The Need for Speed
2. Parallel Processing
Let's dive deeper into that speed thing. A microcontroller typically executes instructions sequentially, one after the other. Think of it like a chef preparing a meal, one ingredient at a time. This is fine for simple recipes, but what if you need to prepare a gourmet feast in record time? This where FPGA comes in.
FPGAs, on the other hand, can perform multiple operations simultaneously. This is known as parallel processing. It's like having an entire kitchen staff, each working on a different part of the meal at the same time. This massively speeds up complex tasks, especially those involving signal processing, image processing, or custom hardware acceleration. Basically, it allows for tasks to be sliced and diced into individual instructions, where you can do them all at once.
Consider, for instance, processing video. A microcontroller might struggle to keep up with real-time encoding or decoding, leading to lag and dropped frames. An FPGA, with its ability to perform parallel operations on the video stream, can handle the task with ease, delivering smooth, high-quality video. Thus, it's easy to tell that FPGA outrun microcontroller when dealing with video processing.
In essence, when you absolutely, positively need speed, an FPGA is often the answer. It is a very good choice when speed is needed, though it requires a good understanding.
