72 MHz Cortex-M3 with 128 KB Flash — the mid-density workhorse
The 72 MHz core delivers a Dhrystone 1.1 MIPS/MHz throughput typical for the Cortex-M3, so you're looking at roughly 90 DMIPS. That's enough headroom for a field-oriented control loop on a motor, a Modbus RTU stack, and a UI update without thrashing the scheduler.
Peripheral set and connectivity — what's on the bus
The part includes DMA, multiple PWM channels with dead-time insertion for motor control, a temperature sensor, and the usual watchdog and power-on-reset blocks. The 80 general-purpose I/Os are mapped across the 100-LQFP package, giving you plenty of pins for parallel sensor arrays or a parallel LCD data bus without needing a port expander. The 16-channel 12-bit ADC is a single converter with a multiplexer front-end — useful for reading multiple analog signals like current shunts or thermistors, but watch the sampling rate if you need simultaneous conversion on more than one channel.
At 72 MHz the core draws around 50 mA typical from the 3.3 V rail, so a basic 3.3 V LDO rated for 200 mA handles it with margin for the I/O loads.
ST lists this part as Active in production, meaning it's still being manufactured and supported for new designs. For procurement, the active status means multi-year availability through ST's distribution channel and the independent market. If you're looking for a second-source or a pin-compatible upgrade, the STM32F103VCT6 doubles the Flash to 256 KB while keeping the same 100-LQFP footprint and peripheral map — a straightforward BOM swap if your code grows.