The complementary nature of the New Zealand and Taiwan economies is on show this week in an area that may surprise many - namely, Medical Technology. Medical Technology is a sector being promoted by Taiwan's Government but for those outside the medical sector it is probably not widely recognized that this is an area where New Zealand already has some strength and the three New Zealand companies participating in the Formosan Medical Show this year are evidence.One of the participating New Zealand companies Fisher and Paykel Healthcare has been designing and manufacturing respiratory care, acute care and obstructive sleep apnea products since 1971. Fisher and Paykel has a range of products that includes the respiratory and temperature controlled units used on premature infants in intensive care units. They are recognised as world leaders in their space and are listed on both the New Zealand and Australian Stock Exchanges employing 2,400 people and with revenues approaching half a billion dollars.Also participating are Dynamic Control's, a maker of drive control systems for mobility scooters and electric wheelchairs with approximately 50% global market share, and Precept Health, a company that specialises in taking patient physiological data measured by a range of other medical devices and then integrating this information into comprehensive Electronic Medical Records.Further testifying to New Zealand's surprising depth of capability in the medical sector; New Zealand company Orion Health acquired Amalga, the Hospital Information Assets of Microsoft in Asia Pacific in October 2011.New Zealand Trade Development Centre Director Liam Corkery commented that "New Zealand and Taiwan recently announced their intention to explore the feasibility of negotiating an Economic Co-operation Agreement. In doing so, New Zealand stressed the complementary nature of the New Zealand and Taiwanese economies. The three New Zealand companies participating in the Formosan Medical Show this year demonstrate both the depth of New Zealand capability in the medical sector and the potential synergy between the economies of New Zealand and Taiwan. For example, Dynamic Control's drive systems are designed and developed in partnership with the Taiwanese electric wheelchair manufacturers that integrate them into their products and who in turn are also world leaders. As more and more Taiwanese companies explore NZ, and more and more New Zealand companies explore Taiwan, I'm confident that we'll see more and more partnerships."For enquiries, please contact:New Zealand Trade Development Centre Larry HuangTel: +886 2 2757 6721Email: larry.huang@nzte.govt.nzThe New Zealand health technology industry leads the world to the next era.

LILIN, one of the world's leading providers of IP Video solutions, has announced the release of the IPR-7334/8SX, the World's first full HD 3Megapixel 60m IR IP Cameras.With Sense-Up Plus technology which provides higher sensitivity in low light conditions, the camera also benefits from an integrated housing with 60m IR illumination. This further maximizes the CMOS sensor sensitivity. The inclusion of 3D noise reduction technology within the camera lowers low-light noise and reduces bandwidth and storage requirements.The IPR-7334/8SX utilizes H.264 compression, providing quality video at less than 3 Mbps bit rate. This can be achieved at 30 FPS at 1080P resolution. A breakthrough in the IP video industry, the LILIN IPR-7334/8SX is designed for the provision of quality images in total darkness in the most demanding environments. For further information please visit www.meritlilin.com.About Merit LILIN LtdLILIN is one of the World's largest IP manufacturers offering network video solutions. With 30 years experience, LILIN provides expertise in digital video. LILIN systems can allow a single operator to monitor cameras from anywhere on the network or remote users to access live and recorded video. LILIN operates worldwide with offices in more than 13 countries and partners in more than 20 countries. Founded in 1980, LILIN has more than 600 employees worldwide with UK headquarters located in Milton Keynes.World's First Full HD 3MP 60M IR IP Cameras (IPR-7334/8SX)

Even before the first personal computer appeared in 1984, BIOS technologies, which are needed to initialize hardware, test hardware functionalities and start the operating system, were already in use for more than 30 years. However, as various IT technologies continue to advance at a rapid pace, BIOS technologies have gradually become unable to satisfy the current usage environment and are being replaced by the new Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI), which offers a faster booting time than legacy BIOS and a broader range of support. With Microsoft's soon-to-be-released next-generation operating system featuring significant and revolutionary changes within the software's architecture and application methods, an advanced UEFI technology will be needed to fully execute its advanced functions. At Microsoft's developer-focused BUILD conference in September earlier this year, American Megatrends Incorporated (AMI) launched the industry's first development platform that is compatible with the next-generation operating system. In addition to demonstrating support for UEFI 2.3.1, AMI also provided demonstrations of standards and technologies for this development platform at BUILD including such as SecureBoot, FastBoot, SeamlessBoot, USB 3.0, OA 3.0, TPM, eDrive, IPv6, GPT and CSM Opt-Out. The worldwide IT industry is eagerly preparing to welcome the new operating system, hoping its impressive new user interface will spark a demand explosion among consumers to revitalize a consumer market that has been gloomy for a long time. As a leader in BIOS technologies, American Megatrends - provider of the fast and user-friendly cross-platform UEFI firmware development platform Aptio® - hosted a UEFI technology seminar on October 21 at the Taipei International Convention Center to allow related players and firmware designers to understand the technologies related to the latest version of its Aptio firmware, and the connection between UEFI and next-generation operating systems. AMI (USA) Vice President Stefano Righi and Principal Engineer Alex Podgorsky were invited to the seminar to provide in-depth analyses of the current development status of UEFI, showing that American Megatrends, as the leader in the BIOS industry, is able and determined to always maintain its technologies at the highest level. American Megatrends, founded in 1985, has over 900 employees worldwide with a large proportion of the market share in BIOS and UEFI firmware. Considering Taiwan's status as an important base of the global IT industry, the company established its Taiwan branch in 1996 to provide Taiwan's IT players with more direct and efficient support services. With UEFI set to become the future standard of BIOS firmware, American Megatrends started developing EFI-based solutions in 1998 and launched the Aptio development platform in alignment with EFI/UEFI standards in 2004. The basic structure of Aptio is built within UEFI's open software framework and is fully compatible with the latest UEFI 2.3.1 specification, to shorten the time that program designers will need to develop a new system. Around-the-clock technical support to satisfy clients' development needs According to Kenny Tseng, Executive Vice President of American Megatrends (Greater China), "Starting in 2010, the consumer market worldwide has experienced great changes and with impacts from the rise of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet PCs, vendors are now faced with the tough challenge that they must shorten the time of their product development." In response to these challenges, American Megatrends has designed the Aptio platform in such a way as to ease its adoption into a wide variety of computing environments, including mobile devices, embedded systems, notebooks, personal computers and servers. In addition to reducing the time required to train R&D personnel, Aptio also allows clients' internally developed program modules to be re-used to help shorten the time for developing new products. Although the UEFI specifications are firmly set to be the firmware standards of the future, most system developers still face challenges with their implementation. Apart from having to quickly get familiar with the development methods of new platforms, they also have come to terms with the shortage of qualified firmware design engineers. However, American Megatrends' Aptio, which uses the standard C programming language, allows engineers to quickly familiarize themselves the development environment, and its cross-platform features can also help resolve problems arising from insufficient manpower. With these features, the Aptio platform can be considered the best UEFI development solution currently available on the market. "AMI puts a strong focus on the design interface, hoping to reduce the threshold for firmware engineers to dive into the EFI/UEFI structure," said Pailin Huang, Marketing Division Director of American Megatrends Taiwan. "We provide a complete graphical interface to give program developers the best development environment possible." American Megatrends also has a full-featured program debugging tool, AMI Debug™ for UEFI, to help engineers quickly identify problems within the source code, enabling more stable product quality. Furthermore, American Megatrends also provides a full range of technical support specifically for Taiwan's IT players. In addition to AMI's technical support hotline, various technical documents are available for download from the company website and developer portals for reference during product development. American Megatrends also offers complete training programs; depending on clients' needs, the company can provide introductory, intermediate and advanced classes to enable clients' long-term training of their firmware engineers. Aptio's cross-platform features simplify product development procedures Whenever there is a UEFI specification update, American Megatrends will immediately update its Aptio platform. As a case in point, the latest edition of Aptio, version 4.6.5.1, already features support for industry standards such as UEFI 2.3.1 and PI 1.2, in addition to several key platform security standards. For firmware engineers, upgrading modules through AMI's Visual eBIOS™ (VeB) graphical development platform provides them with support for the latest specifications and functions without any concerns about compatibility of the program modules. As such, engineers can simply concentrate on what they do best - writing the source code. "The UEFI structure is not only intended to accelerate boot speeds, but also to make complete corrections to lingering problems with the x86 platform structure - with the aim to create a safer usage environment," said Stefano Righi, Vice President of AMI (USA). For example, most current PCs are still unable to support hard drives with storage capacity over 2.2TB, or recent improved power management protocols. By leveraging the UEFI structure, however, these problems plaguing x86 systems can all be resolved. In fact, the Aptio platform is not only the best solution for developing within the UEFI framework; American Megatrends has also designed AMI VirtualRoom™ pre-boot applications to allow system developers to offer more value-added functions in their products through customized design services. With AMI VirtualRoom apps from American Megatrends, developers will be able to stand out from the fierce competition. Take the most popular AMI VR-pulse™ application, for example: this app allows consumers to quickly activate their frequently-used functions, such as the e-mail client or web browser, without waiting for a full OS initialization – thanks to UEFI. "Targeting dual-operating-system notebooks that are becoming more and more popular, we also provide the AMI VirtualRoom module," noted Vincent Hsiao, Project Manager of American Megatrends Taiwan. "This module not only features a fast boot-up time, but also allows switching between operating systems in only six seconds, which perfectly fits consumers' expectations." Another example of a value-add app from AMI that is extremely attractive is AMI VR-tune™, which is designed specifically for smart TVs and can quickly switch the TV from displaying digital TV programming to the Windows™ operating system - without adding significant added development time or overhead. With smartphones and tablet PCs fast penetrating the consumer market, the ARM architecture, which benefits from extremely efficient power consumption, has already become a leading choice for developing mobile devices. However, since the ARM architecture has a completely different development environment than that of x86-based devices, firmware engineers face a steep learning curve in developing for these new platforms. This learning curve will not only incur a very high cost in terms of time and resources, but also prevent developers from quickly launching suitable products for the consumer market. "Fortunately, all the above issues in developing for ARM can be resolved in the UEFI structure," said Tony Lo, Senior Manager of American Megatrends Taiwan. "With the help of the Aptio platform, firmware engineers can develop all kinds of Windows application software under the ARM platform without the need to change any usage or development habits." Thanks to the integrated development environment for Aptio, application software designed for x86 platforms can also be quickly adapted for ARM platforms, so that source code can be re-used and product development time can be shortened dramatically. In addition to reducing the time required to train R&D personnel, Aptio also allows clients' internally developed program modules to be re-used to help shorten the time for developing new products, according to Kenny Tseng, Executive Vice President of American Megatrends (Greater China). The UEFI structure is not only intended to accelerate boot speeds, but also to make complete corrections to lingering problems with the x86 platform structure - with the aim to create a safer usage environment, according to Stefano Righi, Vice President of AMI (USA).

LSI Corporation recently announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire SandForce, Inc., the leading provider of flash storage processors for enterprise and client flash solutions and solid state drives (SSDs). Under the agreement, LSI will pay approximately $322 million in cash, net of cash assumed, and assume approximately $48 million of unvested stock options and restricted shares held by SandForce employees.SandForce's award-winning products include flash storage processors at the heart of PCIe flash adapters and SSDs. Flash storage processors provide the intelligence required to deliver the performance and low-latency benefits of flash storage in enterprise and client applications. With market-proven, differentiated DuraClass technology, SandForce flash storage processors improve the reliability, endurance and power efficiency of flash-based storage solutions.The acquisition greatly enhances LSI's competitive position in the fast-growing server and storage PCIe flash adapter market, where the WarpDrive family of products from LSI already uses SandForce flash storage processors. The complementary combination of LSI's custom capability and SandForce's standard product offering propels LSI into an industry-leading position in the rapidly growing, high-volume flash storage processor market space for ultrabook, notebook and enterprise SSD and flash solutions."Flash-based solutions are critical for accelerating application performance in servers, storage and client devices," said Abhi Talwalkar, LSI president and chief executive officer. "Adding SandForce's technology to LSI's broad storage portfolio is consistent with our mission to accelerate storage and networking. The acquisition represents a significant, rapidly growing market opportunity for LSI over the next several years."Michael Raam, SandForce president and CEO, said, "The combination of SandForce and LSI allows us to deliver differentiated solutions in the PCIe flash adapter segment by tightly integrating flash memory and management. In addition, leveraging our flash storage processors with LSI's comprehensive IP portfolio and leading-edge silicon design platforms will lead to innovative solutions."The transaction is expected to close early in the first quarter of 2012 subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. Upon closing, the SandForce team will become part of LSI's newly formed Flash Components Division, with Raam as general manager.LSI expects the acquisition to be neutral to non-GAAP* earnings per share in 2012. The company will provide further details during its conference call at 2 p.m. PDT today and discuss third quarter results and the fourth quarter 2011 business outlook.* GAAP refers to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Non-GAAP earnings exclude goodwill and other intangible asset impairment, stock-based compensation, amortization of acquisition-related intangibles, purchase accounting effect on inventory, restructuring of operations and other items, net, and gain/loss on sale/write-down of investments. It also excludes the income tax effect associated with the above-mentioned items.Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on the current opinions and estimates of management. These statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause LSI's actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: our ability to obtain all necessary regulatory approvals for the acquisition, the successful consummation of the acquisition; our ability to successfully integrate and manage the SandForce business and retain its key employees; our ability to achieve anticipated synergies and to develop integrated new products following our acquisition of SandForce; our ability to eliminate costs related to the external storage systems business that we sold to NetApp; our ability to repurchase our common stock at prices we believe to be advantageous; the impact of the recent flooding in Thailand; our reliance on major customers and suppliers; our ability to keep up with rapid technological change; our ability to compete successfully in competitive markets; fluctuations in the timing and volumes of customer demand; the unavailability of appropriate levels of manufacturing capacity; and general industry and macro-economic conditions. For additional information, see the documents filed by LSI with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and specifically the risk factors set forth in the company's most recent reports on Form 10-K and 10-Q. LSI disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

To further tap into Taiwan's market potential, Entegris, the leading global provider of advanced filtration and wafer handling products used in demanding manufacturing environments, has announced the opening of new manufacturing and research facility in Hsinchu Science Park, Taiwan on October 20. Honorable guests from Hsinchu City Government, TSMC, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and Hsinchu Management Office National Science Council officiated and jointly celebrated the important milestone for the company. With the establishment of the new facility, Entegris aims to expand its existing services and support to local customers, as well as to extend its ability to address to growth opportunities in the semiconductor, solar, energy storage, and other emerging markets throughout Asia.Substainable R&D efforts to overcome the challenges of cutting edge processes"For more than 40 years, contamination control being our core competence, Entegris has served a wide range of high-technology companies in the semiconductor, LED, solar, TFT-LCD, OEMs, semiconductor equipment, and chemical industries," Gideon Argov, President and CEO of Entegris, commented. "Approximately 70% of our sales are derived from semiconductor-related customers.""As process technology moves towards 28nm and 20nm nodes, the number of chemicals used in semiconductor process has substantially increased from a dozen to more than 30," Argov stated. "With the escalating chemistry complexity, the importance of filtration and purification technology also increases, in a bid to lower the impact on yields caused by contamination."Entegris has three business units: Contamination Control Solutions, Microenvironments, and Specialty Materials. With advanced material science as its base, the company offers comprehensive solutions to meet the increasingly challenging manufacturing environment requirements. Sales of its core Contamination Control Solutions unit amounts for around US$500M; the Microenvironments unit, which mainly provides wafer shipping products, has US$200M; the Specialty Materials, which develops emerging materials, such graphite, special coating, and silicon carbide, is around US$80M."We have a very broad product portfolios serving a broad set of customers, with no single customer accounting for over 7% of our revenue. The breadth of product and technology portfolio is actually a competitive advantage, since it is enabling us to develop some very unique solutions for the market," Argov stated. "We also have a major exposure to Asia manufactures, as 57% of our revenue comes from customers in Japan, Taiwan, China, Korea, and Southeast Asia. The balance of our business in terms of geography, 29% are to the US accounts and 14% to Europe."In 2010 Entegris reported record high sales and is on track to achieve another record year in 2011. Argov attributed the good performance to continuous investment into R&D. "Despite of the downturn in 2009, we did not cut back on our R&D expenditure. That's why we can keep up with our customer's advanced technology demands," he explained. Meanwhile, Entegris partners with industry leaders in the semiconductor and other high-tech industries to ensure that its customers can take full advantage of the latest advances in contamination control and filtration. In addition to its strategic partners, Entegris is also an active member of the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductor (ITRS), participating in the creation of specifications, standards, and practices for the improvement of high-technology industries..Today, Entegris' filtration technology is successfully applied in the development and volume production at the 28nm technology node. Argov believes that as the semiconductor industry moves down its roadmap to the 20nm node, Entegris will be able to gain more market share - with its leading technology.As the industry begins to migrate to 450mm wafer and EUV (Extreme Ultraviolet Light) lithography technology, Entegris is also playing a key role. The company announced plans to open an advanced technology manufacturing facility in Colorado Springs, for production of 450mm semiconductor wafer handling products and Extreme Ultraviolet Light (EUV) reticle pods. According to Argov, its 450mm MAC (Multiple Application Carrier) is currently in testing phase, and shipments will start in 2012.While the investment in specialty materials is aimed to expand Entegris' business opportunities in solar and LED markets. "Though the solar industry is facing some difficulties right now, there is a lot of room to grow," Argov stated. "There is a lack of consistent technology and manufacturing standards. The industry requires new technologies and materials to improve overall product performance, that creates many opportunities for us."Providing more responsive services and support locallyTaiwan is a major manufacturing center for the global semiconductor industry, which accounted for 16% of Entegris' total sales in 2010 fiscal year, or nearly $110 million USD, reached record levels. It is a clear and timely decision for Entegris, which has had a presence in Taiwan since the 1990's, to setup a research and manufacturing facility here."Our key strategic customers, as well as advanced technology demands, are here," Argov said. "Positioning the site in the Hsinchu Science Park in close proximity the world largest and most advanced semiconductor makers will enable Entegris to support these customers with locally produced product. This will also facilitate the joint development of new technologies needed to support current and future generations of semiconductor manufacturing processes."Entegris already has various sales and service offices in Hsinchu, Taichung, and Tainan. When the new site is fully operational, the company will employ approximately 160 highly skilled people in a variety of roles, including manufacturing, sales, service, and engineering.The 1,887 square meter new facility will manufacture Planargard® NMB filters for CMP slurry applications and Solaris® filters used in copper process and shallow trench isolation for CMP slurry filtration. It also offers Advanced Material Solutions from Entegris specialty coatings, including electrostatic chuck refurbishment services with OEM-level quality and performance; vacuum deposited coatings (PECVD and PVD) and solutions for semiconductor and industrial applications; and materials science based solutions for micro and nano level contamination control, wear protection and corrosion resistance.In addition, the Asia Applications Development Laboratory (AADL) can now provide world class and sophisticated analytical and evaluation laboratory services for liquid filters/filtration and purification for photolithography, CMP and wet etch and clean applications in semiconductor and beyond.Furthermore, in order to meet the process requirements for 28nm and 20nm, Entegris decided to setup the second production line of AMC (Air Borne Molecular Control) for stepper from its original facility in Massachusetts in an effort to support local customers.Entegris also has manufacturing facilities in US, Malaysia and Japan. With the new facility in Taiwan, Entegris will be able to expand its reach and services to Asia market."The new site reflects our commitment to be close to customers in Taiwan and around Asia. We can develop solutions to meet customers' demands only by fully understand their requirements," Argov stressed. "In addition to semiconductor industry, Taiwan also plays an important role in global solar and LED industries. We hope the establishment of this new facility can help facilitate more joint development opportunities for us thereby creating a win-win situation for both our customers and Entegris."Planargard® is the registered trademark of Entegris Inc.Solaris® is the registered trademark of Entegris Inc.

The projector market in China has been growing relatively rapidly compared to the global market. Hence, many firms have been targeting the market in China. Japan-based Epson has been expanding retail stores in more than 1,000 locations. Epson's projector shipments in 2011 are targeted to reach 200,000 units, making it the leading projector brand in China.China's projector market is expected to reach 1.2-1.3 million units in 2011, rising from around one million units in 2010, according to market sources. There are 48 vendors competing in the local market, with Epson and Hitachi taking the lead.Suppliers, including Epson, Hitachi, Vivitek, Optoma, and the China-based Acto, have targeted the education sector, which accounts for 4% of China's GDP every year, sources said.Epson won a bid in second-quarter 2011 to supply 6,000 projectors for educational purposes in Guangxi province, sources said. Vivitek supplied 5,000 units of projectors in the same bid.Epson said the company is expected to take up 15-16% of the projector market in China in 2011, with target shipments of 200,000 units compared with 130,000 units in 2010.Epson said it is also cultivating China's projector market for home entertainment. The vendor set up over 1,000 distribution channels throughout China in first-half 2011 for the sale of home projectors. Epson projectors for homes take up about 24.5% of China's home projector market, the company said. Epson expects its home projector sales to reach a target of 10,000-15,000 units a year in China.Epson projectors. Photo: Michael Lee, Digitimes, October 2011

Mouser Electronics, Inc., regarded as a top design engineering resource and global distributor for semiconductors and electronic components, today publicized its global distribution agreement with ultra-low-power (ULP) RF specialist Nordic Semiconductor ASA.Design engineers and buyers will now have access to Nordic's portfolio of 433/868/915 MHz and 2.4GHz ISM band SoCs and transceivers, single chip ANT protocol solutions, and Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity ICs. The agreement further ushers in the next generation of RF communications by opening up many new design opportunities for wireless data links targeting ultra-low cost and power applications such as gaming, mobile, sports and fitness, healthcare, and an ever-growing list of other portable devices."At Mouser, we are committed to distributing technologically advanced products and Nordic's long-standing reputation for innovation and performance enhances our value offering to design engineers and buyers worldwide," says Russell Rasor, Mouser Vice President of Advanced Technology. "Today's digital devices are undergoing a fundamental shift… smartphones, tablets, TVs and even cars are serving as hub devices that capture data from small sensors that can monitor everything from footsteps, heart rate, blood pressure, traffic to house temperature. Nordic understands this shift and is focused on delivering world-class ULP wireless communication solutions that inspire future products.""Mouser has firmly established itself as a leading semiconductor and electronic component distributor supplying design solutions with proven demand-creation capabilities, a robust website, ardent customer service and a far-reaching global distribution network," adds J. Darren O'Donnell, Nordic's Director of Sales for the Americas. "We are pleased to add Mouser as a strong partner focused on meeting the everyday demands of the design chain. Because Nordic pioneered the ultra low power wireless sector, it offers a full range of class-leading solutions which Mouser customers can now employ with confidence when specifying a wireless link into their new product or application."With its broad product line and unsurpassed customer service, Mouser caters to design engineers and buyers by delivering What's Next in advanced technologies. Mouser offers customers 19 global support locations and the latest, most technologically advanced components for their newest design projects. Mouser Electronics' website is updated daily and searches more than 8 million products to locate over 2 million orderable part numbers available for easy online purchase. Mouser.com also houses an industry-first interactive catalog, data sheets, supplier-specific reference designs, application notes, technical design information, and engineering tools.

Projector vendors are finding new ground in emerging countries in Asia as consumer power in western countries becomes weak, according to industry sources.ViewSonic is seeing more opportunities in markets of Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, compared with Taiwan and South Korea, and BenQ has reportedly become the top selling projector brand in Indonesia since 2007, sources said.Market-wise, Epson, best known for its 3LCD projectors, takes up the largest market share at over 20%, according to sources. Optoma accounts for 8% of the projector market, the sources added.

Electronic components distributor Digi-Key Corporation, recognized by design engineers as having the industry's broadest selection of electronic components available for immediate shipment, and the US subsidiary of Macronix International Co., Ltd. have signed a global distribution agreement."We are pleased to announce this distribution agreement with Macronix," said Mark Zack, Digi-Key's vice president of semiconductors. "With the company's strong product offering in NOR Flash Memory devices and its commitment to R&D, customers worldwide will benefit from the wide range of memory densities Digi-Key now provides.""As the leading supplier of Serial Flash Memory, Macronix is committed to continuously expand its global presence and service," said Winston Chen, associate vice president of Microelectronics & Memory Solution Group at Macronix. "This distribution agreement with Digi-Key will provide customers and design engineers with instant access to Macronix's broad product portfolio. We look forward to serving our diversified global customer base with Digi-Key's online presence and user-friendly order fulfillment. We are very pleased to be Digi-Key's global supplier."Macronix offers a broad range of NOR Flash memories with parallel and serial interface. As the market leader in Serial Flash, Macronix offers one of the widest NOR Flash product portfolios in the industry. Macronix provides 5 V, 3 V and low voltage products in a variety of package options to meet customer requirements. All products are built at Macronix's in-house fabs and meet the highest quality and reliability standards, including TS-16949 for automotive applications.Macronix's product portfolio is available for purchase now on Digi-Key's global websites.As the leading integrated Internet-based distributor, information about and inventory of millions of products is accessible to customers around the globe, with all products shipped from Digi-Key's single, North American location. The company's integrated business model provides product and support information online to help put engineers and procurement professionals in control as they solve tough product development challenges.About Digi-Key CorporationAs one of the world's leading totally integrated, Internet-based distributors of electronic components, Digi-Key Corporation has earned its reputation as an industry leader through its total commitment to service and performance. Digi-Key is a full-service provider of both prototype/design and production quantities of electronic components, offering more than two million products from over 470 quality name-brand manufacturers at www.digikey.com. A testament to Digi-Key's unparalleled commitment to service, North American design engineers have ranked Digi-Key as the #1 Most Preferred Distributor (UBM/EE|Times Distributor Customer Preference Study/June 2011). With global sales for 2010 surpassing $1.5 billion, Digi-Key's single location in North America is one of its greatest assets. Additional information and access to Digi-Key's broad product offering is available at www.digikey.com.About Macronix International Co., Ltd.Founded in 1989 in the Science Park, Hsinchu, Taiwan, Macronix is a leading integrated device manufacturer in the Non-Volatile Memory (NVM) market and provides a full range of NOR Flash and ROM solutions. With its world-class R&D and manufacturing capability, Macronix continues to deliver high-quality, innovative and performance driven products to its customers in the consumer, communication, computing, automotive, networking and other segments.For more information, please visit the Macronix website: www.macronix.com.Editorial Contact for Digi-Key CorporationDigi-Key Public Relationspublicrelations@digikey.comEditorial Contact for Macronix International Co., Ltd. Salman RashidSr. Director, Marketing408-941-6264salmanrashid@macronix.com

GigaFast E Ltd, a OEM/ODM manufacturer of HomePlug power line communications (PLC) equipment, has launched a new HomePlug AV 200Mbps nano Ethernet Bridge (PN928-EB) at the China Sourcing Fair in Hong Kong today.The PN928-EB bridge is the smallest HomePlug AV Ethernet Bridge on the market measuring at only 64mm(L) x 46mm (W) x 25mm (D). Along side with its small-size feature, this PN928-EB also has low power consumption of less than 2.5W when "on" and less than 0.5W on "standby" mode. The PN928-EB uses Broadcom's new BCM60321 chipset inside and is both HomePlug AV certified and IEEE 1901 compliant.For 2011, GigaFast is already shipping a complete line of Atheros AR7400 500Mbps HomePlug AV products including 1-, 3- and 4-port Ethernet bridges and pass-thru adapters. The AR7400 chipset represents a new segment in the HomePlug AV market. Offering more than double the bandwidth of traditional 200Mbps HomePlug AV, the new AR7400 product will boost PLC performance offering more HD video and data streams than before.Customers are welcome to visit GigaFast's website at www.gigafast.com or come visit us at the China Sourcing Fair from October 12~15 at Asia World-Expo in Hong Kong. Our booth is in Hall 2, #2H06.GigaFast and HomePlugWe believe it is about time consumers get spoiled with a technology as easy as plug and play, and eliminating the hassle of pulling wires. Compared to wireless network, PLC is much more secure and covers more distance. After all, most consumer electronic devices already plug into power outlets, so why not make the existing wires and plugs do more than just providing power. Make the plugs talk, sing, view, and protect each other is what we do at GigaFast. Our complete line of PLC products can do all that through data, audio, video, and security applications.GigaFast is a OEM/ODM manufacturer building power line communications products to customer specifications. There are a number of methods for communicating over the power lines, but of all the methods, HomePlug is the one clear standard today. This has encouraged GigaFast to join and take an active roll in marketing HomePlug Association as the standard in PLC communications today.GigaFast showcased products at the China Sourcing Fair in Hong Kong, October 12~15