Embedded RISC Processor Revved Up To 200 MHz

Introduced as an upgrade, the VR5432 64-bit MIPS RISC processor is now available in a 200 MHz version. The device is capable of delivering 377 Dhrystone MIPS at 200 MHz, making it viable for use in digital set-top boxes, Internet appliances, and office automation applications. A 32-bit external bus is said to improve system performance with SysAD bus speeds up to 100 MHz. Other features include a dual-issue superscalar architecture, multimedia extensions, floating-point capability, a 64-KB on-chip cache, and a 64-bit internal data bus. The device also contains six independent execution units, including two unified integer/floating-point units, a non-blocking load/store unit, 32 x 32 multiply-accumulate unit, a vector unit supporting 8 x 8 single instruction multiple-data operations, and a branch unit. Available in a 208-pin PQFP, the VR5432 processor is priced at $25 each/10,000.