Digital ICs/DSP: Low-Power CPUs Tackle Multimedia And Communications Applications

An advanced multiprocessor architecture conceived from the ground up to run next-generation low-power handheld systems forms the heart of the chips in the CoolProcessor family. The processor's architecture was optimized for low-power, concurrent execution of specific applications, including MPEG-2/4, 801.11a/b/g, H.263/4, JPEG/2000, MP3, GPS, 802.16 Bluetooth, GSM/GPRS/EDGE, and CDMA 2000/WCDMA, in various combinations. Typical power consumption is less than 100 mW when implemented in a standard 130-nm low-power CMOS process. There will be six initial family members, all upwardly code compatible and sharing a single programming model. Applications-development software and modeling tools are additionally available. The first CoolProcessor CPU, the 3P3200, can run combinations of MPEG, JPEG, GSM, and 802.11 concurrently. Planned for release in the second quarter of 2005, it will sell for $8 apiece in lots of 10,000.