TI Korea (CEO Kent Chon, www.ti.com/ww/kr ) October 29, 2013 – TI (CEO Kent Chon) announced the new MSP430™ microcontroller (MCU) that reduces power consumption in "Always-on" applications, such as smartphones, tablets, and accessories, by enabling advanced context-aware computing capabilities in next-generation portable consumer devices. Developers can create portable consumer devices that prevent system battery drain for application processors and touchscreen controllers—the main culprits of power consumption—and put them in standby mode by moving sensor hub, keyboard control, and battery/power management functions to the MSP430F525x MCU.

The MSP430F525x MCU features an independent 1.8V V/O architecture, allowing it to be connected to an application processor without external level shifter circuitry. Customers can now manufacture smartphones, tablets, and accessories where I/O operates at 1.8V while running the MCU at maximum performance. With a fast wake-up time of 3.5μs and low power consumption of 1.6μA in standby mode, these microcontrollers extend the battery life of portable consumer devices from hours to days, while reducing board space and system costs.

The MSP430F525x microcontroller supports designers in getting started quickly with easy-to-use software. Since this product is compatible with MSP430Ware™ software, developers can access code examples to streamline development and shorten time-to-market. In addition, the new MCU is code-compatible with existing MSP430 devices, allowing for a broader expansion of TI's ultra-low-power MCU portfolio.

The new 16-bit MCU features increased RAM, I/O, and serial interfaces, enabling faster processing of complex sensor algorithms, data merging, and monitoring functions. (For more details on the MSP430F525x, refer to www.ti.com/52xx-pr-lp )

Key Features and Advantages of the MSP430F525x Microcontroller

• It has built-in 4 USCI_A and 4 USCI_B interfaces, providing developers with up to 8 serial interfaces (4 I2C and 4 SPI), enabling fast and stable communication with sensors or peripherals.
• Up to 35 general-purpose I/Os can be used on the 1.8V voltage rail, saving energy by switching off power supplied to components that are not in operation.
• The low-power peripherals include four 16-bit timers, one high-performance 10-bit analog-to-digital converter (ADC), a hardware multiplier, DMA, a comparator, and an RTC module with alarm functions.
• Power consumption is 290μA/MHz for flash and 150μA/MHz for RAM in active mode, and 1.6μA (3V) in standby mode. Such low power consumption and a fast wake-up time of 3.5μs allow developers to implement differentiated features while maintaining ultra-low power consumption.

In addition, the MSP430F524x and MSP430F523x series, which feature a single voltage rail and up to 128K flash, come in eight varieties and are ideal for industrial applications requiring larger memory, such as wireless smoke detectors, industrial sensors, and smart home appliances. These devices also support other software-intensive wireless interfaces such as ZigBee® and Wi-Fi.