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TITLE
Alpha picks up speed, while lowering costs (The Alpha Processor subsidiary of Samsung
dropping costs of Alpha-based systems with launch of two motherboards and a processor
module)
AUTHOR
Rick Merritt
SOURCE
Electronic Engineering Times, June 21, 1999, p8
MESSAGE
Copyright 1999 CMP Publications, Inc. THIS IS THE COMPLETE TEXT.
LANGUAGE
English
LENGTH
348 words
TEXT
Concord, Mass. - The Alpha Processor Inc. subsidiary of Samsung will bring the costs of Alpha-based systems to a new low as it launches two motherboards and a processor module at PC Expo in New York this week. The company will also tip word of a low-cost
version of the Alpha 21264 processor it plans to produce early next year, and it will demo a 1-GHz version of the chip that is expected to ship in next year's second quarter.
The Alpha group tomorrow will roll out its UP1000 motherboard, which uses a modified version of Advanced Micro Devices' Iron Gate chip set. The board is geared for systems that could sell for as little as $3,500.
"This will be the lowest-cost desktop platform Alpha has ever had," said Gerry Talbot, chief technology officer of Alpha Processor, here.
Shaving costs
The company will also roll out a board that uses Compaq Computer's Tsunami chip set and targets systems that would sell for about $4,500. The UP2000 reduces memory-upgrade options to shave costs from an existing Alpha board aimed at a $6,000 system configuration.
Both boards will use a Slot B processor module defined by Alpha Processor and based on the mechanical specs of Intel Corp.'s Slot 2 for Xeon processors. Slot B uses a massive copper heat spread and accommodates 5- or 12-V operation. The 21264 draws 1.5 to 2V and will ultimately hit 1.5 GHz, Talbot said.
At PC Expo, the company will demonstrate a version of the 21264 running at 1 GHz, though it does not expect to ship such speed grades in volume until the second quarter of 2000. A 750-MHz version, made in a 0.25-micron process with aluminum interconnects,will ship in July.
Samsung will bring up a 0.18-micron process with a mixture of aluminum and copper interconnects late this year. The shift is expected to yield parts at 833 MHz before year's end. Late next year, Samsung will add silicon-on-insulator and a more extensive use of copper, to yield parts as fast as 1.5 GHz eventually.
June 21, 1999 |
