Is this what you are referring to re the new chip?
cbs.marketwatch.com
Transmeta sails out on Crusoe-like adventure
By Janet Haney, CBS MarketWatch
Last Update: 5:40 PM ET Jan 19, 2000 Silicon Stocks
Hardware Report
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (CBS.MW) -- Transmeta, a privately-held tech company, finally raised its veil of secrecy Wednesday as it introduced its Crusoe family of microprocessors, targeted at the mobile Internet computing market.
Transmeta's top executive said the idea behind the Crusoe chips - named after the adventuresome book character Robinson Crusoe - was to use software, not silicon, as an integral part of the microprocessor.
"Crusoe is the first microprocessor whose instruction set is implemented entirely with software," Ditzel said during Transmeta's unveiling Wednesday in a Webcast. He said Crusoe is the first microprocessor used in Internet computing.
A microprocessor is a central processing unit on a single chip and requires a power supply, clock and memory in order to function.
Part of the concept of Crusoe is that it learns about an application as it runs and uses that information to extend its battery life, the company said.
Transmeta introduced two microprocessors in its Crusoe family: the TM3120 in speeds of 400 megahertz and the TM5400 in speeds of 700MHz for use in lightweight notebook computers. The mobile Internet chips are expected to enhance a user's Net performance and swiftness.
"Mobile is where computing is going," Ditzel said.
The TM3120, used for Linux-based Web pads and other devices, is available now and sells for $500 to $999. The TM5400 will ship in production in mid-2000 and sells for between $1,200 and $2,500.
The company creates the designs for the products, but doesn't make the actual chip. Ditzel said IBM (IBM: news, msgs) is one of Transmeta's partners.
Transmeta, with 200 employees worldwide, has been working on the project for five years. The company's CEO, David Ditzel, was a former chip designer for AT&T's (T: news, msgs) Bell Labs, as well as Sun Microsystems (SUNW: news, msgs).
High-profile backers
Santa Clara, Calif.-based Transmeta has a number of high-profile backers, including Microsoft (MSFT: news, msgs) co-founder Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures and billionaire financier George Soros. The company's board includes a former Motorola (MOT: news, msgs) executive as well as a former Compaq (CPQ: news, msgs) executive.
Speculation has swirled about whether chip makers Intel and Advanced Micro Devices would be affected by Transmeta's product announcement. The company's move came a day after the world's largest maker of chips, Intel (INTC: news, msgs), released its mobile Pentium III processor with SpeedStep technology. The new PIII processor runs in speeds of 600MHz and 650MHz. See Intel press release.
With the SpeedStep technology, consumers can switch between a performance mode and a battery mode on their computers.
Shares of Intel slipped 2 1/16 to 100 1/16 while its rival AMD (AMD: news, msgs) was up 2 to 41. AMD posted its fourth-quarter results after the closing bell Wednesday.
Janet Haney is an online reporter for CBS MarketWatch. The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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