1. Home
  2. Embedded Programming
  3. New Parallax Propeller IC

New Parallax Propeller IC

Still can't believe it... It has 8 custom processor. One can generate color video while the other 7 each do a task. Slight modification allows the video to be broadcast. Can this thing be for real?

No word on price or relase date.

formatting link

What can you do with eight 32-bit processors (COGs) in one chip? Real simultaneous multi-processing! The new Propeller chip is the result of our internal design team working for eight years straight. The Propeller chip was designed at the transistor level by schematic using our own Altera Stratix tools to prototype. Propeller is programmed in both a high-level language, called Spin=99, and low-level (assembly) language. With the set of pre-built Parallax "objects" for video, mice, keyboards, RF, LCDs, stepper motors and sensors your Propeller Application is a matter of high-level integration.

Propeller represents the first custom all-silicon product designed by Parallax.

Reply to
KenLem
Loading thread data ...

As there seem to be no links, it just could be this was placed ready for an April 1st release ? No mention of how you would load code - maybe it is clairvoyant ?

-jg

Reply to
Jim Granville

Putting several CPUs into an FPGA is quite straightforward. That seems to be what they have done, then they put them into a custom chip.

Leon

Reply to
Leon

Make a gun that wont shoot at lawyers?

martin

Reply to
martin griffith

I doubt it's an April fool's gag.

They will sell as seperate USB to Serial device for loading programs ($29). I agree. It looks to be an FPGA design that has been hard wired.

Reply to
KenLem

KenLem =D0=BD=D0=B0=D0=BF=D0=B8=D1=81=D0=B0:

I hope they will not make it as FPGA stamp programed with multitasking Basic :)

Reply to
tusunov

Not that impressive nowadays... 80 MHz clocked CPUs with fairly limited capabilities in a 40 pin case at $29 - well, at about that price you get fullblown PPC based products clocked at 400 MHz and up - DDR controllers, USB, Ethernet, all sorts of things included...

Dimiter

------------------------------------------------------ Dimiter Popoff Transgalactic Instruments

formatting link

------------------------------------------------------

Reply to
Didi

Can you provide a link to a 400Mhz multicore chip for $29?

Reply to
KenLem

Not multicore - this was neither said nor implied.

BTW, I can hardly see an application where a 400 MHz PPC (single core) will not be able to do what you can do with the multi-core which this is about - and probably faster.

Dimiter

------------------------------------------------------ Dimiter Popoff Transgalactic Instruments

formatting link

------------------------------------------------------

Reply to
Didi

Hello all. I just got back from Parallax, where they showed off their chip. This is a very impressive unit, and a real threat to other mainstream chips. There are soo many applications that can be made, that it is really head-spinning. It can be programmed in ASM, or a HLL developed just for this chip called Spin. I think you are all in for a huge surprise.

Reply to
johnsrobotics

Did they mention those little details, of release date, and volume prices ?

Each core has a relatively tiny amount of RAM, so that will limit any threat. No analog features is another restriction.

That said, there are 'coal face' applications, where the ability to be in many places at once, could be very usefull.

They seem to focus on IO / Sensor areas, and not general processing.

-jg

Reply to
Jim Granville

ElectronDepot website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.