Atmel's picoPower 8/16-bit XMEGA MCU Cuts Power and Processing Requirement By 98%

Boston (ots/PRNewswire) -

- Virtually eliminates context switching and interrupt usage

ESC Boston, MA, Booth Number 801 -- Atmel(R) Corporation (Nasdaq:
ATML) announced today its latest family of 32 MIPS, picoPower(TM)
8/16-bit microcontroller that radically improves MCU performance by
off-loading interrupts and data transfers to an on-chip event manager
and DMA.

Atmel's AVR(R) XMEGA(TM) MCUs have several key benefits for the
users:

-- Highest performance with the AVR 8/16-bit single cycle core
and FLASH program memory

-- Reduced CPU active time with the new innovative XMEGA event
system. With 8 routing channels to route direct communication between
on-chip resources like ADC, Memory, I/O, timers and comparators the
event system reduces the CPU active time by as much as 98%.

-- Improved data rate, saved CPU load and reduced active time
with the integrated 4-channel DMA controller. The DMA can transfer
data between all memories and peripherals in any combination the
users configure. The XMEGA DMA reduces CPU usage with 96% for
SPI@4Mbps and 57% for UART@2Mbps.

-- High speed and accurate sampling of analog data with two
12-bits, 8-channels and 2Ms/s ADCs. Integrated 64x gain stage
increases the dynamic range to 18-bits.

-- Market leading low power with Atmel's unique picoPower(TM)
technology. Power down current is as low as 100nA and active current
is cut up to 98%.

-- Highest Flexibility with built in 5 different sleep modes, DES
and CES crypto engines, WDT, USART, TWI, SPI, analog comparators,
DACs, various 8/16 bits timers, EEPROM, SRAM, RTC, PLL and 6
different oscillators including a 1% RC oscillator and a 1uA 32kHz
ultra low power oscillator.

Ingar Fredriksen, Atmel's director of AVR product marketing,
explained, "We realized, after looking at a wide range of customer
designs, that the majority of CPU cycles are spent handling
interrupts and moving data. This realization meant that there was
great potential to free up a significant amount of processing power
by simply rethinking how various events are handled in the MCU. XMEGA
microcontrollers are designed to revolutionize system performance,
with lower power consumption."

100% pin- and code-compatible. All AVR XMEGA MCUs are pin- and
100% code-compatible across all devices. With XMEGA developers only
need to keep and maintain one code base that can be used and re-used
across multiple projects.

Availability and Pricing. Samples of the XMEGA devices are
available now with flash memory density from 64 KB to 256 KB in 64 to
100 pin packages. Pricing varies from US$1.75 to US$5.00 depending on
volume quantity and memory option.

Information:

For more information on XMEGA, take a look at our technical news
brief at http://www.atmel.com

AVR Studio is available free of charge from Atmel's web site,
http://www.atmel.com

Introduction videos are available at
http://www.avrtv.com/2008/07/

About Atmel

Atmel is a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of
microcontrollers, advanced logic, mixed-signal, nonvolatile memory
and radio frequency (RF) components. Leveraging one of the industry's
broadest intellectual property (IP) technology portfolios, Atmel is
able to provide the electronics industry with complete system
solutions focused on consumer, industrial, security, communications,
computing and automotive markets.

(C) 2008 Atmel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Atmel(R), Atmel
logo and combinations thereof, Everywhere You Are(R), AVR(R),
AVRstudio(R) and others, are registered trademarks, XMEGA(TM),
picoPower(TM) and others are trademarks of Atmel Corporation or its
subsidiaries. Other terms and product names may be trademarks of
others.

Press Contact:
Helen Perlegos, Public Relations
Tel: +1-408-487-2963, Email: Helen.perlegos@atmel.com

Web site: http://www.atmel.com

ots Originaltext: Atmel Corporation
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Contact:
Helen Perlegos, Public Relations of Atmel Corporation,
+1-408-487-2963, Helen.perlegos@atmel.com