What do you make of this:
byte.com
When Cyrix began shipping the MediaGX in late 1996, the core speed was 133 MHz. Since then, Cyrix has introduced versions that run at 150 and 166 MHz, with a 200-MHz chip due soon. These cores don't support MMX and have relatively poor floating-point performance, but they can match or beat the Pentium when running common integer-intensive applications.
In the second half of this year, Cyrix plans to introduce a next-generation integrated chip known as the MXi. It's built around Cyrix's Cayenne core, which has a 64-KB L1 cache, a superscalar FPU, MMX support, improved integer units, and 15 new instructions for speeding up 3-D graphics (see "Beyond MMX," December 1997
BYTE). The MXi will also integrate the Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP), digital versatile disc (DVD) playback, and a synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) controller. Cyrix claims that the MXi will match the performance of Pentium II processors running at 300 to 400 MHz, and that the integrated 3-D graphics controller will render more than 2 million pixels per second.
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The $499 Windows PC isn't a refurbished 486 with stripped-down features. The PowerSpec 1660 has a
166-MHz Cyrix MediaGX processor, 16 MB of extended data out (EDO) RAM, a 1-GB hard drive, a 12x
CD-ROM drive, a 1.44-MB floppy drive, a 33.6-Kbps fax modem, and a pair of stereo speakers. It also has
two serial ports, two PS/2 ports, a parallel port, a joystick port, and a shared PCI/ISA slot. It comes with
Windows 95, Microsoft Works, Microsoft Money HomeBanking, Microsoft Entertainment Pack, and a one-year
on-site warranty for parts and labor. All you need to add is a monitor and a printer.
Although the PowerSpec 1660 clearly isn't a power-user system, it's a reasonable machine at a remarkable price.
It's sold by Micro Center, a chain of computer stores that covers eight states. Elitegroup Computer Systems, a
Taiwanese company, manufactures the PowerSpec 1660 for Micro Center. Elitegroup makes the motherboards
in Taiwan and assembles the boxes in Fremont, California.
Elitegroup says it can deliver a $299 Windows PC by the end of this year. "It might be sooner, but this is a safe
prediction," says Ann Vo, a public-relations specialist at the company's Fremont office. |
