Winbond Electronics Corp., a leading supplier of semiconductor solutions to the consumer, computer, communications and electronics products markets, today introduced the industry’s first four-channel CODEC optimized for short-loop VoIP applications. The newest member of Winbond’s popular Pro-X (PROgrammable Extended) Series of CODEC/SLIC devices, the W684386 is a highly integrated solution to support four FXS telephone line interfaces on a single low-power CMOS device. The W684386 also delivers the industry’s best idle channel noise and return loss performance – benchmarks which VoIP-system makers are making a priority to reduce.

Optimized for short-loop applications, the W684386 targets the VoIP equipment market, including products such as high-density VoIP gateways, analog telephone adapters, voice-enabled DSL and cable modems, IP-PBX, FTTX systems, and set-top boxes.

“As port densities on VoIP equipment increase dramatically with each generation, system designers are looking for a flexible solution with excellent price and performance benchmarks,” said Ike Saeed, Vice President of Marketing of Winbond’s Mixed Signal Product Center. “The W684386 fills this need with a robust four-channel design that not only reduces system cost but also improves the clarity of the VoIP signals.”

Proprietary Technology Delivers Versatility, Low Overhead, User-Friendliness

The W684386 leverages Winbond’s proprietary CODEC/SLIC architecture, combining four programmable CODECs that enable the device to support a comprehensive set of signaling capabilities for telephone line supervision and control, offload processor overhead and offer designers a user-friendly signal-processing environment. The W684386’s four-channel SLIC block supports programmable impedance matching and trans-hybrid balancing ensuring that worldwide compliance can be supported from a single hardware configuration.

The W684386 also incorporates programmable DC-to-DC controllers, which allow power consumption optimization on a per channel basis. The device can also support higher-density architectures with external ringing and centralized power options. Winbond's proprietary CODEC/SLIC is protected by U.S. Patent No. 7,260,212 issued August 21 2007.

Availability, Pricing

The W684386 is available now in a 128-QFP package, at $4.50 (10K quantities), with full production scheduled for Q2. Three evaluation boards are available, each featuring a different DC-to-DC architecture option (per-channel inductor-based, single transformer-based or external battery/external ringing architecture). Each evaluation board features Winbond’s user-friendly PC-based Graphical User Interface (GUI). Samples and evaluation boards are available now from local Winbond sales offices and the company’s authorized representatives.

Additional product information on the full Pro-X Series is available at http://www.winbond.com/.