VLSI Technology Inc, San Jose has added a new top-end member to the expanding Advanced RISC Machines Ltd ARM RISC product line, the VYF86C06-004 ARM6 FSB cell. It runs at 45MHz to provide motive power to high-performance embedded systems, and offers ultra-low power dissipation for battery-operated applications and other highly integrated products. Target markets for ASIC-based systems using it include set-top boxes and video games for consumer applications, cellular phones and Cellular Digital Packet Data wireless data systems, and video and disk controllers for computer applications. Running off a 3.3V, it does 45 MIPS peak, 38 Dhrystone 2.1 MIPS sustained. It is fabricated in 0.5-micron, three-layer-metal CMOS for a core size of just over 4mm square and total power dissipation of 110mW. VLSI is also shipping JumpStart 2.1, a fully symbolic set of graphical development tools for the ARM 32-bit RISC and designed for Windows. JumpStart under Windows is claimed to offer the same benefits as JumpStart for Unix, enabling personal computer users to improve development and debug efficiency and shorten development times of ARM applications for embedded and portable applications. It supports mixed C and assembly language or raw assembly language code debugging. The Windows version is in alpha test, with production set for mid-November: the one-off price will be $3,000.
