Atheros XSPAN Featured in Ultraportable Draft 802.11n Notebooks for Small Business

Lenovo 3000 V100 Notebooks with New-Generation Atheros WLAN Technology Offer Market-Leading Performance to Support Multimedia Functionality

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Dec. 19, 2006 — Atheros Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATHR), a leading developer of advanced wireless solutions, today announced that Lenovo has integrated Atheros’ industry-leading XSPAN® draft 1.0 802.11n wireless LAN (WLAN) technology into select V100 notebook models of the Lenovo 3000 product family. The notebooks are designed for small business users worldwide wanting a sleek notebook design that supports demanding multimedia applications with new-generation WLAN connectivity and widescreen displays. These Lenovo notebooks integrate Atheros’ AR5008E-3NX chipset, which supports the PCI-Express™ interface for superior notebook performance and operation in both the 2.4 gigahertz (GHz) and 5 GHz frequency bands.
The Atheros chipset features all the mandatory technical elements contained in the draft 1.0 802.11n specification to deliver reliable wireless connectivity, enhanced throughput at range and legacy-friendly operation.

The Lenovo 3000 V100 models enabled with Atheros XSPAN provide universal Wi-Fi connectivity and deliver increased throughput and coverage over legacy WLAN systems. XSPAN technology enhances the notebook user’s experience in a variety of environments. When used in typical legacy 802.11g or 802.11a/g environments, these new-generation draft 802.11n Lenovo notebooks deliver significant performance enhancements by increasing the range of the connection by more than 50 percent over legacy notebooks. At distances of 50 to 150 feet from the AP, users of XSPAN-enabled Lenovo notebooks will enjoy enhanced throughput levels that are, at a minimum, 20 percent greater than with legacy-based notebooks. At distances beyond 150 feet, this throughput advantage becomes even more dramatic, thereby enhancing the legacy network’s coverage. This higher throughput-at-range is delivered by XSPAN’s three-receiver MIMO design enabled
by the world’s only triple-radio single chip WLAN design. The addition of the third receiver enables stronger sensing of the legacy AP from greater distances, which results in a dramatic increase in link robustness.

Retail network equipment vendors worldwide have adopted Atheros XSPAN technology to provide small office/home office (SOHO) users with market-leading Wi-Fi connectivity. When end-users operate Atheros-based Lenovo 3000 V100 notebooks in networks upgraded to the new draft 802.11n specification, they enjoy significantly increased wireless bandwidth – up to 300 megabits-per-second (Mbps) physical data rates, which typically result in six times greater throughput and 10 times the range over 802.11g and 802.11a/g. Atheros XSPAN provides the wireless capacity to simultaneously support an array of bandwidth hungry applications, enabling multiple users to exchange and download large files, make Internet phone calls, wage online games and surf the Internet – all at the same time.

“Lenovo’s V100 notebooks based on Atheros’ XSPAN solution provide state-of-the-art throughput and reliability to support even the most demanding multimedia wireless applications,” said Todd Antes, vice president of marketing for Atheros. “Having recently received Lenovo’s Innovation Award for providing the most inventive WLAN solutions, Atheros is pleased to bring its XSPAN technology to yet another feature-rich Lenovo notebook model, providing a truly differentiated computing experience.”

In addition to the V100 series, Atheros’ XSPAN chipsets are also featured in Lenovo’s ThinkPad T60, R60, X60 and Z61 notebooks. Atheros’ 802.11a/g and 802.11g wireless chipsets have also been integrated into several wireless enabled laptops and a wireless router from Lenovo. The integration of Atheros’ XSPAN 802.11n technology into Lenovo’s innovative tools continues to extend the relationship between the two companies and the reach of Atheros’ popular XSPAN draft 1.0 802.11n technology.

The Lenovo notebooks are available now through select Lenovo business partners and online at www.lenovo.com. For more information about the AR5008E-3NX chipset, please visit: www.atheros.com/pt/AR5008E-3NX.htm.

About Atheros Communications, Inc.

Atheros Communications is a leading developer of semiconductor system solutions for wireless communications products. Atheros combines its wireless systems expertise with high-performance radio frequency (RF), mixed signal and digital semiconductor design skills to provide highly integrated chipsets that are manufacturable on low-cost, standard complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) processes. Atheros technology is being used by a broad base of leading customers, including personal computer, networking equipment and handset manufacturers. For more information, visit www.atheros.com or send email to info@atheros.com.

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Atheros, the Atheros logo and XSPAN are trademarks of Atheros Communications, Inc. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the sole property of their respective owners.

NOTE ON FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including statements regarding the features, performance and benefits of Atheros' products and technology, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to, difficulties in development and manufacture of new products and upgraded products, unforeseen problems in the performance of new products and technologies upon broad deployment, the effects of competition and technological change; global economic conditions, and other risks detailed in Atheros' Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2006 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and in other reports filed with the SEC by Atheros from time to time. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. Atheros disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.