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Technology Stocks : Intel Corporation (INTC) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Dan3 who wrote (153708)	1/3/2002 9:57:18 PM
From: Paul Engel	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 186894

Manufacturers such as IBM, Gateway, Compaq, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, and Micron PC are each planning to introduce PCs powered by the 2.2GHz Pentium 4 chip, according to sources familiar with the separate vendors' plans. staging.infoworld.com January 03, 2002 12:16 PM PC vendors ready 2.2GHz Pentium 4 systems By Dan Neel and Douglas F. Gray PC MAKERS ARE prepping computer systems loaded with Intel's new 2.2GHz Pentium 4 processor, the speedy new chip that is expected to launch on Monday. Manufacturers such as IBM, Gateway, Compaq, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, and Micron PC are each planning to introduce PCs powered by the 2.2GHz Pentium 4 chip, according to sources familiar with the separate vendors' plans. IBM, for example, will launch a 2.2GHz PC before the end of January, a company spokesperson said. System pricing for PCs sporting the 2.2GHz Pentium 4 chip is expected to be around the $2,000 range, depending on individual configuration, according to industry sources. A PC market already at the threshold of required performance will mean that early adopters of systems powered by the 2.2GHz Pentium 4 will be mainly PC gamers and others riding the performance curve, said Roger Kay, an analyst at IDC in Framingham, Mass. "Existing PC performance is sufficient to run the software that exists now over the communication links that exist now. It doesn't buy you a lot to grab a faster processor," Kay said. PC makers staggering their individual 2.2GHz-based product releases over the course of the next 60 days, along with competition from dedicated, high-performance game systems like the Microsoft's Xbox, will also slow the uptake of the new Pentium 4s, Kay said. The launch of the first Pentium 4 desktop processors built to 0.13-micron architecture adds greater efficiency to Intel's production methods, according to sources familiar with the company's plans. All previous Pentium 4 and Pentium III chips have been built to 0.13-micron specifications. In line with Moore's Law, the smaller chip fabrication process paves the way for generations of faster Pentium 4 chips. Intel is already predicting a 3GHz Pentium 4 by year's end. Intel launched a 2GHz 0.18-micron Pentium 4 last August. Moving to a 0.13-micron chip core also means Intel can get nearly twice the number of chips on a 200-millimeter processor die than it could with 0.18-micron core. A percentage of the cost savings here will be passed on to PC makers, according to Intel. The 2.2GHz chip, Intel's fastest to date, made its debut appearance in Tokyo's Akihabara electronics district last week. The new Pentium 4 processor will be Intel's first based on the company's Northwood core, which features 512KB of Level 2 cache compared to current 0.18-micron Pentium 4 processors that offer only 256KB of cache. The 0.13-micron manufacturing process allows Intel to pack components more tightly on a chip, which can boost speed and lower cost, as well as reduce heat and power consumption, according to Intel. "Larger cache does provide an important performance benefit," said Nathan Brookwood, principal analyst at Insight 64, in Saratoga, Calif. "It's more than the increase you would get going from 2GHz to 2.2GHz [with the smaller cache]." Pentium 4 chips using the Northwood core will also run at 1.5 volts, compared to 1.75 volts for current Pentium 4 processors. Lowering the voltage lets the chips run cooler, which will become more important as Intel further increases the frequency speed of future Pentium 4 chips, Intel representatives said. By the first half of 2002, Intel will improve the efficiency of its Pentium 4 chip making process yet again with a transition to a 300-millimeter wafer die. The 300-millimeter die will yield almost three times the number of Pentium 4 chips as the current 200-millimeter die, according to Intel. Related Articles: Intel to show 2GHz Xeon chip next week

To: Dan3 who wrote (153708)	1/4/2002 11:08:17 AM
From: wanna_bmw	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 186894

Dan, Re: "No wonder Intel has to spend $10 on FAB space for every $1 AMD spends. Intel spends $7,500 million on FABs per year and makes 100 million chips. AMD spends $800 million per year and makes 30 million chips. Intel's FAB costs per chip are $75, while AMD's are $27." Nice QuantiMath. Please explain how you can take Intel's 2001 CapEx result and divide it by the number of CPUs sold, since Intel's Fab costs help them to manufacture many parts that aren't CPUs. Also, please explain how you've determined Intel's and AMD's fab costs per year, simply by taking the 2001 result, instead of averaging costs over, say, the last five years. Also, don't you think that being more than 6 months ahead of AMD in .13u manufacturing accounts for anything to Intel? wbmw