Exar's USB to Ethernet & UART Bridge Offers Unprecedented Integration and Ease of Use

FREMONT, Calif., Aug. 5, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --Exar Corporation (NYSE: EXAR), a leading supplier of high-performance integrated circuits and system solutions, today announced the introduction of its XR2280x family of USB to Ethernet Bridge ICs. These devices offer an unprecedented level of integration, combining a Hi-Speed USB 2.0 hub with controllers for 10/100 Ethernet, I²C, EDGE GPIO, and up to four UARTs in a single chip. This bridge solution, providing multiple communication standards from a single USB port, will allow many legacy product designs to be readily adapted for connection to the Internet of Things (IoT). The devices also serve the markets for industrial equipment, factory automation, networking, test and POS terminals, and many other embedded applications.

The XR22801 provides an upstream USB interface with an integrated USB 2.0 PHY and device controller that is compliant with USB 2.0 Hi-Speed (480Mbps) and Full-Speed (12Mbps) transfer rates. Downstream there is an Ethernet controller with integrated 10/100 Ethernet MAC and PHY compliant to IEEE 802.3, an enhanced UART with a fractional baud rate generator (supporting 300 bps to 15 Mbps), a multi-master capable I²C controller, and an Enhanced Dedicated GPIO Entity (EDGE) controller. The EDGE controller supports up to 16 GPIOs and both the EDGE pins or I²C interface can be used for controlling and monitoring other peripherals. Up to 2 EDGE pins can also be configured as a PWM generator. In addition to the XR22801, which integrates a single UART, Exar also offers the XR22800 with no UART, the XR22802 with 2 UARTS, and the XR22804 with 4 UARTs.

"Exar is the world leader in UART and bridging products, with broad offerings in the market," said John Cantelmo, VP of Connectivity Products at Exar.  "The XR2280x family provides bridging solutions that open up connectivity possibilities with a level of integration not available elsewhere. This allows designers to expand the connectivity of low cost processors using a standard high speed USB port, giving customers a cost effective solution."

Product Availability and Pricing
The XR2280x family is available now in RoHS compliant, green/halogen free space-saving 32 or 56 pin QFN packages and is priced from $2.85 to $4.15 in 1000 piece quantities.

Additional Information
Additional information on the XR2280x family is available at
http://www.exar.com/connectivity/uart-and-bridging-solutions/usb-ethernet-bridges/xr22800 
http://www.exar.com/connectivity/uart-and-bridging-solutions/usb-ethernet-bridges/xr22801 
http://www.exar.com/connectivity/uart-and-bridging-solutions/usb-ethernet-bridges/xr22802 
http://www.exar.com/connectivity/uart-and-bridging-solutions/usb-ethernet-bridges/xr22804

Additional information on Exar's UART and bridging solutions is available at
http://www.exar.com/connectivity/uart-and-bridging-solutions

About Exar
Exar Corporation designs, develops and markets high-performance integrated circuits and system solutions for the Communications, High-End Consumer, Industrial & Embedded Systems, and Networking & Storage markets. Exar's broad product portfolio includes analog, display, LED lighting, mixed-signal, power management, connectivity, data management, and video processing solutions. Exar has locations worldwide providing real-time customer support.  For more information about Exar, visit http://www.exar.com.

SOURCE Exar Corporation