended its serial communications capabilities once again with the highly competitive and extremely versatile XR16M890 and XR20M1280," said Rakesh Bhatia, director, strategic marketing, Interface Products. "These devices offer system architects maximum flexibility by delivering voltage choice options for their designs so they can easily respond to rapidly changing market requirements.  Using the on-chip voltage level shifters minimizes the number of external components needed and optimizes the overall Bill of Materials."

Interface Products

Exar has one of the broadest portfolios of high-performance interface solutions including UARTs, RS-232, RS-485, and multi-protocol serial transceivers and integrated UART/transceiver combinations. For chip-to-chip or system-to-system connections, Exar's single and multi-channel interface ICs provides immediate competitive advantages to system architects: low power, reduction in board space requirements, increased bandwidth capacity, and enhanced product features. Interface devices are found practically everywhere including point-of-sale (POS) terminals, digital televisions, industrial automation equipment, handheld devices, and networking environments.

Tools and Support  

Evaluation boards, reference designs, and software drivers are available.  With the availability of these tools and Exar's application support line: [email protected], UART customers can accelerate implementation by eliminating driver development, testing and diagnostic procedures.

Prices, Packages, Availability and Additional Information

Samples of the XR16M890 will be available within 30 days in a 32-pin QFN, 40-pin QFN, and a 48-pin TQFP at 1.62V-3.63V operation over the industrial temperature range.  Additional information on this product can be found at http://www.exar.com/Common/Content/ProductDetails.aspx?ID=XR16M890.  Samples of the XR20M1280 will be available within 30 days in a 24-pin QFN, 32-pin QFN, and a 40-pin QFN at 1.62V-3.63V operation over the industrial temperature range.  Additional information on this product can be found at http://www.exar.com/Common/Content/ProductDetails.aspx?ID=XR20M1280. In 1k quantities per device the XR16M890 and the XR20M1280 are priced from a range of $1.85-$1.90.  Additional information on other Interface products can be found at http://www.exar.com/Common/Content/Family.aspx?ID=7250&Parent=1.

About Exar

Exar Corporation delivers highly differentiated silicon, software and subsystem solutions for industrial, datacom and storage applications. For nearly 40 years, Exar's comprehensive knowledge of end-user markets along with the underlying analog, mixed signal and digital technology has enabled innovative solutions that meet the needs of the evolving connected world. Exar's product portfolio includes power management and interface components, communications products, storage optimization solutions, network security and applied service processors. Exar has locations worldwide providing real-time customer support to drive rapid product development. For more information about Exar, visit: http://www.exar.com.

SOURCE Exar Corporation