17 February 2023

Difference Between FPGA and Microprocessor

The performance difference between FPGA and microprocessors. FPGA refers to the performance of several instructions at once, whereas a microprocessor refers to the performance of a single instruction at once. The microprocessor offers greater benefits in serial communication than an FPGA. 

Related article: FPGA Vs GPU

What is FPGA?

FPGA is an abbreviation for field programmable gate array. It is a programmable logic device with a sophisticated architecture that allows them to have a large logic capacity, making them excellent for high gates count designs like server applications and video encoders/decoders. Since FPGAs have a huge number of gates, the internal latency of this semiconductor is sometimes unexpected.

Related article: FPGA Vs Microcontroller

What is a Microprocessor?

A microprocessor is a collection of integrated circuits. It might be a single integrated circuit or a group of integrated circuits. The microprocessor requires arithmetic, logic and control circuits to accomplish computer activities. A microprocessor will comprehend and execute commands. It can also execute arithmetic operations. A microprocessor performs a process such as a clock-driven, register-based digital integrated circuit. 

Related article: Difference between ASIC and FPGA

Difference between FPGA and Microprocessor

  • The frequency range in FPGA is low, and the frequency range in microprocessors is high.
  • The data processing throughput is high in FPGA, But the data processing throughout is low in microprocessors.
  • Microprocessors are more complex than FPGAs.
  • The power consumption in FPGA is high, and the power consumption in the microprocessor is low.
  • The FPGA executes in parallel, and the microprocessor executes sequentially.
  • The development period for FPGA is high, and the development period for the microprocessor is low.
  • Microprocessors have fixed instructions while FPGAs don't.
  • FPGAs and microprocessors are frequently combined in a single device.
  • FPGA is higher data processing throughout. While the microprocessor is lower data processing throughout.
  • Design is expensive in FPGA But, Mircorprocessor is cheap in price.
  • For serial communication operations, FPGAs are not as useful as compare to microprocessors. While in for serial communication-based operations, microprocessors are more useful.
  • FPGA is like an electronics circuit that we design through wires which is built through reconfigurable logic blocks. Whereas, microprocessors execute pieces of code through instruction memory.
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