Product category:
Microprocessors, Microcontrollers and DSPs
News Release from: Zilog | Subject: Z8 Encore! XP 8-pin family
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 28 February 2005
Small-footprint MCU is a "tiny dynamo"
Zilog has expanded its product portfolio by launching an innovative 8-pin low-cost small-footprint addition to its award-winning Z8 Encore! XP family of microcontrollers.
Zilog has expanded its product portfolio by launching an innovative 8-pin low-cost small-footprint addition to its award-winning Z8 Encore! XP family of microcontrollers (MCUs) The new device, nicknamed the "tiny dynamo" by Zilog insiders, packs all the punch of its larger XP family members, but uses 80% less space on the printed circuit board (PCB)
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 7 Dec 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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In common with other Z8 Encore! XP devices, this easy to use, 8-pin version uses Zilog's popular eZ8 core, which offers design engineers a higher level of integration with low overall system costs.
This commonality enables ease of design and, because all Z8 Encore! XP devices are code compatible, easy migration of one product to another.
As electronic design evolves, devices in application markets such as personal handheld electronics, security, home appliances, consumer electronics and games have become increasingly complex and feature-rich.
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Demand for products that are easy to use, power efficient and offer high levels of integration have become key requirements for design engineers as they pack more functionality onto each new chip.
As a result, board real estate now comes at a premium and must be utilised as fully and as intelligently as possible.
Zilog says that its new 8-pin XP is a major win for design engineers because it overcomes these challenges and offers unparalleled ease of use when compared with similar solutions from key competitors here in the USA and in Asia.
"We continue to see a growing need for MCUs to have all the features and functions of a larger device yet take up much less space on the PCB".
"In recent talks with some customers who have tested and compared the 8-pin XP to competitors' solutions, our new 8-pin XP scored highest in ease of use and overall performance", observed Ramesh Ramchandani, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing.
Zilog noted that its new Z8 Encore! XP 8-pin family simply grants design engineers greater freedom to design without being limited by board space and cost.
"Our first 8-pin offering meets these market demands, leaving our customers to design innovative products that open up a world of applications that are smaller, faster and easier to use", noted Ramchandani.
The new 8-pin devices offer exactly the same on-chip functions previously only available with the larger Z8 Encore! XP devices.
However, these functions, which include a full-range temperature sensor, single pin debugger and transimpedance amplifier, are now available in the smaller 8-pin package.
What's more, this latest addition means that Zilog's expanded MCU product portfolio now offers designers a high degree of choice and flexibility, with pin counts extending from 8 to 80.
The new product rollout also opens up a wide range of application possibilities for design engineers and for Zilog.
"We are extremely excited about the numerous possibilities the Z8 Encore! XP 8-pin brings to the market, and we have already secured several design wins, receiving very positive, initial feedback from the design engineering community", noted Ramchandani.
"We are also optimistic about demand for this product from new sectors such as health and fitness, remote transmitters and receivers, smart card readers and battery charger markets, among others".
The Z8 Encore! XP 8-pin products are available now in SOIC, PDIP and MLF-S versions and will retail at $1.25 per unit in quantities of 10,000 units.
Also available is an accompanying development kit, which retails for just $49, and allows for rapid application development and shorter time to market.
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