Synopsys and Hitachi Demonstrate 3Gb/s SATA II Interoperability Between DesignwWare SATA Host IP Core and Deskstar Hard Drive

- Synopsys, Inc. (Nasdaq:SNPS), a world leader in semiconductor design software, today announced that Synopsys and Hitachi Global Storage Technologies (Hitachi GST) have successfully demonstrated 3Gb/s Serial ATA (SATA) II interoperability between Hitachi's high-performance Deskstar hard drives and the Synopsys DesignWare® SATA Host Controller core. This interoperability demonstration gives designers confidence in using the DesignWare Core to add 3Gb/s SATA II functionality to their SoCs.

Synopsys' silicon-proven SATA Host Controller core supports both the first (1.5Gb/s) and second (3.0Gb/s) generation versions of the SATA standard. The core also supports ATAPI-7 and native command queuing (NCQ) features and is easily configured to support multiple physical layer (PHY) interfaces.

"3Gb/s hard drive transfer rates will help support the growing number of applications that stream video, music and other digital content. In enterprise environments, where SATA drives are often clustered together for nearline applications, the effect of the higher transfer rate is even more important," said Becky Smith, vice president of Marketing, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies. "We are pleased that our new Hitachi Deskstar drives are operating seamlessly with Synopsys' DesignWare SATA Host core."

"Interoperability testing is a key element of Synopsys' extensive investment in IP quality, which helps to reduce designer risk," said Guri Stark, vice president of Marketing, Synopsys Solutions Group. "Our successful testing with the 3Gb/s Hitachi Deskstar drives gives IC designers confidence that their designs implementing the DesignWare SATA Host core will work successfully with the industry's hard drive performance leaders."

Availability
The DesignWare SATA Host core is currently available. DesignWare SATA verification IP is also currently available to DesignWare Library and DesignWare Verification Library licensees at no additional charge.

Synopsys will demonstrate the DesignWare SATA Host Core at the Intel Developers Forum on March 1-3, 2005 in San Francisco, CA.

About DesignWare Cores
Synopsys' DesignWare Cores provide system designers with silicon-proven, digital and analog connectivity IP for some of the world's most recognized products including communications processors, routers, switches, game consoles, digital cameras, computers and computer peripherals. The DesignWare Cores family includes industry-leading connectivity IP such as USB 1.1, 2.0, OTG and PHYs, PCI, PCI-X®, PCI Express™, PCI Express PHY, SATA and Ethernet IP. Provided as synthesizable RTL source code or in GDS format, these cores enable designers to create innovative, cost-effective systems-on-chip and embedded systems. Synopsys provides flexible licensing options for the DesignWare Cores. Each core can be licensed individually, on a fee-per-project basis, or users can choose to license all of its cores under one simple agreement. For a complete directory of Synopsys IP visit: www.synopsys.com/ipdirectory

About Synopsys
Synopsys, Inc. is a world leader in EDA software for semiconductor design. The company delivers technology-leading semiconductor design and verification platforms and IC manufacturing software products to the global electronics market, enabling the development and production of complex systems-on-chips (SoCs). Synopsys also provides intellectual property and design services to simplify the design process and accelerate time-to-market for its customers. Synopsys is headquartered in Mountain View, California and has offices in more than 60 locations throughout North America, Europe, Japan and Asia. Visit Synopsys online at http://www.synopsys.com.