Microchip’s MPLAB® X IDE Wins ECN Readers’ Choice Tech Award; One of Six Microchip Products Named to EDN Hot 100 List

CHANDLER, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHP), a leading provider of microcontroller, analog and Flash-IP solutions, today announced that the readers of ECN Magazine selected its next-generation, MPLAB^® X IDE as the winner of the 2011 ECN Readers’ Choice Tech Award, in the Software category. Additionally, MPLAB X was one of six Microchip products named by the editors of EDN Magazine to their 2011 Hot 100 list, in the Development Tools category.

“We are honored to mark the culmination of our MPLAB X Beta test by accepting these two prestigious industry awards”

These two industry honors come on the heels of the official release of the MPLAB X IDE Version 1, which marks the conclusion of an extensive and successful public Beta test. In both cases, MPLAB X was chosen because it built on Microchip’s leadership position—as the only company to support its entire portfolio of 8, 16 and 32-bit microcontrollers—by moving to an open-source IDE that enables cross-platform embedded development with the Linux, Mac OS^® and Windows^® operating systems. Watch a brief video overview of the MPLAB X IDE: http://www.microchip.com/get/96R8

Microchip is celebrating the release of MPLAB X Version 1 with a special 20% discount on the PICkit™ 3 In-Circuit Programmer and PICkit 3 Debug Express. To take advantage of this promotion, use the code “MPLABX” upon checkout from the microchipDIRECT site.

“We are honored to mark the culmination of our MPLAB X Beta test by accepting these two prestigious industry awards,” said Steve Sanghi, Microchip’s president and CEO. “Throughout the Beta test, users echoed the sentiments of these awards, expressing their appreciation for our maintaining universal support of all 800+ PIC^® microcontrollers, dsPIC^® digital signal controllers and memory devices, while moving to a next-generation, open-source platform that provides a number of advanced new features.”

The free MPLAB X IDE includes a feature-rich editor, source-level debugger, project manager and software simulator, and supports Microchip’s popular hardware tools, such as the MPLAB ICD 3 in-circuit debugger, PICkit 3 debugger/programmer, and MPLAB PM3 programmer. A host of high-performance features have been added, including the ability to manage multiple projects and tools with simultaneous debugging, an advanced editor, visual call graphs and code completion. MPLAB X is based on the Oracle Sponsored open-source NetBeans platform, supports many third-party tools, and is compatible with many NetBeans plug-ins.

These honors follow MPLAB X’s 2011 Elektra Awards win, in the Design Tools and Development Software Award category. The other five Microchip products that were named to the 2011 EDN Hot 100 list are as follows:

Microcontrollers & Processors Category

8-bit PIC10F(LF)32X and PIC1XF(LF)150X microcontrollers with configurable logic and a high level of peripheral integration in 6- to 20-pin packages.

Power Category

The MCP16301, Microchip’s first 30V-input, buck switching regulator with 600 milliampere output capability.

Boards Category

Machine-to-Machine (M2M) PICtail™ Daughter Board (part # AC320011), which comes with all of the hardware, wireless-communication protocols and application-code examples needed to help designers jump start their fleet-management or location-based service application.

Development Tools Category

Accessory Development Starter Kits for Android™, which enable accessory development for Google’s Android platform using versions 2.3.4 and 3.1 and later. These versions include a new framework that allows apps to communicate directly with an accessory connected to a smartphone or tablet, via USB.
The first 32-bit-microcontroller-based, open-source development platform that is compatible with Arduino™ hardware and software, known as the chipKIT^™ platform.

For additional information, contact any Microchip sales representative or authorized worldwide distributor, or visit Microchip’s Web site at http://www.microchip.com/get/0RRR. To purchase products mentioned in this press release, go to microchipDIRECT or contact one of Microchip’s authorized distribution partners.

About Microchip Technology

Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHP) is a leading provider of microcontroller, analog and Flash-IP solutions, providing low-risk product development, lower total system cost and faster time to market for thousands of diverse customer applications worldwide. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, Microchip offers outstanding technical support along with dependable delivery and quality. For more information, visit the Microchip website at http://www.microchip.com/get/PSD4.

Note: The Microchip name and logo, MPLAB, PIC, and dsPIC are registered trademarks of Microchip Technology Inc. in the USA and other countries. PICkit, PICtail, and chipKIT are trademarks of Microchip Technology Inc. All other trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective companies.

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