Well, the pin layouts are fairly "compatible" with respect to the positions of the generic I/O pins and bus expansion. But that's about is. They are absolutely not code compatible and their architecture is very different. To give you a speed comparison: a software UART I once wrote was 14 times faster on the AVR.
AT90S8515-4 (obsolete for new designs) Code Memory = 8kB, RAM = 512B EERAM = 512B
This is one of the AVR (8 bit RISC) series. Atmel do make 8051 compatible parts, but this is not one of them.
For the same task, the AVR parts use less instruction memory and get more done per instruction . Often you can run AVR slower for reduced EMI and power consumption. The AVR parts are designed for compiled ( C, Basic, Pascal etc) code and are heaps more efficient with compiled code than a standard 8051.
If you have an investment in 8051 code and don't want to rewrite it, there is a large choice of 8051 instruction set parts. Cygnal have very fast 8051 code-compatible chips.
Not compatible. For 8051 architecture use AT80C5xxx,AT83C5xxx,AT89Cxxxx etc. if you want to use Atmel devices, otherwise check DS80C310 or DS89C420 at Maxim web site. The AT90S/Lxxxx series are AVR 8-bit RISC devices. best regards RA
How widely used are the AT90Sxxxx (these RISC ones) series in the automotive or consumer appliances industry or other industry then? Is it a good idea to bother to learn for as far as improving your job skills is concerned?
If you have, say an AVR development kit or some chips, that is a great way to learn. If you have a specific task, you will want to look at a few different micros and make a decision on price, availability, available skills, local distributors etc.
I use the AVR micros and have had a good time. I can program in C with the free GCC compiler and need next to no assembler, so my code is better quality and gets working faster. This means I can quickly target a job and get it finished.
The AVRs have heaps of speed, plenty of upgrade options for bigger jobs and enough RAM and EE . Its a different feeling to the days when you had to force the last ounce out of a microcontroller. Onboard timers, Analog to Digital converter, pulse width modulation, serial port for RS232 are things I use.
The AVRs have a decent share of the market, and you will find them in various products. The 8051 compatibles would be the best sellers of all.
8051 parts are not exactly inspiring, but they will be with us for a long time yet.
If you learn to program one micro, you will be able to switch to another. All micros have the same issues - setting bits in configuration registers, using timers, ports.
The AT90S8515 has gone through a process shrink , and the result is the ATmega8515 which is a pin compatible replacement. The old chip used the AVR rev 1 core, the new chip uses the AVR mega core (rev 3) with the built in multiplier and capabilities for self programming.
The major markets for the AVR is cellular phones and accessories + consumer white goods. Since most of the tools are for free it is very easy to get started.
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