| Updated January 30, 1998 |
|
By Reuters
January 30, 1998
C/Net
|
Intergraph (INGR) said yesterday that a
legal dispute with computer chip giant Intel (INTC) over
patent infringement had hurt its operating results for
the fourth quarter. Intergraph, which makes computer
graphics systems, reported a net loss of 43 cents per
share against a net loss of 71 cents for the same period
a year ago. The year-ago figure included a
21-cents-per-share charge for the write down of specific
assets, it said.
|
Related
Stories Despite suit, Intergraph wants its Pentium IIs
Intergraph and Intel in legal flap
Text of the lawsuit
|
|
By Anthony Cataldo
January 30, 1998
EE Times
|
What will it cost a PC OEM to convert
from 100-MHz SDRAMs to Direct Rambus DRAMs, as prescribed
by Intel Corp? The question was one of the main topics of
discussion at DesignCon98, as news spread about Intel
floating a new SDRAM specification, ostensibly to ease
the transition. Rambus Inc. (Mountain View, Calif.)
maintains that Direct RDRAMs, which are scheduled to
begin sampling in 64-Mbit densities in the second half of
the year, will be 5 percent to 10 percent more expensive
than SDRAM-100 parts, which are expected to roll out by
the second quarter. Those SDRAMs are expected to be
coupled with Intel's 440BX chip set for Pentium II
systems.
|
|
|
By Jai Singh
January 30, 1998
C/Net
|
Life is full of choices, they say, but
not if you live on the computing planet. To be sure,
everyone ascribes to the notion of choice. Users demand
it. Lawmakers legislate it. Regulators enforce it. Even
vendors want it, sort of. Their interpretation of the
word depends on which side of the computing platform one
stands.
|
|
| Updated January 29, 1998 |
|
By Kristen Kenedy
January 28, 1998
Computer Retail Week
|
Sony Electronics will not add a 333-MHz
system to its lineup of Vaio PCs, a spokesman for the
company told Computer Retail Week. "An 11 percent
increase in performance doesn't seem that big of a sell
to customers," the spokesman said. Sony offers
systems based on Intel 200-MHz, 233-MHz, 266-MHz, and
300-MHz CPUs.
However, Sony is eyeing the sub-$1,000 market, where
sales have spiked, he said. The company is developing a
low-cost PC that will provide customers with the
performance expected in today's market, the spokesman
said, but Sony has not announced a ship date for such a
system.
|
|
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 28, 1998
C/Net
|
Advanced Micro Devices this week reduced
chip prices in reaction to price cuts from market leader
Intel. AMD has vowed to keep its processors at 25
percent below the nearest Intel equivalent. With these
cuts, the Sunnyvale, California, company maintains its
promise.
Under the new pricing structure, the 233-MHz version
of the K6 will sell for $145, down 44 percent from $225,
according to AMD spokesman David Frink.
|
Related
Stories Intel gets serious about low-cost chips
Intel cuts chip prices
Intel readies low-cost Pentium II
|
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 28, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel (INTC) will release its Pentium II
for sub-$1,000 consumer PCs in April, turning up the heat
in the low-cost chip market, currently a three-way
slugfest between Intel, Advanced Micro Devices, and
Cyrix. The chip, code-named Covington, is a
"cacheless" Pentium II processor, meaning that
Intel has eliminated the extra, pricey memory currently
built into Pentium II chips. One of the first vendors to
adopt the chip will be Compaq.
|
Related
Stories AMD reacts to Intel, cuts prices
Fastest systems priced to move
|
Deschutes
Debuts
Intel brings its first 0.25µ desktop
CPU to market.
By Cade Metz and Patrick Norton
January 26, 1998
PC Magazine
|
Get your good-byes in now: This may be
the swan song of Intel's 66-MHz system bus. The first
Deschutes processor, a 333-MHz incarnation of the Pentium
II announced in January, is likely to be the last new
high-powered desktop CPU to use a memory bus any slower
than 100 MHz. Manufactured on a 0.25µ process, the chip
has a higher core frequency and a smaller die than its
predecessors, but it is still subject to the more than
four-year-old bus bottleneck (which should be alleviated
with subsequent Deschutes designs later in the year). In
the following pages, we review eight inaugural 333-MHz
systems: four so-called professional enthusiast PCs with
Microsoft Windows 95 and four managed corporate machines
running Windows NT 4.0. |
PC Labs tests
eight 333-MHz Pentium II PCs running Windows 95 and
Windows NT 4.0. |
| Updated January 28, 1998 |
|
By Reuters
January 28, 1998
C/Net
|
Compaq Computer's (CPQ) buyout of
Digital Equipment (DEC) could imperil an earlier deal
between Digital and Intel (INTC), according to reports. Late
last year, Digital agreed to sell a chip-making plant and
production rights to its ultrafast Alpha processor to
Intel for a package valued at $1.5 billion, including
$700 million in cash. That deal is still under review by
federal antitrust enforcers.
|
|
|
By Alexander Wolfe
January 27, 1998
EE Times
|
Verifying the compatibility of an X86
clone processor is harder than it appears, according to
industry experts. Every new clone CPU must be tested
to ensure that it can actually execute the entire X86
instruction set without any bugs or unexpected side
effects. But engineers working toward this goal face one
big stumbling block, according to Michael Slater,
principal analyst at MicroDesign Resources (Sebastopol,
Calif.).
"The problem is the X86 architecture has never
been a properly defined architecture," said Slater.
"It's been an implementation, a de facto
standard."
|
Related
Stories Merced grips Intel in verification vise
|
|
By Roger C. Lanctot
January 27, 1998
Computer Retail Week
|
Intel's official launch of the 333-MHz
Pentium II-based PCs came Tuesday without much fanfare in
the channel, given that retailers such as Best Buy,
Computer City SuperCenters, CompUSA, and Sun TV &
Appliance have been selling the systems since Christmas. OfficeMax,
Best Buy, and Circuit City Stores didn't advertise any
333-MHz systems in their newspaper circulars last
weekend, complying with an ad embargo date of Jan. 26.
|
|
|
By Mark Harrington
January 27, 1998
Computer Retail Week
|
As it introduces its fastest
microprocessor to date in the 333-MHz Pentium II, Intel
is discussing a complex rollout schedule for new
processors and price changes through August. The
333-MHz Pentium II, officially announced Monday, is the
first using a 0.25-micron manufacturing process that
allows for increased core frequencies and reduced power
consumption, Intel said. Manufacturers such as Compaq put
333-MHz product on retail shelves well before the
introduction and were ready for Intel's announcement.
|
|
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 27
C/Net
|
Intel (INTC) is expected to release its
Pentium II for sub-$1,000 consumer PCs in April, setting
the stage for a raft of new home computers based on
Intel's fastest chip architecture. The chip,
code-named Covington, is a "cacheless" Pentium
II processor, meaning that Intel has eliminated the
extra, pricey memory currently built into Pentium II
chips. One of the first vendors to adopt the chip will be
Compaq.
|
|
|
By Robert Lemos
January 28, 1998
ZDNN
|
PC chip giant Intel Corp. trimmed
mainstream desktop processor prices up to 42 percent on
Tuesday, and slashed prices on its mobile offerings by up
to 51 percent. The cuts -- a quarterly ritual for the
Santa Clara, Calif., company -- left the mainstream
200MHz Pentium MMX processor 42 percent lower at $123 in
1,000-unit quantities.
|
|
| Updated January 27, 1998 |
333:
Pentium II, the Third
What Intels new Pentium II processor
'Deschutes' offers
By Georg Schnurer
January 26, 1998
C'T
|
With the 333 MHz model introduced on
January 26, Intel is sending the third version of the
Pentium II into the race. With a few changes to the new
processors details, it is supposedly cheaper to
manufacture than its predecessor and runs faster, too.
But as usual, being economical demands a small
renunciation in another area. The main data of the
'Deschutes', as Intel calls the new Pentium II processor
internally, are quickly told: the processor core is not
manufactured in 0,35-mm technology anymore, but in the
more refined 0,25-mm process. This means that the
manufacturer can produce more chips from one wafer,
increasing the yield and thus lowering the costs. At the
same time it also allows higher clock frequencies: Finer
structures translate into a better distance between the
interference voltage, enabling to lower the voltage
supply (VCore) from presently 2,8 to 2,0 Volts. On the
other hand this results in a lower power usage and
therefore also reduces dissipation and heat generation.
|
|
|
January 26, 1998
CMP Net
|
Intel Corp. may be rethinking its plan
of shifting the PC industry to Rambus-Direct DRAMs.
Sources told EE Times that Intel is developing a
memory-interface spec, reportedly called P133L, that will
support both Rambus-Direct and synchronous DRAMs. It was
unclear whether the spec would include double-data-rate
SDRAMs. The interface was said to be under development
for an unannounced core-logic chip set. Intel would
not comment directly on the report. But a company
spokesman said, "We are looking at ways to make a
smooth transition from SDRAM to Rambus-Direct. The
impetus is to make sure there are no hiccups that would
prevent a higher-performance platform from getting to the
end user."
|
|
|
By R. Scott Raynovich
January 26, 1998
LAN Times
|
Almost every major Unix operating system
vendor wants a piece of Intel Corp.'s forthcoming 64-bit
chip, code-named Merced. The development of Merced, the
first in a new 64-bit CPU family known as Intel
Architecture 64 (IA-64), could give Unix vendors fresh
opportunities to compete with Microsoft Windows NT and
dip into the phenomenal success of Intel's aggressive
price/performance strategy. However, industry observers
say that the development of new operating systems for
IA-64 is likely to generate turmoil for customers by
further fragmenting the Unix operating system market.
|
|
|
By Jim Davis
January 26, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel (INTC) today rolled out its
fastest processor to date, but more importantly for the
PC industry, the company is expected to speed up price
reductions on processors in the coming year. During
1998 Intel cut processor prices fairly steadily. But this
year the pace may well accelerate as Intel rolls out new
products to fill the need for processors that can be used
in popular sub-$1,000 PCs. Even before next quarter's
full round of price cuts, Intel is expected to reduce the
price on its newest processor, according to analysts.
|
|
|
By Kelly Spang
January 23, 1998
Computer Reseller News
|
Little more than a week after the U.S.
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it wouldn't
block Intel's acquisition of Chips and Technologies, the
chip giant has completed its tender offer. By Jan. 31,
Intel said it expects to complete the acquisition of
remaining shares of Chips and Technologies by merging the
San Jose, Calif., graphics chip maker into Intel
Enterprise.
|
|
|
Staff Reporter
January 26, 1998
Semiconductor Business News
|
With the completion of its tender offer
for outstanding shares of Chips and Technologies Inc.,
microprocessor giant Intel Corp. here plans to complete
its acquisition of the San Jose company by Saturday, Jan.
31. |
|
|
By Lisa DiCarlo
January 26, 1998
PC Week Online
|
Intel Corp. is continuing its vigorous
attack on the low-cost PC market, not just with its
cornerstone microprocessor but also with complementary
chip sets and motherboards. In the third quarter, Intel
plans to deliver a low-cost chip set, called the 440LX-R,
that will include limited functionality to help reduce
system design costs, said sources close to the Santa
Clara, Calif., company.
|
|
|
By Michael Kanellos and Jim Davis
January 26, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel (INTC) will debut its
second-generation, "Deschutes" Pentium II
today, while it cuts prices on its chips. Some computer
manufacturers are reducing prices on systems also. The
release of the Deschutes Pentium II paves the way for
personal computers that will reach a new level of high
performance at the lowest price-performance points in PC
history, reflecting a sea change in the industry's
pricing structure.
|
|
|
By Alexander Wolfe
January 26, 1998
EE Times
|
The rustic setting at Intel's Jones Farm
Campus, here, belies the feverish activity under way
inside the facility's semiconductor validation
laboratory. Buffeted by the disclosure of two
Pentium-related bugs last year--and with lingering
memories of the infamous Pentium FDIV floating-point flaw
of 1994--Intel in recent months has dramatically
increased its efforts to develop improved techniques to
stamp out glitches before microprocessor designs hit the
fab lines, according to |
|
Intel’s
Merced: Backers and Boycotts
Sun is holding out with its
workstations, refusing to back Intel-based systems.
By Sebastian Rupley
January 16, 1998
PC Magazine
|
As Intel ramps up for next year’s
release of the IA-64 Merced chip, the company is gaining
support from important backers in the workstation arena,
but there is one notable holdout: Sun Microsystems.
Although Sun has made a software commitment to the Merced
platform with its Solaris operating system, the company
has decided to eschew Merced in its hardware efforts. |
Related
Stories 64-Bit Breakthrough
|
| Updated January 23, 1998 |
|
By Michael Kanellos and Jim Davis
January 23, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel (INTC) will debut its
second-generation, "Deschutes" Pentium II on
Monday, paving the way for personal computers that will
reach the highest performance standards yet, at the
lowest price-performance points in PC history, reflecting
a sea change in the industry's pricing structure. The
next Pentium II will cost less than $700 for large-volume
purchasers, a low introductory price compared to past
high-end Intel chips, mirroring the free-fall in chip and
PC prices at other end of the market spectrum, where
sub-$1,000 systems are becoming increasingly commonplace.
|
|
|
By Andreas Stiller
February, 1998
C'T
|
Instead of the expected rod Santa Claus
from Santa Clara actually brought us a present, the
Deschutes in form of a Pentium-II-333, that is supposed
to be launched on January 26. We baptized the first
representative of the Pentium-II family in 0,25-µm
technology Issos, because of its 333 MHz. It will be
interesting to see how it survives the brawl with the
competition, whose 0,25-µm K6-266 already did some trial
rounds in our lab.
This year commander Andrew the Grove must still fight
many battles. For example with the Federal Trust
Commission, that is not only a pain as far as the Chips
& Technology takeover is concerned (the actual date
for the transaction has now been postponed for the fifth
time), but also might veto the deal with Digital.
|
|
|
By Alexander Wolfe
January 22, 1998
EE Times
|
I could go on and on, but you get the
point. Indeed, in the software world, there's just no
case to be made that users are locked into Bill Gates's
vise grip. Contrast that to the situation on the
hardware side of the desktop-computing business. There's
the Intel architecture and there's the . . .uh, Intel
architecture. As an alternative, of course, there's the
Intel architecture. (Sparc, MIPS, Alpha and PowerPC are
among the competing microprocessors, but I would argue
that they are mainly factors in workstations or embedded
applications, not the desktop.)
|
|
| Updated January 19, 1998 |
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 16, 1998
C/Net
|
A multimillion-dollar advertising
program from Intel (INTC) is heating up the debate on
where journalism ends and advertising begins on the Web. At
the center of the debate is the "Intel Inside
Optimized Content" program, a four-month-old
campaign that essentially provides additional revenues to
Web publishers that create special pages touting the
performance benefit of the Pentium II processor.
|
|
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 16, 1998
C/Net
|
At the end of this month, Intel's (INTC)
second-generation Pentium II processor will appear in the
fastest breed of PCs, heralding a new level of
high-performance personal computing. The new Pentium
II chip, dubbed Deschutes, initially will be targeted at
desktop and server computers and is expected to be
introduced at a speed of 333 MHz this month. Meanwhile,
the first Pentium II designed for notebook PCs--to date
limited to the aging Pentium processor--will be released
by summer, according to sources familiar with both
announcements. Notebook versions will be introduced at a
speed of 233 MHz.
|
|
|
By Karen J. Bannan
January 16, 1998
PC Week Online
|
In two weeks Intel Corp. will unveil its
333MHz Pentium II processors with a 66MHz bus to a chorus
of new servers from nearly every major systems vendor. The
new Pentium, code-named Deschutes, is targeted for
desktop systems to midrange servers and is the first in a
line of chips designed for specific systems.
|
|
| Updated January 16, 1998 |
|
By Fred Langa
January 14, 1998
CMPNet
|
I depend on my PCs for my livelihood.
That ol' FUD factor -- Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt -- made
me hesitant to try anything other than genuine Intel
CPUs. What if a non-Intel CPU had some subtle internal
weirdness that hosed my work? Ulp! Then I got the
upgrade bug, which led me to try some clock-doubler and
-tripler upgrade kits on some older, nonessential
486-based systems. The upgrade kits used 486-class chips
from AMD and Cyrix, and they worked great, extending the
lives of systems that otherwise were headed for resale or
the parts bin. The non-Intel upgrades worked so well I
had a major "hmmmm" moment in thinking about my
pro-Intel bias.
|
|
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 15, 1998
C/Net
|
Desktop and processor prices are nowhere
near rock bottom, analysts say, and will continue on
their downward trajectory because of upcoming innovations
and product shifts from Intel (INTC) as well as a more
competitive marketplace. Although the company said
that its overall profit margins would decline to 55 from
60 percent next year in a conference call with analysts
yesterday, observers believe that the company has more
room for price movement than the projected decrease might
indicate.
|
|
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 15, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel (INTC) will ship a new processor
technology dubbed Katmai in 1999, designed to boost a
computer's ability to handle multimedia and run at speeds
starting at about 500 MHz, company executives revealed. The
Katmai technology was formerly known as "MMX 2"
and essentially represents the next phase in Intel's
visual computing strategy, which makes PCs much like the
powerful workstation computers of today, which are adept
at handling 3D graphics, full-motion video, and speech
recognition.
|
|
|
By Mark LaPedus
January 15, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
|
Several Taiwan notebook makers here in
Taipei have jumped the gun, announcing products based on
a yet-to-be-introduced mobile version of Intel Corp.'s
Pentium II chip, codenamed Deschutes. Acer Inc., Clevo
Co., Twinhead International Inc., and other Taiwan
notebook makers this year will ship products based on
Deschutes, a Pentium II-level chip that will come in
233-, 266-, and 300-MHz speed grades. Processor prices
range from $500 to $900, depending on the product,
sources said.
|
|
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 15, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel (INTC) will combine TV viewing and
Web browsing in Super Bowl ads promoting its Pentium II
chip. The ads, which will air during the second and
fourth quarter of the game, will follow the conventions
of a whodunit.
|
|
| Updated January 15, 1998 |
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 14, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel will ship a new processor
technology dubbed Katmai in 1999, designed to enhance
complex applications such as 3D graphics and speech
recognition and run at speeds starting at about 500 MHz,
company executives revealed today. The Katmai
technology was formerly known as "MMX 2" and
essentially represents the next phase in Intel's visual
computing strategy. Like MMX, Katmai is a series of
instructions incorporated into Intel processors, said
Richard Dracott, marketing manager for Intel.
|
|
|
By Kelly Spang
January 14, 1998
Computer Reseller News
|
Intel's next-generation processor, code
named Katmai, will not drastically differ from the form
factor of the successful Pentium II, but will be aimed,
from the start, at the corporate market. The Katmai
processor, which was announced today, is scheduled to
ship in the first half of 1999 and will be part of the
Pentium II architecture. Katmai chips include 70 new
instructions to extend the current capabilities of MMX.
By the end of 1998, the Pentium II will top out at 450
MHz, so it is likely that Katmai will come in at speeds
upwards of 500 MHz.
|
|
|
By Lisa DiCarlo
January 14, 1998
PC Week Online
|
Intel Corp. today disclosed some
technical details about the processor family, code-named
Katmai, that will surface in the first half of 1999. The
32-bit chips will incorporate 70 new MMX instructions
that improve floating-point and 3D-intensive application
performance, as well as next-generation technologies such
as natural-speech recognition and other human interface
types.
|
|
|
By Mark Hachman
January 14, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
|
Putting an end to industry speculation,
Intel Corp. disclosed that the Katmai processor in 1999
will feature the successor to Intel's existing MMX
technology. The announcement forced Advanced Micro
Devices Inc. and Cyrix Corp. to disclose that they, too,
had unified on their own separate multimedia instruction
standard, a hybrid set combined from both companies.
Centaur Technology Inc., a subsidiary of Integrated
Device Technology Inc., has reportedly agreed to support
the alternative standard.
|
|
|
By Steven Burke
January 14, 1998
Computer Reseller News
|
After posting a loss of $12.3 million
for the latest quarter, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) CEO
Jerry Sanders warned Wall Street analysts that the
company is embarking on a no-holds-barred high-risk
strategy to quickly improve 0.25-micron yields on its
hot-selling K6 processor. "We have commenced our
program to ramp 0.25-micron K6 wafer product in Fab 25 at
the fastest practical rate," said Sanders.
"This is a high-risk strategy in that we have not
yet demonstrated the yield in Fab 25 for 0.25 microns.
... The first significant 0.25-micron shipments in Fab 25
will not occur before March."
|
|
|
By Michael Kanellos
January 14, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel not inside appears to be a growing
phenomenon in the retail world. Consumer mania for
sub-$1,000 computers drove up sales and market shares for
computers powered by processors from Advanced Micro
Devices and Cyrix at the end of 1998. While it remains to
be seen whether the trend will continue, recent design
wins by these companies and computer pricing trends seem
to indicate that the Intel alternatives will continue to
find a place on store shelves.
|
|
|
By Alexander Wolfe
January 15, 1998
EE Times
|
Despite industry speculation about a
possible long-term tilt toward Intel's 64-bit Merced
architecture, Sun Microsystems Inc. last week
emphatically insisted it will stick with its Sparc RISC
processor family now and in the future. Moreover, Sun
said it will remain committed to Unix and won't make a
move to the increasingly popular Windows NT operating
system--something many of its workstation competitors
have done. "We have no intention to ever use an
Intel microprocessor as the basis of our platform,"
said Robert Novak, group manager for desktop workstations
at Sun. "In addition, we will not be putting Windows
NT on the Sparc machine."
|
|
|
By Patrick Waurzyniak
January 14, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
|
Intel Corp., Santa Clara, Calif., on
Wednesday said it had formed the Intel Architecture (IA)
Business Group, a new business unit that will be headed
by Intel executive vice president Paul S. Otellini. Otellini,
who will be responsible for managing all Intel
architecture roadmaps, strategies, and resources between
Intel's Business Platform Group, the Consumer Products
Group, the Mobile/Handheld Products Group, and the
Enterprise Server Group, will continue to report to
Intel's Executive Office, the company said.
|
|
|
By Mark Hachman
January 14, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
|
A drop in gross margins helped push down
Intel Corp.'s profits by nearly 9% in the final quarter
of 1998, despite strong sales of the company's newest
processors. Intel reported a net income of $1.7
billion for the three months ended Dec. 27, down from the
$1.9 billion it posted during the same period a year ago.
But revenues once again set a new record, climbing to
$6.5 billion from $6.4 billion. First quarter 1998
revenues should be approximately flat, however,
executives said.
|
|
|
By Margaret Kane
January 14, 1998
ZDNN
|
Intel Corp. may have beaten estimates
when it turned in fourth-quarter results last night, but
analysts today weren't as optimistic about the company's
future. The Santa Clara, Calif., company's stock was
off $2.19 to $74.75 in midmorning trading after several
analysts revised their estimates for Intel's 1998
earnings.
|
|
| Updated January 14, 1998 |
|
By Margaret Kane
January 13, 1998
ZDNN
|
The Federal Trade Commission will not
try to block Intel Corp.'s $420 million acquisition of
Chips and Technologies Inc., the agency said today in a
statement. However, the FTC plans to continue to
investigate the deal because of concerns about Intel's
dominance of the chip market.
|
|
|
By Rick Boyd-Merritt
Januar 14, 1998
EE Times
|
The Federal Trade Commission cleared the
way for Intel Corp. to enter the 3-D and graphics markets
on Tuesday, when the commission ruled it would not seek a
preliminary injunction to block Intel's planned
acquisition of graphics-chip maker Chips and Technologies
Inc. (San Jose). Intel co-developed its initial entry
into this market-the i740 3-D graphics accelerator--with
C&T and Real 3-D, a unit of Lockheed Martin. Intel
has widely previewed the chip in private meetings at
Siggraph and Comdex/Fall last year, but in the wake of
the FTC investigation has yet to launch the accelerator. |
|
|
By By Mark Hachman
January 13, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
|
Intel Corp.'s pending acquisition of
Chips and Technologies Inc. has been granted a
preliminary approval by the Federal Trade Commission. However,
because of concerns about the acquisition's impact in
markets "for certain computer components",
among those graphics chips, the FTC will "continue
the investigation into the lawfulness of the
acquisition."
|
|
|
Staff Reporter
January 13, 1998
Semiconductor Business News
|
Intel Corp. here today said the Federal
Trade Commission has informed the company that it will
not seek a preliminary in the Intel's acquisition of
Chips and Technologies Inc. For more than four months,
the FTC probe delayed completion of Intel's tender offer
for Chips and Technologies stock. Intel said it plans to
end its $17.50 per share tender offer at 8 p.m. EST on
Jan. 21.
|
|
|
By Kelly Spang
January 12, 1998
Computer Reseller News
|
While the formal launch of the Pentium
II 333MHz is more than two weeks
away, VARs are seeing limited availability of the CPU
already in the open
market. Intel Corp., however, warns VARs they will
"get what they pay for" if they buy these
processors. "We have heard 333MHz (Pentium II CPUs)
are out there, but we aren't sure where they are coming
from," said an Intel spokesman. "Anyone
distributing (these processors) is in violation of their
NDA."
|
|
|
By Jim Davis
January 14, 1998
C/Net
|
Intel (INTC) is expected to release the
fastest of its fastest chips later this month but don't
hold your breath for any major performance gains. That
will come later when Intel modifies a core part of the
intercomponent "plumbing" for the Pentium II. The
newest Pentium II, expected to be officially announced at
the end of this month, will reach a top speed of 333-MHz,
up from 300 MHz, as an Intel executive indicated
yesterday : "We [have begun] volume shipments of the
333 MHz version of this product in anticipation of its
introduction later this month," Paul Otellini,
executive vice president director at the Sales and
Marketing Group, said yesterday.
|
|
|
Staff Reporter
January 13, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
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A drop in gross margins pushed down
Intel Corp.'s profits by more than 10% in the final
quarter of 1998, despite strong sales of the company's
newest processors. Intel reported a net income of $1.7
billion for the three months ended Dec. 31, well down
from the $1.9 billion it posted during the same period a
year ago. But revenues once again set a new record,
climbing to $6.5 billion from $6.4 billion.
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By Larry Barrett
January 13, 1998
ZD Inter@Ctive Investor
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Intel Corp. (INTC) shattered even the
most optimistic earnings projections in its fourth
quarter, posting a profit of $1.7 billion, or 98 cents
per share, on record sales of $6.5 billion. First Call
consensus expected the world's largest chip maker would
report a profit of 90 cents per share in the quarter.
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By Dawn Yoshitake
January 13, 1998
C/Net
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Intel (INTC) posted
stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings today as
shipments of its microprocessors hit a record and price
stability returned to its flash memory market. The
chip giant, which today also announced that federal
regulators would not contest its merger with graphics
chip accelerator Chips and Technologies, said demand for
its Pentium II and Pentium with MMX technology lines was
strong.
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Related
Stories Chipmakers face ailing quarter
Intel restructures operations
Intel's weak results affect markets
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Staff Reporter
January 13, 1998
Semiconductor Business News
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Intel Corp., reporting record sales of
$25.1 billion and net income of $6.9 billion for 1998,
said today that it expects revenues to be flat in the
first quarter 1998, compared to the final three months of
last year. In the fourth quarter last year, Intel's
revenues reached a record $6.5 billion, up from $6.4
billion during the same period in 1996. Its net income in
the fourth quarter declined 10.5% to $1.7 billion
compared to $1.9 billion in the previous year.
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By Larry Dignan
January 13, 1998
TechInvestor
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Intel easily hurdled Wall Street
estimates Tuesday with fourth quarter earnings of $1.74
billion, or 98 cents a share. Wall Street was
expecting earnings of 90 cents a share.The results were a
welcome dose of good news for technology stocks, which
have been battered lately.
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By Margaret Kane
January 13, 1998
ZDNN
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Advanced Micro Devices Inc. may have
lost $12 million during the fourth quarter, but that
wasn't as bad as analysts were expecting. The company
this afternoon said it pulled in $613 million in sales
during the quarter, up 23 percent from a year ago. The
$12 million loss is also a step up from a year ago, when
the company lost $21 million. At 9 cents per share, it's
also less than the 14-cents-per-share loss analysts
expected.
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By Mark Hachman and Matthew Sheerin
January 14, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
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If buyers found Advanced Micro Devices
Inc.'s fourth quarter earnings unnerving, its first
quarter 1998 could keep them on the edge of their seats. Citing
continued poor production yields on its K6
microprocessor, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Tuesday
reported a net loss of $12.33 million, or 9 cents a
share, on sales of $613.17 million for the fourth quarter
of 1998. In the prior-year quarter, the company posted a
net loss of $21.24 million on revenue of $496.87 million.
The net loss was actually lower than analysts' estimates
of a 15-cent loss per share.
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By Michael Kanellos
January 13, 1998
C/Net
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Advanced Micro Devices met its goal of
shipping approximately 1.5 million K6 microprocessors
during the fourth quarter, and narrowed its losses to
boot--giving Wall Street a much better performance than
expected. Despite the better-than-expected quarter,
AMD executives warned that the first quarter will present
a crunch for the company as it shifts away from its
".35" manufacturing process to the
".25" manufacturing process.
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Related
Stories AMD evicts Intel, Cyrix at Compaq
AMD near deals with PC makers
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By Matthew Sheerin
January 13, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
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Citing continued poor production yields
on its K6 microprocessor, Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
Tuesday reported a net loss of $12.33 million, or 9 cents
a share, on sales of $613.17 million for the fourth
quarter of 1998. In the prior-year quarter, the
company posted net loss of $21.24 million on revenue of
$496.87 million.
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By Gabrielle Jonas
January 13, 1998
TechInvestor
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Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) surprised
Wall Street Tuesday by turning in a smaller-than-expected
fourth quarter loss. AMD lost $12.3 million, or 9 cents
a share, in the fourth quarter. Wall Street was looking
for a loss of 14 cents a share. In the same quarter a
year ago, AMD lost $21.2, or 15 cents a share.
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By Kelly Spang
January 13, 1998
Computer Reseller News
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National Semiconductor, which merged
with Cyrix in November, announced today that it produced
the first 6x86MX processors based on .25-micron
technology. By mid-year, the Cyrix 6x86MX processor
line will be produced with .25-micron technology,
increasing channel availability in 1998, company
officials said.
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| Updated January 13, 1998 |
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By Michael Kanellos
January 12, 1998
C/Net
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The first Cyrix-brand microprocessors
have started to roll out of plants owned by parent
company National Semiconductor, signaling a shift in
manufacturing operations that could lead to faster,
better chip designs and more competition for Advanced
Micro Devices and Intel, Cyrix's chief rivals. The
significance of the announcement lies in the complex
relationship between chip design and fabrication
facilities, explained Robert Maher, vice president of
engineering at Cyrix. The Richardson, Texas-based chip
vendor has been a "fabless" processor maker for
most of its history, which means that it uses outside
companies to manufacture its chips, such as IBM, which
currently produces most of Cyrix's processors.
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Related
Stories Compaq tapping AMD, Cyrix
Cyrix breaks Pentium II monopoly
AMD, Cyrix to tell of chip advances
IBM adopts Cyrix 6x86 chip
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By Brooke Crothers
January 12, 1998
C/Net
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Intel (INTC) is announcing the fastest
Pentium chip yet for notebook PCs today, and major
manufacturers are chiming in with new systems. The new
Pentium MMX chip, code-named Tillamook, runs at 266 MHz
and appears prominently in new notebook PCs from such
companies as Dell Computer, Gateway 2000, Digital
Equipment, Compaq Computer, and Toshiba, which have or
will announce new systems based on the chip.
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By J. Robert Lineback
January 12, 1998
Semiconductor Business News
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National Semiconductor Corp., Santa
Clara, Calif., is gearing up to increase the production
of Cyrix 6x86MX processors. It is moving the processor to
a new 0.25-micron process technology and planning to have
in place enough manufacturing capacity worldwide to ship
10 million 6x86MX chips to PC makers this year. National
on Monday announced it has successfully produced
functioning 6x86MX processors on a quarter-micron process
in a pilot fab in Santa Clara. In the summer, National
plans to start volume production of 6X86MX processors in
its plant located in South Portland, Maine. The chip will
be the first Cyrix Corp. product fabricated by National
following its $530 million acquisition of the Richardson,
Tex.-based MPU supplier.
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| Updated January 12, 1998 |
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By Mark Hachman
January 12, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
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Having ended 1998 scrambling for design
wins in low-cost desktop PCs, Cyrix Corp. and Intel Corp.
have kicked off 1998 by carrying their fight into
notebook computers. Today, Intel officially launched a
1.8-V version of its 166-MHz Pentium with MMX processor,
together with a 2-V, 266-MHz version of the same chip.
Meanwhile, last week Cyrix introduced an MMX-enhanced
version of its 200-MHz MediaGX integrated processor for
notebook PCs.
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By Mark Hachman
January 12, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
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Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) Inc. is now
shipping 0.25-micron versions of its K6 microprocessor.
But unless you work for Compaq Computer Corp. or IBM
Corp., you won't be able to buy any - at least for now. In
what has become a refrain, AMD last week trumpeted its
flashy new process, then mumbled that a limited supply
prevented the company from releasing products for general
sale that use the technology.
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By Kelly Spang
January 11, 1998
Computer Reseller News
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As Intel and Advanced Micro Devices
close their books for 1998, steep price drops, the
growing strength of the sub-$1,000 PC, and the economic
crisis in Asia will affect the chip makers' financial
results. For Sunnyvale, Calif.-based AMD, Wall Street
analysts are expecting manufacturing problems to drag
down the company's bottom line, as well.
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| Updated January 9, 1998 |
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By Dawn Yoshitake
January 8, 1998
C/Net
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Faced with fights on several fronts,
Intel (INTC) is starting the year with the spotlight
shining on its legal and antitrust woes. Earlier this
week, the chip giant pushed back the date by which it
expects to hear from the Federal Trade Commission on
whether the agency will challenge its acquisition of
Chips and Technologies (CHPS), marking a fifth
postponement of the deal.
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Related
Stories Intel, Digital settle suit
FTC investigating Intel
FTC probes Chips, Intel deal
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By Robert Lemos
January 9, 1998
ZDNN
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Reports that the Federal Trade
Commission is deepening its antitrust investigation of
Intel Corp.'s business practices would seem to bode ill
for the chip giant. Not so, say analysts.
"Digital [Equipment Corp.] has a lot more to lose
if these proceedings drag on -- especially if the deal is
declined in the end," said Mike Feibus, an industry
analyst at Mercury Research Inc.
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By Gabrielle Jonas and Mary Mosquera
January 9, 1998
TechInvestor
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Intel said Thursday it is confident that
the Federal Trade Commission's investigation into the
chip maker's proposed purchase of Digital Equipment's
semiconductor operations will not encounter any
roadblocks. In October, Digital agreed to sell its
semiconductor operations to Intel for $700 million to
settle a patent-infringement lawsuit. As part of the
settlement, Intel would manufacture Alpha processors for
Digital, and the two companies also signed a 10-year
cross-licensing pact.
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By Andreas Stiller
C'T
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Oh horror, another bug - this time it
hits the Cyrix processor 6x86MX. Unfortunately our
suspicion mentioned in last issues Whispers prove to be
correct: a bad bug sneaked into the P6 instructions. But
first something pleasant: presently the transistor is
celebrating its 50. birthday. While it’s inventors
Bardeen, Brattain and Shockley were able to work at the
gold-plated Germanium crystals with a razor blade (0,25
mm technology), one nowadays manipulates grooves that are
1000 times finer. Instead of gold, aluminum is used
today, and recently copper started to come into fashion.
After IBM and Motorola now Texas Instruments also
announced that they are able to manage the complicated
copper process. Copper is a much better conductor for
electricity and heat than aluminum and therefore allows
smaller structures.
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By Brooke Crothers
January 8, 1998
C/Net
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Intel (INTC) will announce the fastest
Pentium chip yet for notebook PCs on Monday, just as the
chip giant is challenged for the first time in this
segment by Intel-compatible manufacturers. The new
Pentium "Tillamook" MMX chip will run at 266
MHz and appear prominently in new notebook PCs from
vendors such as Dell Computer, Digital Equipment, Compaq,
and Toshiba, which will next week announce new systems
based on the chip, according to industry sources.
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| Updated January 8, 1998 |
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By Jube Shiver Jr.
January 8, 1998
Los Angeles Times
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Sharpening its antitrust investigation
of Intel Corp., the Federal Trade Commission staff has
found serious antitrust problems with the computer chip
maker's $700 million settlement of a patent infringement
suit brought by rival Digital Equipment Corp., according
to people close to the probe. The FTC staff, which
believes the settlement last October would limit
competition to Intel's market-leading Pentium chip, is
now building a case against the commission approving the
deal. In addition, the FTC staff is mulling whether to
restrict Intel's efforts to extend its dominance of
microprocessors to other computer components, the sources
said.
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By Mo Krochmal
January 6, 1998
Techweb
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Compaq and IBM rolled out low-cost PCs
on Tuesday that won't be wearing the "Intel
Inside" label. Compaq introduced 15 models, with
almost half running on K6 processors made by Advanced
Micro Devices. Compaq also announced its Presario 1200
Series notebook, which costs $1,999 and is based on the
200-MHz integrated Cyrix processor.
IBM rolled out two Aptiva models that run on IBM K6
266-MHz and 233-MHz MMX-enhanced processors.
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| Updated January 7, 1998 |
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By Robert Lemos
January 7, 1998
ZDNN
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In 1998, chip maker and Intel rival
Advanced Micro Devices learned a valuable lesson: The
devil's in the details. After launching its Pentium
rival -- the K6 processor -- in April, the company failed
to meet demand for the chip because of production
problems. Now those "small" details seem to
have been solved.
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Many related
stories linked from this story. |
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By Patrick Waurzyniak
January 6, 1998
Electronic Buyers News
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Cyrix Corp., Richardson, Texas, on
Tuesday unveiled a MMX-enhanced version of its MediaGX
microprocessor aimed at the notebook computer market. Cyrix,
a subsidiary of National Semiconductor Corp., said that
Compaq Computer Corp. has designed the new processor into
its Presario line of notebook computers, enabling Compaq
to provide the first MMX-enhanced 200-Mhz notebook for
less than $2,000.
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By Brooke Crothers
January 6, 1998
C/Net
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Today may go down in Advanced Micro
Devices' (AMD) history as one of its most glorious days,
as the chipmaker readies itself for what may be a banner
year. Today AMD effectively became the main supplier
of chips for one of the hottest PC markets to the largest
PC maker in the world. In other words, all the new
consumer desktop systems below $1,200--one of the highest
volume consumer PC markets--announced today by Compaq are
using AMD processors, not Intel nor even low-cost leader
Cyrix appear in this price range. (See related story)
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Related
Stories Compaq tapping AMD, Cyrix
Compaq considering AMD K6
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By Brooke Crothers and Kurt Oeler
January 6, 1998
C/Net
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Compaq Computer (CPQ) announced a slew
of new consumer computers, including its first home
dekstop systems with an Advanced Micro Devices processor
and the first notebooks with Cyrix and AMD chips from a
major vendor in the United States. AMD's K6 chip
appears in two Presario consumer models and one model for
the educational market, while Cyrix's MediaGX
MMX-enhanced processor turns up in two consumer
notebooks.
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Related
Stories AMD evicts Intel, Cyrix at Compaq
Compaq considering AMD K6
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By Kurt Oeler
January 6, 1998
C/Net
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Packard Bell NEC introduced five
low-priced, high-speed models targeting the so-called
SOHO (small office/home) market, including a 266-MHz
Pentium II system for $1,899. The Sacramento,
California-based manufacturer reemphasized its
traditional focus on the value-oriented consumer,
particularly with the introduction of its Platinum 4500.
The high-speed Intel-based machine comes with 64MB of
memory, a 6.4GB hard drive, a CD-ROM drive, a 56-kbps
modem, and software for home users, such as the Quicken
personal finance program and Microsoft's Word.
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By Erich Luening
January 6, 1998
C/Net
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IBM (IBM) today rolled out two new
consumer PCs with Advanced Micro Devices' K6 processor,
lending momentum to newfound partiality toward the K6
among major PC manufacturers. The Aptiva models are
priced at $1,599 and $1,099. The $1,599 E46 is the first
PC to be equipped with a 266-MHz K6 processor, while the
less expensive E26 uses the K6 233-MHz processor.
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By Tom Schmidt
January 6, 1998
PC Week Online
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Intel Corp. announced today it has
extended the expiration date of its $17.50-per-share
offer for all outstanding shares of Chips and
Technologies Inc. from Jan. 19 until Jan. 21. The Santa
Clara, Calif., chip giant also said it expects to hear
from the Federal Trade Commission by Jan. 13 on whether
the agency intends to challenge the deal.
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By Margaret Kane
January 6, 1998
ZDNN
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Forget sub-$1,000. The new price to beat
in the PC market is sub-$800. One day after
Hewlett-Packard Co. announced systems at that
once-unthinkable price, Compaq Computer Corp. matched it,
rolling out a widely expected line of Presario systems
featuring Advanced Micro Devices Inc.'s K6 processors.
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Many related stories linked from this
story. |
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By J. Robert Lineback
January 5, 1998
Semiconductor Business News
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Intel Corp. is expected to increase its
spending on semiconductor capital equipment by 20% to
$5.40 billion in 1998 compared to $4.50 billion in 1998,
said analyst Bill McClean, president of IC Insights Inc.,
during a forecast presentation at an executive conference
here today. About 200 top executives attending the
Industry Strategy Symposium gasped when McClean disclosed
his projection of Intel's capital spending plans in 1998.
At $4.5 billion, Intel's spending on capital equipment
was about 20% of its 1998 sales, McClean said, adding
that the company's budget was about what it should be for
a company its size.
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| Updated January 6, 1998 |
| Cyrix
to debut 200MHz MediaGX for low-cost notebooks By
Lisa DiCarlo
January 6, 1998
PC Week Online
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Having pioneered low-cost, integrated
X86 microprocessors for sub-$1,000 desktops, Cyrix Corp.
is now turning its sights to fully featured, inexpensive
notebook PCs. The Richardson, Texas, subsidiary of
National Semiconductor Inc. will introduce today a 200MHz
MMX-enhanced MediaGX for portables. And like the original
MediaGX introduced last year, Cyrix has already signed up
a heavy-hitter, Compaq Computer Corp., which will use the
chip in a Presario notebook for home and small office
consumers.
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By Brooke Crothers
January 5, 1998
C/Net
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Intel (INTC) is facing cancellation of
notebook PC processor orders, boding ill for processor
sales in this segment. Intel has an inventory of about
3 million in unsold processors, due to "massive
cancellations of notebook chips," according to Ashok
Kumar, an analyst at Loewenbaum & Company. He cites
the sluggish Asian market, particularly Japan, as one of
the reasons for the notebook chip stockpile.
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| Intel
prepares additional price cuts, 333MHz Pentium II By
Lisa DiCarlo
January 5, 1998
PC Week Online
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Giving an already healthy PC market a
healthy shove, Intel Corp. will kick-start 1998 with
processor price cuts and a bump up in clock speed. Late
this month, the Santa Clara, Calif., company will cut
prices of Pentium II and Pentium Processors with MMX
Technology by as much as about 25 percent, according to
sources familiar with Intel's plans. The company is also
expected to release a 333MHz Pentium II on Jan. 26, the
sources said.
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| Updated January 5, 1998 |
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By Intelligent Firmware
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...But what Intel does not reveal in
this page or anywhere else, is that if one makes
afterwards (while the burst has not finished) a request
of another word in the same burst line the execution unit
waits for the entire burst to finish (documented) and
then there is a considerable time penalty (the
undocumented flaw). But if while the burst has not
finished another read request is made in a different
burst line,
there is no penalty; immediately after the current burst,
a new one is generated. Consequently, in order to get rid
of this penalty the workaround is to rearrange the order
of read requests, that is to make them in a special
order, non-sequentially. |
Related
Stories British firm claims Pentium "bug"
Performance Flaw in Pentium Processor?
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By Jim Davis
December 31, 1998
C/Net
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A British software company
says it has found a flaw that negatively impacts the
performance of Pentium processors, but the alleged glitch
appears to have been identified and documented years ago
by Intel engineers. An article by the U.K.-based
Intelligent Firmware has also been posted at Intel
Secrets, a site which tracks inside information on the
world's leading chipmaker.
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Related
Stories Performance Flaw in Pentium Processor?
Has Intel documented this flaw?
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By Michael Kanellos
December 31, 1998
C/Net
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Two years ago, the Internet came into
the public spotlight offering a glimpse of a bright, new
electronic future. This year, the sub-$1,000 PC occupied
center stage because it showed how cheap, easy, and
accessible that world could be. |
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