bytesthedust:
You might look at LPCXpresso from NXP. $30 for a simple board and JTAG emulator and complete toolchain. Available from Digikey and a bunch of other distis
That looks pretty good. Is the LPC Link JTAG supported by other devel platforms other than Code Red? It doesn’t look like it’s an FTDI based one.
No … it’s tied to LPCXpresso, but it’s still a pretty impressive deal and if you’re getting start you’ll be better off sticking to a pre-configured IDE like LPCXpresso or the always highly recommended Crossworks for ARM ($150 for non-commercial use, but worth every penny since it works right out of the box and is a pleasure to develop with).
I’d probably recommend either the LPC2148 since it’s very capably and there are thousands of examples out there for it (the best being J.C Wren’s very complete demo code at http://www.jcwren.com/arm), or something like the LPC1343 (NXP provides good examples for all peripherals for both GCC/LPCXpresso and Keil). I’d get the Olimex LPC-P2148 from Sparkfun of the $30 LPCXPresso 1343 board myself (which ends up cheaper with the built in SWD debugger, but beware that it won’t work on x64 systems).
TheDirty:
Normally I would say the LPC2xxx ARM7’s, because of the support out there for it, but seriously, I’ve pretty much replaced all ARM7 work with Cortex-M3’s. They are simpler, cheaper, and very capable.
Luminary Micro is so much cheaper than the others right now in singles, I can’t really consider anything else. Somebody else can list off the pro’s and cons, but I think the major contenders here are Luminary Micro (Texas Instruments now), STM32, and the LPC13xx and LPC15xx chips.
I’m ordering some of the LPC11xx Cortex-M0’s from Digikey next order. Anyone have any idea on the power usage stats? The datasheets I’ve seen still have TBD on them, but they should be really good.
I’m getting around 10mA at 48MHz for normal use, but that’s total power consumption with my own board (including other basic components like VREG, etc.). That seriously impressed me coming from ARM7.
The rom-based USB drivers on the 1343 were another pleasant surprise. I had USB (HID) up and running in literally 20 minutes, and with <1KB flash if I remember correctly. Being rom-based not only saves code/hassle … it also saves you about 5-6KB flash compared to a SW-based stack, which is nice on 32KB parts. The HID is slightly more limited than a full SW implementation, but the tradeoffs are well worth it for the space gained and for ease of use. I’ve been really impressed with the 1343 on the whole. It also has a convenient USB bootloader that you can use to update the firmware without JTAG of something like Flash Magic, a feature that’s been flying under the radar but that makes field updates a breeze compared to previous chips.
ktownsend:
I’m getting around 10mA at 48MHz for normal use, but that’s total power consumption with my own board (including other basic components like VREG, etc.). That seriously impressed me coming from ARM7.
The rom-based USB drivers on the 1343 were another pleasant surprise. I had USB (HID) up and running in literally 20 minutes, and with <1KB flash if I remember correctly. Being rom-based not only saves code/hassle … it also saves you about 5-6KB flash compared to a SW-based stack, which is nice on 32KB parts. The HID is slightly more limited than a full SW implementation, but the tradeoffs are well worth it for the space gained and for ease of use. I’ve been really impressed with the 1343 on the whole. It also has a convenient USB bootloader that you can use to update the firmware without JTAG of something like Flash Magic, a feature that’s been flying under the radar but that makes field updates a breeze compared to previous chips.
Is that for the 11xx series (Cortex-M0) or the 13xx series that you are talking about (Cortex-M3)? I know the CM3 can be decent, but the CM0 was specifically made as a low power core
I still haven’t put in my latest Digikey order. End of year at my work lasts until end of January and I just don’t have the time for playing that much.
TheDirty:
Is that for the 11xx series (Cortex-M0) or the 13xx series that you are talking about (Cortex-M3)? I know the CM3 can be decent, but the CM0 was specifically made as a low power core
That’s for the 1114. I’ve been impressed with it, and apparently there are even better things to come in the 1100 family. The 1343 and 1114 board I put together are quite similar in terms of external components (at least if I use the DC barrel since I put a 1.5V step-converter on the 1114 board to run it off a battery as well), but I’ve never got around to measuring the 1343 yet since low-power wasn’t really the driving issue for me … I designed it for situations where I need more processing power and USB. Could be interesting to compare, though. The M3 doesn’t seem to be a pig in the power department either … just not sure where it falls between the M0 and the (by comparison) power-hungry ARM7.
I’ve been happy with both chips, though, and look forward to new development (more flash, etc.), though I’m not sure how long it will take to roll the new stuff out. My guess is that NXP is going to collect some feedback on the 1110’s first before committing a new round of financing in new chips, but 2010 looks pretty interesting for 32-bit.
I ordered the LPC1313’s in QFN which has presented a DIY PCB challenge. This is the first time I’ve seen a QFN where the only ground connection is the centre pad and I can’t get to the pad without a via. So I made up one of my standard breadboard plug in boards with it on. We’ll see this weekend if I can get a wire to connect to that ground and still let that chip sit properly.
Are you talking to me? I’m not a newbie, and no, I’ve gotten off track on the original point of this thread. Got too interested in these new LPC’s. Sorry about that.