More important, Huang says, he brings with him important OEM contacts from the previous company he founded, storage controller chip supplier CMD Technology Inc., which he sold to Silicon Image for $45 million in June 2001. IStor is currently gearing up to demonstrate its technology for three OEMs next month; Huang declined to name names, but said that dealings with the smallest of the OEMs -- a $300 million company -- could be finalized as early as January 2004.
A sample of the product will be available in July, Huang says, and beta testing of the technology can then begin.
When iStor does launch, it will, of course, face its fair share of competitors, including Adaptec Inc. (Nasdaq: ADPT), LSI Logic Corp. (NYSE: LSI), QLogic Corp. (Nasdaq: QLGC), and Silverback Systems Inc..
But Huang notes that iStor is delivering a complete iSCSI controller -- not just silicon -- and, unlike most of its competitors, both 1- and 10-Gbit/s Ethernet connectivity. Trebia Networks Inc., for instance, offers 1-Gbit/s chips but hasn't forged into the 10-Gbit/s market, he says. Meanwhile Astute Networks Inc. is boasting of 10-Gbit/s technology, but that company is not planning to offer a 1-Gbit/s version, according to Huang (see Is Trebia Up for Sale? and Silverback Makes iSCSI Howl).
Eugénie Larson, Reporter, Light Reading
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