Low-Power Flash Comes On Microcontrollers

Said to be the industry’s lowest-power flash memory, this technology is embedded into the ultra-low power MSP430 family of µCs. The integrated flash memory lets manufacturers of energy-efficient systems such as utility meters and handheld, battery-operated devices reprogram products easily to reduce development time and allow quick field upgrades. With the low-power flash memory, designers can use smaller batteries to reduce board space and costs. Operating at 3V, an MSP430 with embedded flash draws less than 350 µA per MHz in active mode. The device requires only 1.5 µA in standby mode, which is the same as the MSP430 with ROM or OTP memory. The MSP430 can go from standby to active in 6 ms.