SAN JOSE, Calif., September 28,1998, – In a sweeping move to address new markets and enhance its product portfolio, Xilinx, Inc., (NASDAQ: XLNX), today announced it will begin shipment of three new lines of advanced, 3.3-volt programmable logic devices (PLDs) and an expanded line of 2.5-volt high density, high performance products. 

The Xilinx products are expected to drive the use of PLDs into the consumer, PC-related and automotive markets. In the consumer market, new applications include digital cameras, digital television, set-top boxes, arcade games and badge and credit card readers. In the PC-related market, the PLDs are targeted at applications such as PCMCIA modem cards, PC screen projectors and graphics boards. In the automotive market, designers are expected to incorporate PLDs into GPS driver information systems and internal cabin controls. 

Moreover, the new Xilinx products are expected to further penetrate traditionally strong markets for programmable logic devices. New telecommunications applications, for example, range from portable phones and digital subscriber line interfaces for Internet access to very high performance digital signal processing systems. New data processing applications include peripheral cards and I/O interface boards, while networking applications now include products such as Ethernet adapters. 

In all, Xilinx unveiled more than 20 new products, including both complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs) and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). The rollout brings to market the broadest choice of 3.3-volt and 2.5-volt devices available from a single supplier, with densities ranging from 800 to 500,000 system gates. 

"This launch constitutes the largest breadth of new offerings ever announced at one time in the programmable logic industry," said Xilinx president and CEO Wim Roelandts. "Today, Xilinx is in its strongest product position ever. This announcement encompasses everything from low cost, very fast CPLDs to the largest and highest performance FPGAs, and it includes virtually everything in-between." 

The new Xilinx programmable logic devices include: 

· The XC9500XL family, featuring the industry's highest performance CPLDs with pin-to-pin speeds of 4 nanoseconds and system frequencies of 200 MHz. The XC9500XL family consists of four 3.3-volt devices with logic densities ranging from 36 to 288 macrocells (or about 800 to 6,400 gates). All XC9500XL devices are manufactured using advanced 0.35 micron Flash process technology for the industry's highest reliability in programming and data retention, as well as lowest device cost and smallest die size. The devices are available in the most popular surface mount technology, including chip-scale packaging. XC9500XL products offer the industry's best pin locking and in-system programming capability as well as enhanced JTAG boundary-scan support. New markets include automotive, consumer electronics and PC peripherals and add-ins. High volume pricing begins at $1.20 for the XC9536XL. 

· The XC4000XLA FPGA family, consisting of eight 3.3-volt devices ranging in density from 13,000 to 180,000 system gates. The XC4000XLA devices are manufactured with an advanced 0.25-micron process that boosts performance by 30 percent over the current XC4000XL product line at about half the cost. The XC4000XLA family is the industry's lowest power, highest performance, full line of 3.3-volt FPGA products. New markets: high-density ASIC replacements. High volume pricing begins at $11.80 for the XC4013XLA. 

· The XC4000XV family, first unveiled last October, now consists of five 2.5-volt devices, including the newly announced XC40110XV. This second generation of 0.25 micron Xilinx FPGA devices offers the industry's highest performance regardless of operating voltage. With densities from 200,000 to 500,000 system gates, the XC4000XV product line includes the largest FPGA devices available on the market today. New markets: very high performance DSP applications. High volume pricing begins at $132 for the XC40110XV. 

· The SpartanXL family of FPGAs consists of five 3.3-volt devices. These new devices follow the introduction earlier this year of the 5-volt Spartan line of low-cost FPGAs that feature on-chip RAM and broad support for predefined system functions, or cores. The new SpartanXL products are available in densities ranging from 5,000 to 40,000 system gates. New markets: ASIC replacements for high volume applications such as PC peripherals, internal cabin controls and GPS systems for automobiles, digital television, badge and credit card readers. 

New applications for SpartanXL devices in existing markets include portable phones, network interface cards, handsets, modems, and computer interface boards. High volume pricing for the XCS05XL begins at $2.95, and all SpartanXL devices will be less than $10 in mid-1999. 

Pricing for all the new Xilinx devices is based on 100,000-plus unit orders for delivery in mid-1999. Production of the devices is scheduled to ramp up this quarter and next. 

All the devices are supported in the Xilinx Foundation Series and Alliance Series version 1.5 software, which began shipping earlier this summer. These tools include new Xilinx AKAspeed technology that delivers fast compile times and high clock speeds. The tools also support ASIC-like design features such as minimum timing delays and voltage and temperature ratings. A variety of predefined system functions, or cores, are available from Xilinx and its third party AllianceCORE partners. Serial configuration memory devices are also available to support the new FPGAs. 

Xilinx is the leading innovator of complete programmable logic solutions, including advanced integrated circuits, software design tools, predefined system functions delivered as cores, and unparalleled field engineering support. Founded in 1984 and headquartered in San Jose, Calif., Xilinx invented the field programmable gate array (FPGA) and commands more than half of the world market for these devices today. Xilinx solutions enable customers to reduce significantly the time required to develop products for the computer, peripheral, telecommunications, networking, industrial control, instrumentation, high-reliability/military, and consumer markets. For more information, visit the Xilinx web site at www.xilinx.com. 

Xilinx is a registered trademark of Xilinx, Inc. All XC-prefix product designations, Spartan, SpartanXL, AKAspeed, AllianceCORE, Alliance Series, and Foundation Series are trademarks of Xilinx. Other brands or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. 
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