TAIPEI, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The first device in Freescale Semiconductor's MC1323x family optimized for consumer applications using ZigBee RF4CE technology is now available in production quantities. A MC1323x development kit with integrated Synaptics TouchPad technology is also available to help accelerate design cycles and ease the migration from infrared (IR) to radio frequency (RF) technology.
The ultra-low-power MC13233C device was designed for the consumer electronics market and is also well suited to meet the needs of price-sensitive residential, commercial, industrial and medical applications that require high performance. The MC13233C includes all of the functionality needed for RF remote controls, keyboards, touchpads, mice, 3D glasses and many other applications outside of the consumer market, such as the residential, industrial and medical markets.
Based on ZigBee RF4CE technology, the MC13233C is an integrated system-on-chip (SoC) that provides premier processing capabilities and minimal power consumption. It leads the industry in run and low-power currents, dramatically increasing battery life for consumer electronics.
Freescale has collaborated with Synaptics, a leading supplier of touchpad technology, to create a custom touchpad solution integrated into the development hardware. The MC1323x development kit allows customers to quickly prototype pointing solutions that are becoming popular in advanced remote controls.
"Freescale's MC13233C SoC will help accelerate the adoption of RF-based remote control devices," said Bruno Baylac, director of Freescale's Metering, Medical & Connectivity MCU business. "By working with Synaptics, we're also able to offer a development kit that integrates Synaptics' leading touchpad technology to make it easier and faster for customers to design better performing, more efficient and less expensive products."
"The vision of a single remote control controlling multiple devices in the home is becoming a reality," said Ted Theocheung, vice president of Synaptics' PC and Digital Home Solutions. "Synaptics, a leading supplier in touchpad technology, is excited to participate by enabling a custom touchpad solution that supports RF4CE and the new HID standards for direct access pointing and gesturing. With the MC1323x development kits, customers can quickly prototype pointing solutions that are popular in today's advanced remote controls and enhanced consumer electronics user interfaces such as set-top boxes, TV and other digital media devices."
The family of high-performance MC1323x devices has features specific to and is cost optimized for RF-controlled consumer electronics. A best-in-class RF4CE stack and development environment, along with this new cost-effective family of devices, will help accelerate the migration from IR to RF based consumer electronics. The MC1323x development kits with the integrated touchpad enable the design of mouse-like remote controls with touchpad interfaces. For consumers navigating the Internet via their televisions, these types of remotes will be more intuitive and allow for easier navigation than with traditional point-and-click remote controls.
Three devices are planned for the initial MC1323x family, with variations in memory size up to 128K flash and 8K RAM and the addition of a USB 2.0 peripheral. The MC13233C with 82K flash and 5K RAM is shipping now and the other two devices are targeted for sampling later this year.
About the Freescale MC1323x Device Platform
The MC1323x family features an 8-bit HCS08 microcontroller, an IEEE 802.15.4-compliant transceiver, flash memory, RAM and high-performance peripherals specifically selected and optimized for consumer electronic devices. The family supports the latest ZigBee RF4CE standard and application profiles (ZigBee Remote Control and the upcoming ZigBee Input Device and ZigBee 3D Sync). It also enables support and use of legacy IR functions and devices in addition to RF control and monitoring.
Freescale's portfolio of ZigBee RF4CE SoC products is based on IEEE 802.15.4 technology, known for its benefits in the areas of cost, performance and efficiency for real-time remote monitoring and control. ZigBee RF4CE technology provides RF communications, improves speed and reliability, avoids interference and enables greater flexibility for devices to operate from longer distances. It removes the line-of-sight and field-of-vision barriers in today's IR applications. With its two-way communication, ZigBee RF4CE opens the door to a whole new set of capabilities and consumer experiences. The ZigBee RF4CE specification is designed for a wide range of consumer electronic products, including home entertainment and input devices.
Availability and Pricing
Freescale is currently shipping production quantities of the MC13233C. Suggested pricing is $2.99 (USD) in 10K quantities. The MC1323x development kits integrating the Synaptics touchpad technology—1323XNSK, 1323XNSK-BDM and 1323XNSK-SFTW—are available for ordering through Freescale and distributors worldwide. Suggested resale pricing is $499 (USD) for 1323XNSK, $529 for 323XNSK-BDM and $999 for 1323XNSK-SFTW.
The development kit will be available for review through Synaptics at Computex Taipei 2011, May 31–June 4. For more information about the MC1323x family, please visit www.freescale.com/ZigBee or contact a local Freescale distributor or sales office.
About the Freescale Technology Forum
Created to drive innovation and collaboration, the Freescale Technology Forum (FTF) has become the developer event of the year for the embedded systems industry. The Forum has drawn more than 40,000 customers at FTF events worldwide since its inception in 2005. Our annual flagship event, FTF Americas, will take place June 20-23, 2011, in its new location in San Antonio, TX.
About Freescale Semiconductor
Freescale Semiconductor (NYSE:FSL) is a global leader in the design and manufacture of embedded semiconductors for the automotive, consumer, industrial and networking markets. The company is based in Austin, TX, and has design, research and development, manufacturing and sales operations around the world.