Industry’s first 2.5 and 5Gbps octal Ethernet transceiver

Networking, storage and connectivity semiconductor solutions company, Marvell has announced the new Alaska M 88E2180 Gigabit Ethernet transceiver, which the company claims is the world’s first octal multi-Gigabit Ethernet transceiver compatible with both the IEEE 802.3bz standard and the NBASE-T Alliance specification for 2.5 and 5Gbps operation over CAT5e cables.

This highly sophisticated IC will enable enterprises to quickly and cost-effectively migrate to multi-Gigabit Ethernet networking infrastructure. Marvell will be demonstrating its new Alaska M 88E2180 Gigabit Ethernet transceiver as part of its broad portfolio of solutions for the enterprise market during COMPUTEX in Taipei, Taiwan, from May 30^th to June 2^nd.

Modern enterprise campuses are seeing their bandwidth demands increase dramatically, driven by the proliferation of video streaming, the growing need for additional storage and backup, and the continued adoption of cloud-based services. However, many enterprises have installed Ethernet CAT5e cabling typically limited to 1Gbps. Now, with the Alaska M 88E2180 Gigabit Ethernet transceiver, which can be deployed on existing wired infrastructure, enterprises can benefit from Marvell’s new PHY technology that provides data rates up to 5X compared to traditional offerings.

The Alaska devices, part of a broad range of Marvell’s Ethernet transceiver families, can be coupled with Marvell’s Prestera switch families to provide a comprehensive solution that is enabling the transition to the multi-Gigabit campus environment. Marvell offers its Prestera DX switches to complement the Alaska M 88E2180 device, enabling the most efficient high-density design for high port-count enterprise switches.

From 8-port smart and managed switches for the small and midsized business (SMB) industry to 24- and 48-port enterprise access switches, the Prestera DX family offers a complete portfolio of  2.5/5Gbps switch solutions.

For 802.11ac and 802.11ax WLAN access points, Marvell’s ARMADA embedded processors integrated with the latest ARM-based technology can connect to a companion device of the Alaska M 88E2180 transceiver, the Alaska M 88E2110 transceiver, to deliver 2.5/5Gbps bandwidth, meeting the demand for WiFi network speeds beyond 1Gbps and the move to 2.5/5GBASE-T.

“The 88E2180 complements the Marvell Prestera 98DX325x (Alleycat3X) single-chip switch for 24x 2.5GbE with 2x 40GbE or 2x 25GbE uplinks. Together they form the ideal solution for next-generation enterprise WiFi access point uplinks and switching,” said Michael Zimmerman, vice president and general manager, Networking Group at Marvell Semiconductor. “The 88E2180 can also be a key component in a port extender with uplinks of 25GbE each. Marvell is committed to providing best-in-class networking solutions for the next generation of Ethernet access speeds to move data quickly, efficiently and reliably.”

The Alaska M 88E2180 Gigabit Ethernet transceiver is optimized for low-power consumption and design simplicity while delivering a small footprint and exceptional cable performance that exceeds IEEE requirements. These features are designed to help enterprise system vendors avoid the costly investment in engineering resources, greater board real estate utilization and high power budgets that come with alternative solutions.

While most vendors currently offer solutions leveraging 10Gbps technology for 2.5/5Gbps operation, resulting in an excessive power overhead, the new Marvell devices are specifically targeted at 5GBASE-T/ 2.5GBASE-T / 1000BASE-T / 100BASE-TX / 10BASE-Te Ethernet designs.

The 88E21xx family also includes the Alaska M 88E2110 device, an optimized single-port five-speed multi-Gigabit PHY (supplied in a 7x11mm FCBGA package). Marvell’s Alaska M 88E21xx family is highly suited for 802.11ax wireless access points, uplinks on enterprise switches and SFP+ media converters, as well as for emerging applications that can leverage Cat5e cabling such as small cell backhaul, PON residential gateways, high-end personal computers and workstations. These devices support the IEEE 802.3az Energy Efficient Ethernet (EEE) standard, cutting down on power usage and energy costs.

Marvell offers innovative, differentiated storage, networking and connectivity solutions that help its customers move data fast, securely, reliably and efficiently across a wide range of applications, systems and platforms. These solutions will be demonstrated during COMPUTEX in Marvell’s private suite, Level One, Residence One, at the Grand Hyatt Taipei in Taipei, Taiwan from May 30^th to June 2^nd, 2017.