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Product Shopper New Product Info

(1)
TEXAS INSTRUMENTS
ARM-powered silicon eases point-of-load power source design

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "These highly integrated devices from Texas Instruments once again expand the company's portfolio of power controllers, encompassing TI's UCD9080s (in production), the F28044s (also in production), and the UCD91xx family (sampling and supported with eval boards)."

Readers Say:
"I'm not shopping for these right now and my knowledge is out of date, but they seem like a very nice package and I will keep them in mind for when I need something like this."
"Appear to be extremely powerful, but yet efficient! Totally would serve the purpose of corporation of today!"
"They should be complemented with MCP's (gate driver+mosfets)"
"These appear to be another spectacular AND useful advance from TI's power controller group."
"Absolutely nice to have, if you have many voltages and want the most efficiency."
"I appreciated the extra detail from eeProdCenter, vs just TI. I need to study this more, but it was not clear if the device itself generates the different phases, or if it is controlling the relationships with regard to external phases available. If the single phase case is true, then I would be interested in looking more carefully. However, this device is apparently targeted for much higher powers than the typical systems I work with. If they had a similar device, but for lower power range, it would be of interest."

USABILITY RANK: 1

(2)
MAXIM
DC-DC converter with integrated switch saves space

eeProductCenter's Gina Roos says: "Maxim Integrated Products has introduced the MAX15020 high-voltage DC-DC converter with an integrated high-side switch capable of delivering up to 2 A of output current, while operating with switching frequencies up to 500 kHz. "

Readers Say:
"No comments"

USABILITY RANK: 2

(3)
SUMMIT MICROELECTRONICS
Programmable battery charger reduces charge time, heat and size

eeProductCenter's Gina Roos says: "Summit Microelectronics has expanded its family of programmable battery charger integrated circuits (ICs) with the introduction of the SMB138, targeted at portable consumer electronics applications. Specially designed to optimize battery charging from any power source including Universal Serial Bus (USB) and other current-limited sources, the SMB138 is said to deliver significant value at the system level by reducing charge time and power dissipation."

Readers Say:
"This looks like a good product if it can stand up to its sales pitch."

USABILITY RANK: 5

(4)
ON SEMICONDUCTOR
Energy Star power supply reference design uses standard parts

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "Today's PC power supplies go way beyond simple transformer/rectifier/filter designs. Safety, efficiency, and stability rule, making the design of power sources arcane and complex. Enter Energy Star. It's a US government program (run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy). Its goal is to promote energy-efficient consumer products. The Energy Star logo now appears on many computer products and peripherals, and these days most consumer OEMs covet the logo. "

Readers Say:
"No comments"

USABILITY RANK: 8

(5)
STMICROELECTRONICS
Power amplifier creates 3D audio effects for mobile phones

eeProductCenter's Gina Roos says: "STMicroelectronics has developed a compact audio power amplifier chip that creates 3D audio effects in stereo speaker outputs to add impact and surround-sound feel to MP3 and video files for high-end mobile phones and other portable audio products."

Readers Say:
"This can be a useful solution for powered headphones for consumer/Pro-audio."
"Sounds like a winner to me! Any thing that can enhance a wireless unit, is o.k. by me!"
"This could be in my next phone and I would never even know."

USABILITY RANK: 3

(6)
LINEAR TECHNOLOGY
Surface-mount point-of-load DC-to-DC converter can be handled like an IC

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "This stand-alone device from IC maker Linear Technology Corp. (LTC) is somewhat of a departure from the company's usual monolithic offerings. As a module, it should ease the design of switch-mode DC-to-DC converter blocks, a sometimes ticklish craft. Perhaps more significantly, it can be treated as an IC, and can even be subject to pick-and-place machine handling."

Readers Say:
"Innovative yet powerful!"

USABILITY RANK: 4

(7)
TEXAS INSTRUMENTS
Buck-boost DC/DC converter simplifies automotive power design

eeProductCenter's Gina Roos says: "Texas Instruments Inc. has released an automotive-qualified DC/DC power management integrated circuit (IC) that switches autonomously between buck and boost modes to provide a constant regulated output voltage of 5 V. The TPIC74100-Q1 operates over a wide input voltage range of 1.5 V to 40 V and simplifies design by eliminating the need for external components."

Readers Say:
"It has possibilities"

USABILITY RANK: 6

(8)
LINEAR TECHNOLOGY
Power-over-Ethernet controller extends the IEEE spec

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "Here's yet another innovative IC from Linear Technology Corp. (LTC), one of Silicon Valley's more prolific analog semiconductor vendors. As the company's thorough press statement (on the left) notes, the LTC4264 chip addresses the IEEE-802.3af standard--and then enhances it."

Readers Say:

"This controller could open up a bunch of new possibilities in the PoE field."

USABILITY RANK: 10

(9)
LINEAR TECHNOLOGY
Power management chip throttles USB source

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "This QFN-packaged instant-on power management IC from Linear Technology Corporation proves LTC is one of those semiconductor companies that never sleeps. Its LTC3555 next-gen multi-function chip looks like it would be just the ticket for high-end nomadic systems that use the latest in lithium-ion/polymer battery chemistries."

Readers Say:
"No comments"

USABILITY RANK: 9

(10)
FAIRCHILD SEMICONDUCTOR
Buck regulators integrate analog IC, MOSFETs and diode

eeProductCenter's Gina Roos says: "Fairchild Semiconductor introduces the FAN2106, the first product in a new family of TinyBuck DC-DC buck regulators that integrate an advanced analog IC, MOSFETs and a boot diode in an ultra-compact molded leadless package (MLP). The all-in-one synchronous buck regulator, which measures 5 x 6 mm, is said to be the industry's smallest 6 A, 24-V input integrated buck regulator."

Readers Say:
"No comments"

USABILITY RANK: 7

In case you were wondering, here's how Ultimate Products works: Our editors select up to 10 of the most significant products posted at www.eeProductCenter.com during the calendar quarter. Then, using an electronic balloting process, we submit the products with the accompanying editorial reviews to selected, qualified readers. Those readers score the products by technical significance and
USABILITY on a scale of 1 through 5, with 5 being the highest score. The product ranked No. 1 in each category was judged as most technically significant for that category. Relative
USABILITY rankings and selected reader comments are also reported. More than 1,000 of you helped to choose these products. As always, we are grateful for your enthusiastic participation.

Patrick Mannion
Editor-in-Chief, Techonline Network and eeProductcenter.com
pmannion@cmp.com