SDCC with SiLabs/Cygnal new 0.9V parts?

Apr 04, 2008 6 Replies

First reply

larwe

opment kit limit. Ah, I didn't realize that. 4K is more than enough for what I need to do. But last time I experimented with Keil's demo version, it was way more limited - you couldn't locate code at the POR start area of the chip, and the limit was 2K IIRC. The distri is…

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Has anyone here used the new 0.9V single-cell 8051 parts with sdcc? I am keen to experiment with these chips, and I'd prefer to work in C, but I'm not paying for a Keil license just for playing around.



Thanks!


opment kit

limit.

Ah, I didn't realize that. 4K is more than enough for what I need to do. But last time I experimented with Keil's demo version, it was way more limited - you couldn't locate code at the POR start area of the chip, and the limit was 2K IIRC.

The distri is bringing me a toolstick or two to play with very soon, I hope. These parts would be very interesting for the product area where I work; the low power and good mixed-signal performance plus the spread-spectrum clocking are tasty. Looking forward to the smaller variants too - 32K is way overkill for us.

Thanks for the reply.

Why SDCC just to play? For $99 you can get the Silabs C8051F930DK development kit from Mouser.com, which includes the Silab IDE and the Keil tools with a 4K limit. Read the Silab "Application Note ?AN104: Integrating Keil 8051 Tools Into the Silicon Labs IDE" which contains instructions for obtaining the 4 k limited version of the Keil toolset.

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I've no financial interest in Silabs, but I've used their C8051 development kit before and I thought it was pretty easy to get up and running quickly.

How about SDCC itself:

On:

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Look under Development Tools for: Integrating SDCC 8051 Tools Into The Silicon Labs IDE

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Take a look at

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. He has a C compiler & assembler for the

8051. It requires 16 bit msdos and is old fashioned, which was the reason for buying. The avr I am using & the 8051, at least the 8k, 16k, 32k versions, don't overpower even old compilers.

Hul

larwe wrote:

I tried to download their Windows program that lets you play with different power dissipation scenerios, but they made me register first. So I registered, and that was a week ago. I'm still waiting.

I don't want to be a member of a secret club. If they won't let me play with their stuff, then so be it.

MSP430's are still a great choice for low power requirements. The main thing that interested me in the siLabs devices is the built-in switching power supply. It has enough current to power some other stuff, also.

Eric

There shouldn't have been any waiting at all - when I downloaded it the other day, clicking submit on the registration info took me direct to the download page for the utility.

This is exactly why I am interested in it. The part is more or less perfect for us - 65mW out of the switcher is very well dimensioned to our need for about 15mA @ 1.9V :)

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