Microcontroller Trio Sings With High Speed And Low Power

Three new members of the company's AVR Flash Microcontroller family are seeking gigs in battery chargers, sensor end-points and low-end motor control apps. The 14-pin tinyAVR devices contain a 10-bit a/d converter and differ only in the size of Flash, EEPROM and SRAM memory. The ATtiny24 has 2 KB of self-programmable Flash, while the ATtiny44 and ATtiny84 have 4 KB and 8 KB, respectively. All three deliver 20 MIPS throughput when running at 20 MHz. Three individually selectable low power sleep modes and the AVR Power Stop System bring power consumption down to less than 100 nA in power down mode. Other features include 8-bit and 16-bit timers and a total of twelve 10-bit, differential a/d converter input channels with programmable gain and a fast analog comparator. ATtiny24 samples are available in Green SOIC and PDIP 14-pin packages and in a Green QFN 20-pad package; ATtiny44 samples will be available in Q1 of 2006; and ATtiny84 samples in Q2. Prices are $0.70, $0.85 and $1.10, for the ATtiny24, ATtiny44 and ATtiny84 respectively, in 10,000 unit quantities. The parts are supported by the professional debug environment AVR Studio, which is free of charge at the company's web site. The STK500 Starter Kit with the STK505 Adapter Board is available at $79 and offers all the necessary hardware to evaluate programs and test the capabilities of the devices. ATMEL CORP., San Jose, CA. (408) 441-0311.