CAST Releases Fastest 8051 IP Core

Woodcliff Lake, NJ, January 21, 2009 — Silicon Intellectual Property (IP) provider CAST, Inc. today released a new member of its 8051-compatible processor family, the R8051XC2 IP core. Running 12.1 times faster than the original 8051 chip, the new core is the fastest CAST has offered, and the company believes it to be the fastest 8-bit 8051 IP available anywhere.

“The 8051 is the world’s most popular microcontroller, with rich and varied roles even in today’s advanced products,” said Hal Barbour, president of CAST. “We’ve been delivering 8051 IP since 1997 and know the market well: nothing is as fast, power-efficient, flexible, and user-friendly as this R8051XC2.”

Developed for ASIC or FPGA system-on-chip designs, the new 8051 core has a single-clock architecture that uses an average of 2.12 cycles per instruction. This high-speed performance also reduces power consumption: using fewer cycles for the same operation makes a 90 nm ASIC implementation of the new core 10% more efficient than CAST’s previously best 8051. (See www.cast-inc.com/cores/r8051xc2 for details, and more implementation examples.)

The new core is highly configurable, with variations covering the 8051 spectrum from full-featured processors with multiple peripherals to streamlined controllers doing specific jobs. Customers can purchase the fully-configurable version to cover all their 8051 needs, prepackaged versions that mimic off-the-shelf chips, or a custom set of features and capabilities for their specific requirements. Full MCS51 instruction set compatibility, a native on-chip debugging option, and support by Keil’s C51 development tools ensure quick and successful R8051XC2 system development.

Developed by long-time CAST partner Evatronix SA in Poland, the R8051XC2 builds on a dozen years of 8051 IP experience and hundreds of successful customer designs. It is available now. Customers should see the website to learn more (www.cast-inc.com) and contact their local distributor for full details on CAST’s simple, royalty-free licensing.

About CAST, Inc.

CAST provides a broad range of popular IP cores and system IP for ASICs and FPGAs. Privately owned and operating since 1993, CAST has a reputation for high-quality IP products and industry-leading technical support. The company is headquartered near New York City, partners with IP developers around the world, and works with select sales consultants and distributors throughout Europe and Asia. Learn more at www.cast-inc.com.