Burr-Brown Corporation announced the ADS7852, an 8-channel, 12-bit analog-to-digital converter (ADC) featuring high speed and low power in a small packageý500kHz sampling rate and only 12mW power dissipation.

The ADS7852's features are ideal for multi-channel applications where low power and small size are critical such as medical instrumentation, high-speed data acquisition and laboratory equipment systems. In these applications, the ADS7852 converts an analog input into a digital signal that can be read and analyzed by a microprocessor. In brief, it links a real-world "event" to a computer.

"The ADS7852 surpasses the nearest competition in several key areas: 12mW versus 50mW power dissipation, 32-lead versus 44-lead packaging, and significantly lower pricing," said Skip Osgood, product marketing manager at Burr-Brown. "Along with the recent introduction of the serial output ADS7844, we now offer designers an unmatched selection of multi-channel, 12-bit ADCs."

The story here is a jump in the offering of three areas compared with the competition: power dissipation, price and size. The 8-channel, 12-bit configuration is becoming a popular balance of performance for a huge sector of the medical instrumentation market and, as far as I can see, parallel outputs still seem to be preferred. Removing 12 leads out of the package will be well received. Getting power consumption to one quarter will be well received. Getting about $3 out of the price will be well received. This is the kind of product that Burr-Brown needs to run with really fast to guarantee socket use for a few years.