Steve,
FALL DEEPER IN LOVE WITH THE WORLD'S FASTEST x86 PROCESSOR: THE 850MHz AMD ATHLON? PROCESSOR
--850MHz AMD Athlon? processor to power computers by Compaq, IBM, Gateway, Pionex and CyberMax--
SUNNYVALE, CA -- February 11, 2000 --AMD today sent out an early Valentine's Day greeting to computer lovers everywhere, unveiling an 850MHz version of its award-winning AMD Athlon? processor.
Is it just me, or are these guys getting excited! Great PR, thanks for posting.
Now here's the Intel news network spin on things (notice how there is no longer a disclaimer from cnet on their ownership):
AMD rolls out 850-MHz chip
By Michael Kanellos
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
February 11, 2000, 4:00 a.m. PT
URL: news.cnet.com
Advanced Micro Devices will overtake rival Intel today when it announces an 850-MHz version of its flagship processor.
Sunnyvale, Calif.-based AMD is rolling out an 850-MHz Athlon, according to people familiar with the company's plans. The move will give AMD the right to claim it has the fastest desktop chip in the market. Intel's Pentium III tops out at 800 MHz, although versions running at 850 MHz and 866 MHz are expected in the near future.
The two companies have been jousting for the bragging rights since AMD released the Athlon last summer. Traditionally a maker of budget processors, AMD has vaulted into the mainstream desktop market with Athlon.
The two chips are roughly equal in terms of performance, according to benchmark tests. The measurements and results vary, however, and have been the subject of lively debates in the processor world.
Manufacturers IBM, Gateway, Compaq and Hewlett-Packard incorporate the chip in their PCs. Athlon typically goes into high-end consumer and small-business systems. Servers and workstations are expected to begin including the chip later this year.
Earlier this week, AMD demonstrated a version of Athlon running at 1.1 GHz at the International Solid State Circuits Conference. The speedy chip uses copper wires, rather than aluminum, to connect circuits. AMD is expected to start releasing copper chips commercially in the second half of this year, while Intel will not move to copper until the second half of next year.
One comment, the bolded section could be taken several ways....one of which is that the Cumine and Athlon are roughly equal chips (i.e., at the same clock speed)..the other is that the 800mhz Cumine is equivalent to the 850 Athlon. Maybe I'm making a mountain out of a molehill...still, it is poorly written.
-Scot |
