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Previously you wrote: |
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|
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> It's not a realistic spec for any microcontroller. Please try again, |
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> with more care. You can get most of what you want in a single package |
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> but not all of it. Unless of course you make your own.. Take an Actel |
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> M1A3P250 with an ARM Cortex-M1 hardcore, then you could easily fit |
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> all those peripherals in one package. |
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|
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Oh sure it is, but not in the 32 bit world. |
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|
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> M1A3P250 starts at $11.99 at Future Electronics. (MOQ=180, was 90 before) |
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> But maybe you'll be able to put something else on the board into the |
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> FPGA to balance that extra cost. |
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|
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yes, 32 bit and dsp processors have come way down on price. |
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But, when you look at building a complete embedded system, |
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those high end processors eat you alive on external |
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component count and manufacturing costs. That board I just |
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spec'd cost less that $30 to manufacture, with a PIC and |
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every thing else that I did not require, like molex |
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connectors and such. |
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|
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|
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> As you see, part cost is no problem for ARM, but you'll need more |
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> than one component for your project however you do it. |
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|
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PRECISELY!; a 32 bit part can never compete with a micro if |
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specs are tight and cost/power requirements are astringent, |
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which most are. Certainly anything that is manufacutured in |
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lots of 10 or more, every penny counts and cost reduction |
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rules the decision process, never what some employee or |
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consult "likes". They (32+) only compete when you actually |
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need all those mips and mops, which is rare for the vast |
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majority of uP based products. |
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|
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Don't believe me, just do a little research into the |
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numbers, not the (dollar) values, of those little 8/16 bit |
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parts. Fairchild and such won't even talk to you about |
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anything less than 1M in qty per quarter. For large |
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companies, those (8/16)uP are sub $1, for qty 10k or |
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more....... Some companies sell uP for pennies, just |
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to get the supply contract for the passives and such |
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on really large deals. |
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|
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8/16 STILL rules the world and dominates the economics of |
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embedded. Granted 32 bit cores that run linux are very cool |
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and preferred by most embedded folks, but, that's a very |
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small number of design wins with big quantity (cell phones |
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for example), compared to their mature brethren (8/16). |
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There are millions of design wins each year, STILL, for 8/16 |
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bit micros.... |
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|
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and yes, I like ARM very much, particularly in areas of |
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low power design, relative to intel or amd. |
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|
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|
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James |