Atmel Adds SAM D21, D10 and D11 Product Families to Growing Microcontroller Portfolio

On Monday February 24, global leader in microcontroller unit (MCU) and touch solutions Atmel (News - Alert) Corporation announced that they had expanded their portfolio of low-power MCU products with three new families. Featuring Atmel’s signature high-end features like a peripheral touch controller, full-speed USB interface and the patented Event System, these products should make it easier for designers of embedded systems to bring their products to the public at a more rapid rate.

The “Internet of Things” means that more devices will have to be able to think for themselves on some level, because more devices are connecting to one another in order to collect more data and process them into useful actions. In the near future, consumers will be able to use their smartphones and various sensors around devices to automatically control things like light and heating systems or to remotely start up appliances like slow-cookers and even smart automobiles that drive themselves. All of these processes require embedded systems to govern their behavior, so a broader diversity of microcontrollers is needed for a broader range of applications.

The new families of Atmel MCUs are all entry-level ARM Cortex M0+-based products, all featuring SERCOM modules and over two decades of MCU experience. All three fit into the SAM D category, with the D21, D10 and D11 products, and are well-suited to applications that require low levels of power consumption. This makes the Sam D MCU family ideally suited towards wearable products like smartwatches, where energy efficiency is vitally important.

"Atmel is constantly looking to differentiate its product portfolio to meet the rapidly changing market," says Atmel Vice President of Marketing Patrick Sullivan (News - Alert). "With the addition of the SAM D21, D10 and D11 families, we offer our customers a comprehensive portfolio of microcontrollers that include all the right features for a variety of applications. These new families highlight Atmel's differentiation through its core IP including the Event System, peripheral touch controller and SERCOM module."