Nice overview of the chip at http://focus.ti.com/lit/an/spra526/spra526.pdf
It's not a NR chip. It's a CPU with embedded memory and gizmos designed with digital signal processing in mind. You could use it in a model airplane if you wanted to, or construct a mini PC out of it. So it allows inclusion of appropriate K3 firmware development in a tiny box. The big improvement that is pertinent to a mini rig in the new chip appears to be CMOS and lower power, and more so because the processor is touted at lower power at higher speeds. Run it at less than WFO and the power draw is even less. I remember that there was a serious current addition (from viewpoint of battery operation) when they added DSP to the K2. If one was going to make a serious quantum jump in DSP with higher-end processing than you see in a K3, most certainly a jump in component price-point would be involved. A QRP miniature, with the intense price competition, is NOT the place to start. What you are seeing in the KX3, with that 32 bit processor, is prior high end stuff coming down enough in cost and battery drain to put all of the K3's high end processing, and fairly mature DSP program code, in a mini. That's the opposite of what Tony seemed to be worried about in earlier posts. AND, all of this seems to suggest that a K4 is going to be SMALLER than a K3, not larger. Bring it on. 73, Guy. On Sat, May 21, 2011 at 9:55 AM, Bruce Beford <bruce.bef...@myfairpoint.net> wrote: > >From the datasheet for the DSP chip used in the K3: > > The TMS320VC33 DSP is a 32-bit, floating-point processor manufactured in > 0.18-Tm four-level-metal CMOS > (TImeline) technology. The TMS320VC33 is part of the TMS320C3x generation of > DSPs from Texas > Instruments. > > The K3's DSP -is- 32 bit floating point. As Wayne has said, the K3 ain't > dead yet, and will continue to be developed. Notice the decreasing hair in > recent pics of Lyle. 8-) > > Bruce, N1RX > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
