Sunrise gets All Flash with 16-bit micros

NEC Electronics new 78K0R Series Delivers Top Power Performance

Dedicated distributor, Sunrise Electronics has just announced a new line of 16-bit flash microcontrollers from NEC Electronics that offers best-in-class power performance of 1.8 mW per MIPS -- approximately twice the power performance of other leading 16-bit microcontrollers.

In recent years, consumer electronics, household appliances and industrial systems traditionally covered by 8-bit microcontrollers have grown increasingly sophisticated, requiring higher performance levels. NEC Electronics developed the 16-bit 78K0R series to address this market whilst recognizing manufacturers’ primary concerns of power consumption and price.

The 78K0R series consists of 30 devices in pin counts ranging from 64 to 100 pins, and memory configurations from 64KB up to 256KB Flash. 78K0R devices, based on NEC Electronics’ 0.15 micron process technology with embedded flash memory using SuperFlash^® technology by Silicon Storage Technology, Inc., are priced competitively against 16-bit mask ROM devices.

Features such as 3-stage pipeline processing enable high speed processing and support performance up to 13 MIPS, while voltage control circuits and other CPU features help suppress power consumption levels to approximately half that of comparable 16-bit microcontrollers. With these new devices, customers can develop more complex systems with advanced functions, while still meeting rigorous power consumption requirements.

The 78K0R series also features reset functions, voltage detection circuits, oscillators, calendar timers, and EMI noise reduction. The products are pin compatible with NEC Electronics’ existing 78K0 series of 8-bit microcontrollers, providing existing customers with a smooth migration path. The software for the 16-bit series is also compatible with the company’s previous 8-bit series, enabling customers to reuse existing resources and further improve development efficiency.

Sunrise Electronics also provides an array of tools to support efficient development of NEC Electronics’ microcontrollers, including the devices in the new 16-bit series. They include on-chip debuggers, the MINICUBE series of flash programmers, and Applilet program. NEC Electronics also offers its own flash programming services as well as services through multiple third party vendors to further accelerate the development of All Flash products.

Availability

Samples of the 78K0R series are available starting now, with volume production scheduled to begin in October 2006.

About NEC Electronics NEC Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723) specializes in semiconductor products encompassing advanced technology solutions for the high-end computing and broadband networking markets, system solutions for the mobile handset, PC peripherals, automotive and digital consumer markets, and multi-market solutions for a wide range of customer applications. NEC Electronics Corporation has 26 subsidiaries worldwide including NEC Electronics America, Inc. and NEC Electronics (Europe) GmbH. In addition to marketing, selling and supporting NEC Electronics products to customers in their respective regions, NEC Electronics America and NEC Electronics Europe also operate local manufacturing facilities in Roseville, California, and Ballivor, Ireland, respectively. Additionally, NEC Electronics America for North America and NEC Electronics Europe for Europe are the sales and marketing channels of NEC AM-LCD modules. For additional information about NEC Electronics worldwide, visit  www.necel.com.

About Sunrise

Sunrise Electronics is the only dedicated franchised distributor in the UK electronics market and provides a high level of technical design support to customers for the whole range of NEC semiconductor products including microprocessors, microcontrollers and ASICs as well as memory and colour LCD panels. The field sales team is technically qualified to ensure total support from design concept through to purchasing.

Sunrise is a direct ship distributor. The majority of shipments are delivered directly to customers from NEC’s own ISO9000 warehouse. This ensures reduced handling, correct packaging; especially for fine pitch surface mount devices requiring vacuum sealing, factory fresh product and timely deliveries.