DALLAS, April 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) (NYSE: TXN) today announced a new "Tool Swap" program to give developers a chance to get rid of underperforming microcontroller (MCU) tools from competitors and make the switch to TI's leading solutions.  The program is sponsored by Digi-Key Corporation and will take place on May 3 – 5 at the Embedded Systems Conference (ESC), Silicon Valley in San Jose, Calif.  Each day of the program, the first 100 developers to bring a used competitive kit to the TI booth can exchange their old hardware for an MSP430™ eZ430-Chronos watch, Stellaris® Cortex™-M3 EVALBOT robotic evaluation board or C2000™ Piccolo™ controlSTICK.  For more information, go to www.ti.com/maketheswitch.

From ultra-low-power MSP430 MCUs, to Stellaris Cortex-M MCUs, to real-time control C2000 MCUs, TI offers the broadest range of microcontroller solutions in the industry.  Beyond differentiated silicon, TI is committed to delivering robust software and tool platforms that are unmatched by any other semiconductor provider.  TI's experimenter, developer and application specific kits are designed to address every design stage – from device exploration, to prototype and production.  Each TI MCU tool includes all of the hardware and software necessary to get started in 10 minutes or less.

Attendees will have the option to switch out their competitive MCU hardware tool for one of these superior TI solutions (while supplies last):

eZ430-Chronos Watch features and benefits

• Ultra-low-power MSP430™ MCU core and sub-1GHz CC1101 RF transceiver are combined on one chip to reduce system complexity and shrink package and printed circuit board (PCB) size by up to 50 percent compared to two-chip solutions
• TI's SimpliciTI and BM Innovations' BlueRobin™ RF protocols enable developers to easily establish wireless links regardless of RF knowledge, right out of the box
• Integrated 3-axis accelerometer for motion sensitive control as well as sensors for measurement, including altimeter, temperature and battery voltage
• USB-RF access point for PC communication and automation, supported by production-ready source projects, including, but not limited to, motion-based mouse control, sensor data logging with wireless PC download, keyboard and presentation control as well as time and calendar sync

Stellaris® EVALBOT features and benefits (EK-EVALBOT)

• 80 MHz Stellaris® LM3S9B92 MCU with 256K Flash, 96K SRAM, StellarisWare® software in ROM, as well as integrated Ethernet, USB On-the-Go (OTG)/Host/Device and CAN
• Example display, audio and motor control software projects based on the extensive StellarisWare® code base for putting concepts into practice
• Expansion port supports TI wireless modules and end customer extensions
• Two DC gear-motors provide drive and steering, opto-sensors that detect wheel rotation with 45 degree resolution, and sensors for "bump" detection
• TI motor drivers, voltage regulators, audio codec, interface and logic devices for easy evaluation of the complete signal chain

Piccolo™ controlSTICK features and benefits

• 60 MHz Piccolo™ 32-bit TMS320F2802x microcontroller with 64K Flash, 12-bit ADC, ePWM and other control-oriented peripherals
• On board USB JTAG emulation and access to all control peripherals and example projects within a small USB memory stick form factor
• Access to controlSUITE™ software, a portal to everything needed to accelerate real-time control design, including royalty-free software examples, libraries, application solutions and support

TI will also be posting additional opportunities for attendees to get free stuff at ESC on Twitter and Facebook. Follow TI's newsfeeds during the event for special codewords that can be redeemed for prizes, and check out www.ti.com/maketheswitch.

About Texas Instruments

Texas Instruments semiconductor innovations help 80,000 customers unlock the possibilities of the world as it could be – smarter, safer, greener, healthier and more fun.  Our commitment to building a better future is ingrained in everything we do – from the responsible manufacturing of our semiconductors, to caring for our employees, to giving back inside our communities.  This is just the beginning of our story.  Learn more at www.ti.com.

Trademarks

Stellaris and StellarisWare are registered trademarks and MSP430, C2000, Piccolo and controlSUITE are trademarks of Texas Instruments Incorporated.  All registered trademarks and other trademarks belong to their respective owners.

SOURCE Texas Instruments Incorporated