Avnet Electronics Marketing Releases Low-Cost Xilinx Spartan®-6 LX9 FPGA MicroBoard

PHOENIX– Global electronic components and embedded solutions distributor, Avnet Electronics Marketing Americas, a business region of Avnet, Inc. (NYSE: AVT), announces the availability of the Xilinx Spartan®-6 LX9 FPGA MicroBoard. Available for $89.00, this comprehensive kit was created for designers who are either interested in using or are currently using off-the-shelf microcontrollers, and are looking to leverage the greater flexibility and customization capabilities of the low-cost Spartan-6 FPGA family and the Xilinx MicroBlaze™ embedded soft processor core. Avnet has also implemented several reference designs for the MicroBlaze system that simplify the development process for both hardware and software designers.

In addition to including the Spartan-6 FPGA, the LX9 FPGA MicroBoard also includes low-power DDR memory, an Ethernet port, programmable clock and two expansion ports for I/O access. A license for the Xilinx software development kit (SDK) is included, providing a familiar Eclipse-based environment for writing and debugging MicroBlaze code. The small USB stick-style MicroBoard is powered by the TPS65708, a new, ultra-small footprint power management unit from Texas Instruments (TI). Also included from TI is the CDCE913, a programmable fractional PLL-based clock synthesizer that supports wide input/output frequency range and spread-spectrum clocking.

“The Spartan-6 LX9 FPGA MicroBoard is an excellent starting point for designers of power- and cost-sensitive applications who want to leverage the flexibility and processing capabilities of FPGAs,” said Raj Seelam, senior marketing manager, Platform Solutions at Xilinx. “Thanks to innovative co-development with TI and Avnet, we are able to provide new as well as traditional FPGA designers with the development resources they need to quickly take advantage of what FPGAs have to offer in terms of low cost, high performance and flexibility.”

“The Spartan-6 LX9 FPGA MicroBoard is an excellent complement to Avnet’s complete offering of Xilinx Spartan-6 FPGA kits,” said Jim Beneke, vice president of global technical marketing at Avnet Electronics Marketing. “By giving our customers a proven low-cost reference platform with several example tutorials, we’re helping designers both learn about and implement next-generation FPGA-based solutions.”

The new Spartan-6 LX9 FPGA MicroBoard is available for order entry now, with shipments starting at the end of the first quarter. For more information and ordering details, visit www.em.avnet.com/s6microboard.

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About Avnet Electronics Marketing

Avnet Electronics Marketing is an operating group of Phoenix-based Avnet, Inc., that serves electronic original equipment manufacturers (EOEMs) and electronic manufacturing services (EMS) providers in more than 70 countries, distributing electronic components from leading manufacturers and providing associated design-chain and supply-chain services. The group’s website is located at www.em.avnet.com.

About Avnet, Inc.

Avnet, Inc. (NYSE:AVT), a Fortune 500 company, is one of the largest distributors of electronic components, computer products and embedded technology serving customers in more than 70 countries worldwide. Avnet accelerates its partners’ success by connecting the world’s leading technology suppliers with a broad base of more than 100,000 customers by providing cost-effective, value-added services and solutions. For the fiscal year ended July 3, 2010, Avnet generated revenue of $19.16 billion. For more information, visit www.avnet.com.

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