Farnell has announced the addition of NXP Semiconductors’ all-purpose MCX-series of industrial and IoT microcontrollers to its portfolio; plus new FRDM development boards in a platform that removes limitations to a design engineer’s imagination.
The MCX A series includes the MCX A13x, MCX A14x, and MCX A15x. These are mainstream, easy-to-use MCUs with an innovative power architecture and software compatibility necessary for embedded applications, such as industrial sensors, motor controls, battery or handheld power system controllers, IoT devices, and more.
Powered by the Arm Cortex-M33, the MCX A series are general-purpose MCUs designed to address a wide range of applications with scalable device options, low power, and intelligent peripherals. The power architecture is designed to support high I/O utilisation and power efficiency with a simple supply circuit in a small footprint.
The MCX C series MCUs are powered by Arm Cortex-M0+ up to 48MHz and are designed for energy efficiency and cost effectiveness, making them well-suited for a wide variety of applications. Featuring USB and segment LCD options, these MCUs cater to diverse needs, providing flexible and scalable memory and packages.
MCX N series of highly integrated Arm Cortex-M33 microcontrollers are designed for high performance and low power consumption. MCX N includes intelligent peripherals and on-chip accelerators providing multitasking capabilities and performance efficiency. Select MCX N families include NXP’s eIQ Neutron neural processing unit (NPU) for machine learning applications.
Finally, the MCX W series are secure, wireless MCUs designed for more compact, scalable, and innovative designs for the next generation of smart and secure connected devices. The MCX W series, based on the Arm Cortex-M33, offers a unified range of pin-compatible multiprotocol wireless MCUs for Matter, Thread, Bluetooth Low Energy, and Zigbee. MCX W enables interoperable and innovative smart home devices, building automation sensors and controls and smart energy products.
Justin Mortimer, NXP MCU Global Product Marketing Manager, said: “The NXP MCX portfolio is foundational for the future of power-efficient Edge devices across industrial and IoT markets. The new MCX MCUs use the improved MCX + FRDM platform to integrate essential features that give engineers the freedom to design without limitation.”
The MCX series is accompanied by NXP’s newly enhanced FRDM development boards, a low-cost, scalable hardware platform supported by the MCUXpresso Developer Experience toolset. Designed to encourage creative freedom, these compact boards promote flexible and rapid prototyping, with industry-standard headers providing easy access to the MCU’s I/Os. With the on-board MCU-Link debug probe and USB-C cable included, engineers can develop, program, and debug with ease.
Comprehensive software enablement
The FRDM boards and MCX portfolio are supported by the widely adopted MCUXpresso ecosystem of software and tools to provide an optimal developer experience. Developers can work with either MCUXpresso for Visual Studio Code, the Eclipse-based MCUXpresso IDE from NXP, or with IDEs from IAR and Keil that also offer safety certification. NXP provides drivers and middleware with examples ready to work out of the box for any of these IDE choices, along with additional tools for device configuration, security, and specialist applications.
Jose Lok, Global Product Category Director, Passives and Semiconductors at Farnell, said: “We are thrilled to announce the addition of the NXP MCX microcontrollers to our offerings. The microcontrollers have been designed to cater to a broad range of Edge applications and will become a popular choice among design engineers due to its focus on scalability. These additions reflect our commitment to empowering our customers and partners to succeed in the ever-evolving technological landscape.”
The MCX series and enhanced FRDM boards can be ordered online from Farnell in EMEA, Newark in North America and element14 in APAC.
