Processor designers know that a cycle-accurate simulator can be used to benchmark a processor that has not yet been fabricated. But many designers don’t realize that it’s also possible to benchmark an idea for a processor, a processor that may exist only in PowerPoint slides—and that there are good reasons for doing so.

A couple of months ago I wrote a column about the frequently unpleasant “getting-the-box” experience.  This month I’d like to rant about a separate but related topic: the frustration of dealing with distributors. 

This article has been modified from its original content.  The original article contained a reference to the performance of the CEVA X-1620 core on a compiled C language implementation of the AMR-NB vocoder; this reference has been removed.  These results were taken from a 2007 CEVA white paper.  CEVA states that the X-1620 core is no longer offered for license and has been superseded by the CEVA X-1622.  CEVA also states that the compiled-code performance results for the CEVA X-1622 on the AMR-NB vocoder are significantly better than those reported earlier for the CEVA X-1620.  BDTI briefl

Earlier this month Texas Instruments announced that it had acquired Luminary Micro, a start-up fabless semiconductor vendor that sold ARM Cortex-M3-based microcontrollers. Luminary’s “Stellaris” family of Cortex-M3 MCUs has been on the market since 2006. Current Stellaris chips operate at up to 50 MHz; TI expects to sample 80 and 100 MHz chips later this year. Stellaris chip prices range from $1.00 - $7.00 in 10K quantities. TI has also announced Stellaris-based development kits starting at $99.

This month NXP has unveiled more details on its new licensable core, the CoolFlux BSP, which targets low-power communications baseband processing. The core is based on the similarly named CoolFlux DSP, which was designed for use in low-power audio applications and introduced in 2004. Relative to the older core, NXP says that the CoolFlux BSP has been enhanced to increase its performance in baseband processing while retaining a small footprint and low power.

The best way to ensure that a presentation is effective is to test it with a knowledgeable, critical, and responsive audience. A test audience can also help ensure that the content is correct, relevant, and appropriate for the intended audience. Just as important, a test audience can help presenters gauge the clarity, appeal, and impact of their pitch. After all, superb technical content serves no purpose if the audience loses interest a few minutes into the presentation.