STMicroelectronics sharpens its Spear

The Spear Basic device addresses a wide variety of embedded applications, including entry-level printers, fax machines, digital photo frames, VoIP and other equipment.

ST's Spear (Structured Processor Enhanced Architecture) concept combines cost savings and shorter time-to-market with the flexibility of application-specific ICs.

The company said that transfer of the Spear family to 65nm process technology yields increased density, performance and power-reduction features.

The latest configurable system-on-chip integrates an advanced ARM926EJ-S processor core with two 16k memory caches, running at 333MHz, for data and instructions, and up to 300,000 gates (ASIC-equivalent) of embedded configurable logic.

Loris Valenti, general manager of ST's Computer Systems Division, said: " Spear speeds the adoption of customised 65nm IC solutions with an ASIC-like flexibility, at a fraction of the development time and cost of a full-custom design approach."

Copyright ©v3.co.uk

hardwareitssharpensspear