EPIC Boards

May 10, 2004

EPIC Is Ready For Networking The ReadyBoard 550 and 700 target both ends of the performance spectrum, each with a pair of 10/100BaseT Ethernet ports. The 550 supports a 300-MHz to 1-GHz Eden processor. The 700 handles up to a 933-MHz Pentium III. Both support 1 Gbyte of SDRAM, EIDE, CompactFlash, four serial ports, four USB ports, IrDA, AC'97 audio, and PS/2 keyboard and mouse devices. The on-board, 4X AGP video interface has a 32-Mbyte FRAM buffer with a top resolution of 1600 by 1200. Ampro Computer's ReadyBoard 550 costs under $300.www.ampro.com

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EPIC Goes Global Support for GPS or Global Positioning System, wireless, and analog data acquisition can be found in the SBC4495. It has a 14-bit, eight-channel analog-to-digital converter and digital-to-analog converter. The on-board GPS can synchronize within 190 ns. Wireless support comes via a CompactFlash card. Developed by Micro/Sys, the board is based on a low-power, 133-MHz STPC Atlas processor and contains 64 Mbytes of SDRAM, four serial ports, PS/2 keyboard and mouse, plus SVGA graphics supporting resolutions of up to 1280 by 1024. The SBC4495 starts at $495. Industrial versions are available.www.embeddedsys.com

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Flashy Choices For EPIC Storage WinSystems' SBC-C3 is powered by a Via Eden 733-MHz P3-compatible processor. It features four serial ports, 10/100BaseT Ethernet, USB 2.0, 3D video with LVDS support, 24 parallel I/O lines, AC'97 audio, floppy, EIDE, and PS/2 keyboard and mouse interfaces. The board supports CompactFlash and Disk-On-Chip storage.www.winsystems.comEPIC For Mil Spec Spots Designed for rugged environments, Octagon Systems' XE-800 operates over a −40°C to 75°C temperature range. It employs a low-power, 300-MHz AMD Geode GX1 CPU with up to 256 Mbytes of SDRAM. Peripheral support includes two IDEs, on-board video, 48 digital lines, two serial and six USB 2.0/1.1 ports, 100BaseT Ethernet, PS/2 keyboard and mouse, plus a real-time battery-backup clock. It costs $595.www.octagonsystems.com

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Power Packed EPIC For High-End Applications VersaLogic's Cobra fills the tiny SBC with lots of memory and processing power. A 1-Mbyte level 2 cache and 2 Gbytes of double-data-rate SODIMMs are integrated in the Cobra, which features a 1.6-GHz Pentium M. It has 32 digital lines, and the eight-channel analog-to-digital converter is optional. There are four serial ports, four USB ports, dual 10/100BaseT Ethernet ports, and a CompactFlash interface. The Intel 855GM chip set with Extreme Graphics 2 is used for video support. It incorporates hardware MPEG and 3D acceleration. The board includes TVS (Transient Voltage Suppression) support on most interfaces designed to prevent damage from electrostatic discharge. Cobra pricing starts at $1890.www.versalogic.com

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William G. Wong | Senior Content Director - Electronic Design and Microwaves & RF

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