The latest USB buzz has notebook computers with SuperSpeed USB 3.0 ports becoming common by mid year, thanks to last week’s announcement of USB 3.0 protocol support in Intel’s 7-Series chipset for current-generation Intel Core processors and next-generation Ivy Bridge processors. You can expect the flood of USB 3.0-compatible peripherals to commence real soon now. Product development teams creating such products will be interested in the new $2995 “Basic Edition” of LeCroy’s Advisor T3 USB protocol analyzer. The new, lower-cost analyzer is based on the company’s Advisor T3 Standard Edition, which continues to be available at a new list price—$3995—nearly $1000 less than it cost when introduced back in 2010.
LeCroy Advisor T3 USB Protocol Analyzer
Protocol Analyzers like the LeCroy Advisor T3 (either edition) help you debug a design after you’ve built it but if you are still designing the silicon destined to power that device, you really ought to consider using some industrial-strength verification IP (VIP) to ring out your USB 3.0 design even before tapeout. Be sure to take a look at the Cadence USB 3.0 Verification IP.
Also, see “Is there stuff you don’t know about SuperSpeed USB 3.0?”
