Actel FPGAs: Designed for Reliability

Actel's flash-based FPGA devices offer the industry's lowest power and critical firm error immunity levels not achieved by SRAM-based solutions. This allows a wide variety of transportation vehicles -- from standard automobiles to trucks and locomotives -- to leverage the flexibility, performance and overall lower program costs of using FPGAs in high-reliability applications. To date, more than 70 percent of the company's automotive-grade, flash-based devices are used in "under-the-hood" applications such as powertrain, safety and transmission control modules.

Last year, Actel announced that the ProASIC3 family was the first to achieve AEC-Q100 Grade 1 and Grade 2 qualification, making them the first FPGAs to achieve this quality level. Qualification verifies that ProASIC3 devices can operate in extended junction temperature ranges (-40 to +135 degrees C). Ultra low static power of 40 mA at 135 degrees C enables the devices to endure extreme temperatures for longer periods of time without thermal reliability or runaway concerns.

The ProASIC3 family also uniquely features on-chip flash memory for FPGA switch control, making them immune to neutron-induced firm errors which can cause configuration upsets -- a mandatory requirement in an industry driving toward zero defects. Actel's automotive-grade products therefore provide the first viable alternative to complex and costly application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) technology in under-the-hood applications.

About Actel

Attacking power consumption from both the chip and the system levels, Actel Corporation's innovative FPGAs and programmable system chip solutions enable power-efficient design. 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.

The Actel name and logo, and ProASIC name and logo are trademarks of Actel Corporation. All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE Actel Corporation

http://www.actel.com

Developed by Avnet's factory-certified field application engineers (FAEs), the $49 Actel Ultra-Low Power workshops will be available through August 26, 2008, in 36 locations throughout North America.

"Our new SpeedWay workshops offer customers the opportunity to implement a working ultra-low power IGLOO design from start to finish," said Phil Sansone, senior vice president of Avnet Memec. "Whether they are looking to lower power consumption and extend battery life or meet environmentally friendly design requirements, this hands-on workshop will give engineers the practical information they are looking for to make that happen."

"Power consumption and extended battery life are critical in today's portable electronics marketplace," said Jay Legenhausen, senior vice president of worldwide sales for Actel. "The new SpeedWay workshops offer valuable technical training on the industry's lowest power FPGAs as well as the tools required to closely examine power consumption, enabling customers to see for themselves the unprecedented low-power advantages and significant battery savings offered by these industry-changing programmable solutions."

All participants will receive Actel's battery-powered IGLOO Icicle Kit and a 7-segment digital multi-meter - a $100 value. For more information and to register, please visit: www.em.avnet.com/actellowpower.

About Avnet Electronics Marketing

Avnet Electronics Marketing is an operating group of Phoenix-based Avnet, Inc. (NYSE:AVT), a Fortune 500 company. Avnet Electronics Marketing serves electronic original equipment manufacturers (EOEMs) and electronic manufacturing services (EMS) providers in more than 70 countries, distributing electronic components from leading manufacturers and providing associated design-chain and supply-chain services. The group's Web site is located at http://www.em.avnet.com.

About Avnet

Avnet, Inc. (NYSE:AVT) is one of the largest distributors of electronic components, computer products and technology services and solutions with more than 300 locations serving more than 70 countries worldwide. The company markets, distributes and optimizes the supply-chain and provides design-chain services for the products of the world's leading electronic component suppliers, enterprise computer manufacturers and embedded subsystem providers. Avnet brings a breadth and depth of capabilities, such as maximizing inventory efficiency, managing logistics, assembling products and providing engineering design assistance for its 100,000 customers, accelerating their growth through cost-effective, value-added services and solutions. For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2007, Avnet generated revenue of $15.68 billion.

CONTACT: Molly Ingham, Assistant Account Executive, BRODEURPARTNERS Tel: +1 602 808 1172 e-mail: mingham@brodeur.com Avnet, Inc WWW: http://www.avnet.com

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Avnet's Actel SpeedWay is a full-day session that introduces customers to the Actel IGLOO family and the Actel Libero Integrated Design Environment (IDE). Hands-on labs using the 1.4" x 3.6" cell phone-sized Actel Icicle Kit allow designers to program, evaluate and modify their IGLOO-based portable designs.

Developed by Avnet's factory-certified field application engineers (FAEs), Avnet Memec stated that the Actel Power workshops will be available through August 26 in 36 locations throughout North America.

"Our new SpeedWay workshops offer customers the opportunity to implement a working ultra-low power IGLOO design from start to finish," said Phil Sansone, senior vice president of Avnet Memec. "Whether they are looking to lower power consumption and extend battery life or meet environmentally friendly design requirements, this hands-on workshop will give engineers the practical information they are looking for to make that happen."

Workshop information: www.em.avnet.com/actellowpower

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Sarnoff Europe's ESD Design Kit enables engineers to access the most advanced on-chip extreme low-capacitive and area-efficient ESD solutions to meet 2000V Human Body Model (HBM) and 200V Machine Model (MM) industry-standard specifications and assists companies on Charged Device Model (CDM) requirements. Additionally, the ability of the ESD protection solution to be adapted to highly individual design requirements and easily integrated into existing design flows helps companies avoid costly re-spins.

"We're excited Actel Corporation selected Sarnoff Europe's TakeCharge as its ESD solution of choice for its industry-leading, low-power FPGAs and PSCs," said Koen Verhaege, Executive Director of Sarnoff Europe. "TakeCharge provides design teams with a reliable way to create cutting-edge chips and attain first to market results in each FPGA design."

Sarnoff's TakeCharge technology has been silicon and product proven in advanced processes down to 65nm CMOS. Leading global IC producers leveraging this technology include Actel Corporation, Toshiba, Sony, Fujitsu, Renesas, Matsushita, Epson-Seiko, OKI, NJR, Ricoh, Infineon, ST-Microelectronics, Tower Semiconductor, Altera, PMC-Sierra, AMI Semiconductor, ON-Semiconductor, Nanotech Semiconductor, Redmere Technology, Gennum Corporation and more.

For more information on Actel's products, please visit www.actel.com.

About Sarnoff Corporation

Sarnoff Corporation (www.sarnoff.com) produces innovations in electronic, video and vision technologies that generate successful new products and services for our government and commercial clients worldwide. Founded in 1942 as RCA Laboratories, Sarnoff makes continuous breakthroughs in ICs, lasers, imaging and sensing devices; biomedical diagnostics; digital TV and video for security, surveillance and entertainment; high-performance networking; and wireless communications. Sarnoff is a subsidiary of SRI International.

About Sarnoff Europe

Sarnoff Europe (www.sarnoffeurope.com) headquartered in Gistel, Belgium, is a subsidiary company of Sarnoff Corporation. Sarnoff Europe assumes worldwide responsibility for the development and commercialization of Sarnoff's TakeCharge on-chip ESD protection IP.

Actel and the Actel logo are the trademarks of Actel Corporation. All other product or service names are the property of their respective holder.

SOURCE: Sarnoff Corporation

Sarnoff Corporation
Lou Ann Wingerter, 609-734-2863
lwingerter@sarnoff.com