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Strategies & Market Trends : Gorilla and King Portfolio Candidates -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Uncle Frank who wrote (2521)	6/8/1999 11:07:00 AM
From: Tony Viola	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 54805

Hi Uncle Frank, On Rambus, there is a lot of controversy over its product, DRDRAM, mainly with regard to its performance and price vs. a competing technology, DDR SDRAM. The performance parameters are latency, or how long it takes to get the first word(s) out of it on an access, and data rate. Intel is behind Rambus 100% (minus the rumors that they may have quietly built an interface controller for the rival technology, DDR SDRAM, into the chipset, named Camino, that will control the new DRAMs in pricey PCs starting in September. That interface would be a contingency in case DRDRAM yields are not good for quite a while.). Back to the parameters, Rambus has no advantage re latency, and the DDR SDRAM camp claims it's just as good for data rate. Probably not clear until some PCs get built with it, and then, still, it's hard to tell just what effect the main memory has on the overall performance of the PC. On price, Rambus gets a royalty on every chip built with its technology, from the likes of Samsung, Micron, Fujitsu, etc. Maybe those guys will quietly try to get DDR SDRAM at least as fast as Rambus to not have to pay this royalty? But then there's Intel's influence, and on and on it goes. I'm personally on the fence, although still kicking myself for not having bought at IPO or the several times it's been < $40ish. I knew about Rambus well before its IPO. Oh well. The other controversy to me, is what is the market for pricey PCs nowadays anyway, and Rambus is not considered an advantage for bigger machines like servers right now (as it's up >$5 again now). To Rambus' benefit, Intel has announced support for it with their upcoming low priced PCOAC (PC on a chip) due next year. Then they'd be in on the basement, and the penthouse priced PCs. Like you say, no gorilla consideration until Rambus' advantage is clearly demonstrated. Tony