PLX introduces direct attached storage controller

PLX Technology, a supplier of high-speed interconnect devices for the enterprise and consumer markets, has unveiled a direct attached storage (DAS) controller for the portable external storage market.

The OXUF943SE offers up to 70 per cent better performance while using less than 50 per cent of the power of competitive solutions, according to the company.

The device represents the next generation in PLX's DAS product line and features flexible encryption capabilities ensuring data protection against theft or loss.

The OXUF943SE offers an embedded 3GHz SATA II host interface along with integrated USB 2.0 and Firewire 800 high-speed connectivity, enabling designers to create products with a minimal number of external components and a lower overall cost.

These built-in high-performance serial connections are backward compatible with their previous generations and are system ready for both Windows and Mac operating systems.

A low power of 293MW is achieved through PLX's combination of chip architecture and advanced firmware solutions.

The OXUF943SE, optimised for bus-powered applications, supports a number of power-saving modes, including SATA interface power management (IPM), which allows additional power saving when connected to hard disk drives that also support IPM.

This aligns with a key trend in external storage to move towards portable hard drives that require no power supply as they draw their power from the host PC over the USB or Firewire data cable.

PLX integrated a high-throughput cipher engine into the OXUF943SE that provides real-time encryption and decryption capabilities to the Advanced Encryption Standard in the hardware with no loading on the host platform.

In addition, the OXUF943SE is complemented by robust PLX security solutions, including a host application to define and manage user authentication and the mounting/unmounting of the external drive.

PLX enables original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to deliver solutions to consumers by supplying ready-to-go application firmware that has been extensively stress tested by PLX and allows an application to meet precise specifications.

Through its acquisition of Oxford Semiconductor, PLX is a supplier of consumer storage solutions.

The OXUF943SE is housed in a small 100-pin, 14mm x 14mm LQFP package.

The device will be offered for general sampling and be in full production in September 2009.

It is priced at USD6 (GBP3.70) in 10,000-unit quantities.

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