Now that's low power!

By Kenton Williston, dspdesignline.com
August 17, 2008

You want low power? How does 27 ìW/MHz sound? That's what Cambridge Consultants is claiming for its new XAP5 processor. To put this in perspective, the ARM7—often used as a benchmark of low power—burns 60 ìW/MHz. That means XAP5 beats ARM7 by a factor of two! (All number discussed here are for 130 nm.)

In case you're not impressed yet, let's compare that to DSPs. A quick glance at BDTI's benchmark page (PDF) shows that the stingiest DSPs burn around 127 ìW/MHz—way more than the XAP5.

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