Where do old processors go?

Today’s email brings with it an announcement from an Austin fabless chipmaker named Tekmos. The announcement is for the availability of 80C186 and 80C188 integrated microprocessors. Back to the future. These processors belong to the era of glam rock and big hair. The 1980s. Today, they’re new again. The TK80C186EB and TK80C188EB are available now in an 80-pin SQFP package. Samples in an 84-pin PLCC package will be available in November. Prices start at US $9.65 in 100 piece quantities for the 80-pin SQFP pin version.

I don’t recall hearing about Tekmos before, but if you want to use processors from the 1970s and 1980s, they got ‘em. Their menu also includes 80C51s and 68HC05s. They do FPGA-ASIC conversions too.