Why are these chips without the comparator more expensive?

[sandeepa]

According to the chart on the Microchip site,the only difference between any chip and its A version seems to be the comparator.
However the ones with the comparator are more expensive than their counterparts without the comparator.

For eg: PIC16F877 doesnt have internal comparators,price=$5.11
PIC16F877A which has 2 internal comparators,price=$4.68

Why is it so?

Thanks

 

[checkmate]

It's about market demand and supply.
Cheers!

 

[sandeepa]

So the A version is in no way inferior to its non A version?

 

[Exo]

no, the 'A' version is better...
strange world .... :lol:

 

[evandude]

the A version is the new one, most likely they consider it a replacement for the original. it probably doesn't cost them any more to produce the A version however. so, they probably produce far more A versions than the originals now (if the originals are even still in production...) so they make the original more expensive so people will buy the A version; eventually this will "phase out" the original version. companies using this part wouldn't appreciate suddenly being FORCED to switch to the A version, if the original was no longer produced, but microchip is carefully 'urging' people to switch to the A version by messing with the prices. eventually, nobody will want to buy the original 877's at all, and they can stop production without getting yelled at by various customers.

When a manufacturer stops production of a part, they have to keep a 5-year supply of them (or something like that) on hand. they make this easier by raising the price a lot; eventually nobody will want to buy them, so they don't need to keep a large supply on hand.

Just think: what if the original was cheaper? if some major manufacturer came along and wanted to buy a huge number of the original chips, and didn't want the A versions because they were more expensive, then they would have to keep producing BOTH versions in large quantities. it's not cost effective to be producing both versions, when they could just as easily only make the A version and not lose any money on it.

if only they had put in all the features they wanted in the original version then this wouldn't be a problem.

 

[bmcculla]

New versions of parts are often cheaper because they use a new manufacturing process. If you make an IC with a .18um (this just refers to the smallest size you can make the transistors in a design) process you can make a certain number of parts on each silicon wafer. If you take that same circuit and manufacture it on a .13um process because everything is smaller you can fit more parts on the same wafer. So for the same material cost you get more parts making each one cheaper. I left out a lot of considerations but thats the reason older parts sometimes cost more than newer better parts. Another common way to cut costs is to use larger wafers. So for the same processing time and number of machines you can make more parts.

Brent

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

The 'A' versions of PIC's are often just 'later silicon revisions', as already suggested this often means a cheaper manufacturing process. I imagine the only reason the comparators appeared is because they are already available on many of the newer chips - so the design was already available, and it probably cost nothing to add them on - probably just a 'cut and paste' from another processor design. It might even have cost them money to redesign and leave them off!.

A small number of the A versions actually use a totally different technology, FLASH rather than EEPROM, this may well be cheaper?. However, most of the A series chips are still EEPROM, simply renamed FLASH by the marketing department.

 

[pike]

i think its because they are trying to phase out the original chip model so more buyers will buy the one currently inproduction, and not the "antique version".

Doesn't bother me though, cuz i get my chips for free at my uncles shop...

 

[sandeepa]

Thanks everyone for the replies.

So then it can be said that the A version is a later and generally better version of its earlier counterpart.

Thanks again to all.