New Actel Low-Cost Starter Kit Demonstrates Secure In-System Programmability of ProASIC3/E FPGAs
Starter Kit Provides Designers with Platform to
Evaluate FlashLock and 128-bit AES- Based Security Solutions of ProASIC3/E
Devices
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., August 16, 2005 —
Giving
developers of high volume applications the capability to incorporate
secure in-system programmability (ISP) for the first time in their products,
Actel Corporation (Nasdaq: ACTL) today announced immediate availability
of the ProASIC3
starter kit and sampling of its 250K-gate A3P250 field-programmable
gate array (FPGA). Actel unveiled dual versions of the starter kit to
ease design implementation and offer low-cost, full-speed programming
for the A3P250 device. Available in both a prototyping and a low-cost
evaluation version, the starter kit allows the exploration of the architectural
features unique to the ProASIC3/E family,
including secure ISP and live at power-up capability.
The A3P250 device is the latest addition to Actel's ProASIC3/E family,
the industry's lowest cost FPGA family and the only single-chip device
family with secure ISP, via 128-bit AES encryption. The A3P250 device
is an attractive programmable logic solution for a range of high-volume,
value-based applications in the consumer, industrial, medical, communications
and automotive markets.
"With the announcement of immediate availability of the low cost
starter kit and our A3P250 device, Actel continues to execute its plan
to roll-out the ProASIC3, the industry's only true flash-based FPGA solution," said
Martin Mason, director of flash product marketing, Actel.
A3P250 Device Delivers Price, Performance and Secure ISP Advantages
In addition to market-leading lowest total system cost, the single-chip
250K-gate A3P250 FPGA contains 1024 bits (128 bits x 8 pages) of on-chip
user nonvolatile flash memory and six clock conditioning circuits, one
with on-board phase-locked loop (PLL). The A3P250 supports four I/O banks
with up to 157 I/Os and advanced I/O standards including PCI, LVDS and
LVPECL. For power-conscious customers, the A3P250 devices deliver stand-by
power consumption of only 3mA under typical conditions.
The A3P250 device provides secure ISP capability through on-chip 128-bit
AES decryption and built-in flash key storage technology. Because an
AES decryption key is required to reverse engineer the encrypted configuration
bitstream for a ProASIC3 device, attempts to copy designs through the
interception of the bitstream are futile. The AES-encrypted programming
file allows easy and secure field upgrades for Actel ProASIC3/E devices.
Features of the ProASIC3/E Starter Kit
The starter kit is available in two versions. The "EVAL" kit
includes an A3P250 FPGA soldered directly to an evaluation board, providing
customers a low-cost solution to validate the performance of the device.
The "PROTO" kit includes a socket-equipped evaluation board,
allowing 9 of the 10 devices in the ProASIC3/E family to be evaluated
with the "PROTO" kit.
The "PROTO" and "EVAL" boards both contain an alphanumeric
LCD display and provide CAT5E connectors to demonstrate the high-speed
LVDS functionality of the A3P250 (and larger) devices within the ProASIC3/E
family.
Multiple starter kits may also be connected together in a JTAG chain
to demonstrate multiple-device programming via a single programmer connection.
This feature facilitates a seamless connection to other JTAG-based systems
that the end-user may be developing.
The starter kit contains a high-speed FlashPro3 programmer, which interfaces
to a PC via a USB 2.0 or USB 1.1 interface, Actel's Libero Gold 6.2 Integrated
Design Environment (IDE) software, USB cable, programming cable, power
supply, tutorials and support documentation in addition to the starter
kit board.
Pricing and Availability
Volume pricing for the ProASIC3 family starts at $1.50 in 250K quantities.
Samples of the A3P250 device are available now. The new ProASIC3/E starter
kits are also available now. The "PROTO" kit is priced at $449
and the "EVAL" kit is priced at $349.
About ProASIC3/E
The industry's lowest cost FPGA solution, Actel's live at power-up,
low-power, highly secure ProASIC3/E FPGAs deliver 64-bit 66 MHz PCI performance
and are the industry's first FPGAs with on-chip user flash memory. The
10 devices in the ProASIC3/E families, ranging in density from 30,000
to 3-million system gates, deliver technology-leading integrated secure
ISP
About Actel
Actel Corporation is the leader in single-chip
FPGA solutions. The Company is traded on the NASDAQ National Market under
the symbol ACTL and is headquartered at 2061 Stierlin Court, Mountain
View, Calif., 94043-4655. For more information about Actel, visit http://www.actel.com.
Telephone: 888-99-ACTEL (992-2835).
Contact: Stephanie Mrus, Actel Corporation, 650.318.4614
