Atmel maXTouch Solution Enables Kyocera Echo Touchscreens

SAN JOSE, Calif., April 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Atmel^® Corporation (NASDAQ: ATML), a leader in microcontroller and touch technology solutions, today announced that the Atmel maXTouch™ mXT224 controller has been selected to power the touchscreens for the Kyocera Echo dual-screen Android phone.

The Echo is the industry's first dual-touchscreen smartphone with two 3.5-inch 480 x 800 displays that can be unfolded and used as a single 4.7-inch 960 x 800 surface, similar to a "tablet" display, or as individual displays. These screens are connected with a slick Kyocera patent-pending sliding liquid-metal "pivot hinge" that can be closed and used as a regular single-screen phone. It can also be unfolded all the way or propped up into a faux-laptop configuration. The new device is powered by a 1GHz processor running on Android 2.2. The Kyocera Echo includes a 5-megapixel camera with 720p video capture and can run applications including email and YouTube.

The Atmel maXTouch solution offers higher performance, better accuracy, faster response times and lower power consumption than competing solutions to provide a better user experience. Its true unlimited touch functionality and faster performance enable advanced features including rejection of unintended touches, multi-touch stretch/pinch and rotate gestures, and handwriting recognition on devices ranging from handsets to tablets and Netbooks. The maXTouch solution is based on Atmel's proprietary microcontroller technology, combined with software algorithms for a more robust touch solution.

"We are excited to team up with the touch solution leader, Atmel, to help power the industry's first dual-screen smartphone," said Nobuaki Kobayashi, manager of Kyocera Communication Equipment Group. "Atmel maXTouch has proven to give users one of the best touchscreen experiences available, including unlimited touch capabilities, better precision and longer battery life. These features are important, especially with Echo's dual-screen capability."

"We are excited Atmel maXTouch is powering the touchscreens of the first dual-screen smartphone on the market – the Kyocera Echo," said Helen Francis, senior product marketing manager, Atmel Corporation. "Atmel maXTouch continues to power the most innovative touchscreen devices. We are thrilled to give Echo users a world-class touchscreen experience when they are using the single or dual-touchscreen option on the device."

About Atmel maXTouch Technologies

Atmel maXTouch family of touchscreen controllers offers superior performance and low power consumption in a single IC. The maXTouch devices support an unlimited number of touches, greatly enhancing the user experience and changing the way users interact with electronic products. Built-in gesture support and the ability to ignore unintentional touches result in a user interface that is intuitive and reliable. With true unlimited touch functionality, the maXTouch technology enables exciting new applications and user interactions. The chip technology, combined with proprietary algorithms, offers higher performance and faster response times to provide a better user experience. For more information, visit www.atmel.com/touchscreens. To see Atmel's latest maXTouch videos, visit the Atmel YouTube Channel at http://www.atmel.com/youtube or follow Atmel on Twitter www.atmel.com/twitter.

About Atmel

Atmel Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML) is a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of microcontrollers, capacitive touch solutions, advanced logic, mixed-signal, nonvolatile memory and radio frequency (RF) components. Leveraging one of the industry's broadest intellectual property (IP) technology portfolios, Atmel is able to provide the electronics industry with complete system solutions focused on industrial, consumer, communications, computing and automotive markets.

© 2011 Atmel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Atmel®, Atmel logo and combinations thereof are registered trademarks, and maXTouch™ and others are trademarks of Atmel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Other terms and product names may be trademarks of others.

Press Contact:
Agnes Toan, PR Manager
Tel: (+1) 408-487-2963, Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Atmel Corporation

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