PLX Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: PLXT), the leading global supplier of PCI Express?(PCIe? I/O interconnect solutions, expanded its industry-dominant portfolio by delivering three new switches to market, now bringing to 13 the number of PLX PCIe products available today, the majority of which are in full production. Raising the bar on the standards it set last round, these latest devices push PCI Express technology forward with PLX's third-generation PCIe switching architecture featuring 110ns latency, the lowest power consumption, flexible port configurations up to x16, true peer-to-peer support and superior performance -- all aspects coveted by makers of server, storage, communications, embedded and graphics systems.
Shipping today in pre-production, the PLX?ExpressLane?PEX 8525 (24 lanes, 5 ports), PEX 8533 (32 lanes, 6 ports), and PEX 8547 (48 lanes, 3 ports) join the recently introduced PEX 8548 (48 lanes, 9 ports) as next generation PCI Express switches based on PLX's established architecture allowing designers immediate access to proven PCIe technology. Dynamic memory allocation, large packet memory, and non-blocking internal switch architecture allow a full line-rate on all ports for performance-hungry applications. These switches have all successfully completed the rigorous PCI Express Base Specification, Revision 1.1 testing procedures and are on the PCI-SIG integrators list.
The switches feature PLX's latest Cut-Thru architecture, which attributes to dropping latency down to an unrivaled 110ns in both host centric and peer-to-peer modes, thereby dramatically increasing the throughput in bandwidth-demanding applications. These switches consume the lowest power in the industry at 100mW per lane. This power can be further reduced through the on-chip programmable SerDes which can also be turned off when unused. Dual-Host designs are implemented via a standard PCI Express "crosslink" feature and PLX's moveable upstream port. Highly flexible ports from x1 to x16 allow numerous configurations as either upstream or downstream, while some ports feature a Hot-Plug controller allowing field upgrades without burdening the design with costly external components. White papers discussing these key parameters are available on the PLX Website.
"PCI Express technology provides the industry standard attach point to Intel chipsets within our server platforms," said Hement Dhulla, General Manager of Intel's Enterprise Chipset Strategy. "PLX's switch products offer the industry more flexibility in solution design. We look forward to working with PLX on continued delivery of PCI Express enabled enterprise solutions."
"This new launch is another example of how PLX has been at the forefront in the development of PCI Express switch solutions," said David Raun, PLX vice president of marketing. "We have distinguished our products with proven third-generation architectures and the industry's broadest line of devices and features. In parallel, our team has already begun development toward the PCI Express 2.0 specification, which doubles the line-rate of each lane to five gigabits per second."
PLX's 13 PCI Express switches and bridges provide board and system designers with the most extensive and proven lineup of products to address their variety of requirements. The company's PCIe switches range in density from four to nine ports and from eight to 48 lanes, while the PCIe bridges provide PCI, PCI-X and local-bus support.
Pricing, Availability
The three new switches are all available today and will be production-released in February 2007. Volume quantity pricing are $35 for the PEX 8525, $45 for the PEX 8533 and $55 for the PEX 8547. All PLX PCI Express products are fully supported with a Rapid Development Kit (RDK) family of hardware and Microsoft?Vista?ready software tools to accelerate design cycles. For detailed information on the entire ExpressLane family, please visit www.plxtech.com/pcie