Exar's New LPC UARTs Reduce Footprint in Industrial PCs

FREMONT, Calif., Jan. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Exar Corporation (NYSE: EXAR), a leading supplier of high performance analog mixed-signal components and data management solutions, today announced the XR28V382 and XR28V384 UARTs for the Intel Low Pin Count (LPC) motherboard bus. The new LPC UARTs reduce footprint while increasing data integrity and throughput by providing industry leading 128 byte FIFOs.  These devices are targeted towards industrial PCs, factory automation, process controllers, network routers, and single board embedded computers.

The XR28V382 is packaged in a small 5x5mm 32 pin QFN and includes two UART channels, while the XR28V384 has four UART channels in a 7x7mm 48 pin TQFP.  Exar's dual and quad LPC UARTs, compared to 128 pin super I/O devices, offer the same or more serial channels in a significantly smaller footprint, offering as much as 8X reduction in board space.

"These new LPC UARTs are a great replacement or supplement for a super I/O device when the primary need is serial connectivity," said Jack Roan, product marketing manager, Exar. "They are also an excellent alternative to USB UARTs; they interface directly with the system BIOS so there is no need to install a driver, and they are inherently compatible with multiple operating systems because the device is configured before the OS loads."

Product Details
Both the two channel XR28V382 and four channel XR28V384 UARTs include Exar's automatic half duplex control for RS-485 networks.  These parts feature 128 byte transmit and receive FIFOs, are rated for the industrial temp range, and operate at 3.3V.  Each UART channel supports serial data rates up to 3Mbps.

Suggested retail prices for XR28V382 and XR28V384 are $2.40 and $3.50 respectively, in 1,000-unit quantities.

Additional Information

Additional information on the XR28V382 and XR28V384 is also available online.

Additional information on Exar's UART products is also available online.

About Exar
Exar Corporation designs, develops and markets high performance, analog mixed-signal integrated circuits and advanced sub-system solutions for the Networking & Storage, Industrial & Embedded Systems, and Communications Infrastructure markets.  Exar's product portfolio includes power management and connectivity components, communications products, and network security and storage optimization solutions. Exar has locations worldwide providing real-time customer support.  For more information about Exar, visit http://www.exar.com.

SOURCE Exar Corporation