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Of interest: processor wars PENTIUM IIIs at 733MHz BY MID-2000 (fwd)


Subject: Of interest: processor wars PENTIUM IIIs at 733MHz BY MID-2000   


PENTIUM IIIs TO HIT 733MHz BY MID-2000                             02.12.99
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  Santa Clara, CA -- As InfoWorld reported, Intel has started briefing its
system partners on a processor rollout schedule driven by an impressive
array of server technologies, including an 800-MHz chip, that are all
intended to run complex mission-critical applications.

  After the introduction of its 500-MHz Pentium III Xeon processor, code-
named Tanner, on March 17, Intel will drive speeds of the high-end server
processor to 800 MHz by the middle of next year, according to sources close
to the company.

  And with the release of the Profusion eight-way chip set shortly after the
Pentium III Xeon is introduced, IT professionals can reportedly rest assured
that Intel-based platforms will be powerful enough to handle most of their
needs.

  "When you move to the real business world doing ERP [enterprise resource
planning], customer service, and heavy transaction processing, the power of
the chip is important because speed is the key," said Karim Salem, vice
president of IS at Puma Technology, in San Jose, Calif. "When I chose to go
with the Intel platform two years ago, I felt comfortable that it would be
able to support Fortune 500 companies. I'm betting that I won't have to
change platforms."

  Two immediate goals of Intel are to further the adoption of Intel
platforms for glass-house applications traditionally associated with RISC
systems and mainframes, while providing customers with a clear upgrade path
to the 64-bit Merced processor due in late 2000.

  "They're moving well into the realm of what had been the RISC players'
arena," said Rich Partridge, an analyst at D.H. Brown Associates, in Port
Chester, N.Y. "These are nonstop advances, paving the way for Unix on IA-
64."

  Some analysts said they believe that given the allure of standards-based
hardware, Intel is positioned well for the midrange and high-end server
market.

  "Over time everybody is moving toward a standardized hardware platform,
and in the next 10 years that could be Intel," said James Gruener, a senior
analyst at the Aberdeen Group, in Boston. "The common market misconception
is that everything is going to be focused on the [Windows] NT market. But
there is a significant Unix-on-Intel market that continues to grow."

  Therefore, the pressure is being applied to the big RISC-based server
vendors, like Sun Microsystems, IBM, and Hewlett-Packard.

  "The RISC guys can't sit back," Partridge said. "They need to be just as
aggressive because Intel doesn't want to be at the mercy of Microsoft. Sun
needs to assure that they have interoperability with Intel servers."

  For more information visit http://www.intel.com


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