NEC Electronics Unveils 16-bit "All Flash" Microcontroller Series

78K0R Series Delivers Industry-Leading Power Performance

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NEC Electronics Corp. (TSE:6723) today announced a new line of 16-bit flash microcontrollers (MCUs) that offers best-in-class power performance of 1.8 mW / MIPS -- approximately twice the power performance of other leading 16-bit MCUs, and six times the power performance of NEC Electronics' 8-bit 78K0 MCUs. The 78K0R series consists of 30 devices in pin counts ranging from 64 to 100 pins, and memory configurations from 64 KB up to 256 KB Flash.

Features such as 3-stage pipeline processing enable high speed processing and support performance up to 13 MIPS*, while voltage control circuits and other CPU features help suppress power consumption levels to approximately half that of comparable 16-bit MCUs. Through these technology advances, customers can develop more complex systems with advanced functions, while still meeting rigorous power consumption requirements.

The 78K0R series also features reset functions, voltage detection circuits, oscillators, calendar timers, and EMI noise reduction. The products are pin compatible with NEC Electronics' existing 78K0 series of 8-bit MCUs, providing current customers with a smooth migration path. The software for the 16-bit series is also compatible with the company's previous 8-bit series, enabling customers to reuse existing resources and further improve development efficiency.

The 78K0R devices, based on NEC Electronics' 0.15 micron process technology with embedded flash memory using SuperFlash® technology by Silicon Storage Technology, Inc., are priced competitively against 16-bit mask ROM devices.

NEC Electronics also provides an array of tools to support efficient development of its All Flash™ microcontrollers, including the devices in the new 16-bit series. The company's suite includes on-chip debuggers, the MINICUBE series of flash programmers, and Applilet program. NEC Electronics also offers its own flash programming services as well as services through multiple third party vendors to further accelerate the development of All Flash products.

In recent years, consumer electronics, household appliances and industrial systems traditionally covered by 8-bit MCUs have grown increasingly sophisticated, requiring higher performance levels. At the same time, power consumption and price remain primary concerns for manufacturers. NEC Electronics introduced the 16-bit 78K0R series to meet these needs of this particular market.

Since first introducing the "All Flash" concept in November 2004, NEC Electronics has steadily established a comprehensive lineup of devices with embedded flash memory, including 112 8-bit MCUs in the 78K0 series and 33 32-bit MCUs in the high performance V850 series. With the addition of the 30 new devices of the 78K0R series, NEC Electronics' total lineup now reaches an impressive 175 products. The company plans to continue aggressively expanding its offerings to allow customers even greater selection in the future.

NEC Electronics aims to be the world's #1 supplier of flash MCUs by March 2010, with combined sales reaching 100 billion yen for 8-bit and 16-bit microcontrollers.

For more information about NEC Electronics' lineup of flash MCUs, please visit http://www.necel.com/micro/english/product/sc/allflash/index.html

Pricing and Availability
Samples of the 78K0R series will be available starting in April 2006, with volume production scheduled to begin in October 2006. Samples of the 100-pin 78K0R/KG3 with 256KB of memory is priced at US$5. Combined volume production for the 30 devices in the 78K0R series is expected to reach 1 million units per month in fiscal year 2007.

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About NEC Electronics

NEC Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723) specializes in semiconductor products encompassing advanced technology solutions for the high-end computing and broadband networking markets, system solutions for the mobile handsets, PC peripherals, automotive and digital consumer markets, and multi-market solutions for a wide range of customer applications. NEC Electronics Corporation has 26 subsidiaries worldwide including NEC Electronics America, Inc. (www.am.necel.com) and NEC Electronics (Europe) GmbH (www.eu.necel.com). For additional information about NEC Electronics worldwide, visit www.necel.com.

* Evaluated based on Dhrystone 1.1. One MIPS is equal to 1 million instruction sets per second.
NEC Electronics, NEC Electronics America, NEC Electronics (Europe), and 78K0 are either registered trademarks or trademarks of NEC Electronics Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. SuperFlash is a registered trademark of Silicon Storage Technology, Inc. All other registered trademarks or trademarks are property of their respective owners.