To: Digital.Press.and.Analysts.News: ; ;
From: pr-news@pa.dec.com (Digital Press & Analysts News)
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Subject: Press/New Alpha 21164 Chip, Sets New Speed, Performance Marks
Date: Mon, 04 Mar 96 08:33:26 -0800
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Digital Equipment Corporation
Maynard, Massachusetts 01754-2571
Editorial contact:
Lisa Lipson
(508) 568-4352
DIGITAL ANNOUNCES NEW ALPHA 21164 CHIP,
SETS NEW SPEED, PERFORMANCE MARKS
... First Chip to Exceed 11 SPECint95, 15 SPECfp95 ...
MAYNARD, Mass., March 4, 1996 -- Digital Equipment Corporation today
announced a new version of the Alpha 21164 chip that extends its
lead as the industry's fastest, highest-performance microprocessor.
The new chip is manufactured in Digital Semiconductor's latest,
0.35-micron CMOS process that yields higher clock speeds and
performance, a smaller die size, and substantially lower power
dissipation.
"The Alpha 21164 microprocessor strengthens Digital's position
as the industry's performance leader, superior to all other RISC and
CISC chips either shipping or sampling," said Ed Caldwell, vice
president, Digital Semiconductor. "The Alpha architecture has
continuously held the top spot in performance for four years, a feat
unprecedented in the computer industry, and we expect it to stay
there."
The Alpha 21164 chip's strong floating point performance is
especially important in the fast-growing market for multimedia
applications, which make extensive use of image and video
processing, 3D modeling, photorealistic rendering and animation.
Two Clock Speeds Available
The new Alpha 21164 chip is available immediately at two clock
speeds, 366MHz and 400MHz. Estimated performance ratings are as
follows:
Processor SPECint92 SPECfp92 SPECint95 SPECfp95
Alpha 21164-400MHz 500 655 11.7 15.9
Alpha 21164-366MHz 453 600 10.6 14.8
Lower Power Consumption
Manufactured in a 0.35-micron, four-layer-metal CMOS process,
the new microprocessor dissipates 20 watts of power at 366MHz, lower
than the Intel Pentium Pro 150MHz chip.
A faster version of the Alpha 21164, at 433MHz, is expected in
mid-1996, and a 500MHz version will be available by the end of the
year. The 21172 PCI core logic chipset, to support system
implementations, is available immediately. A new evaluation board
to aid system development will be released in the spring.
Alpha Leads RISC for Windows
Alpha is the leading RISC architecture for the Windows market,
with more than 1,500 ported, native-mode Windows NT applications.
The forthcoming release of the Digital FX!32 translation-emulation
software will enable Alpha microprocessors to run all 32-bit Windows
applications at up to 70 percent of native Alpha speeds.
"With total Windows application compatibility and unprecedented
performance, Alpha systems enable engineers and artists to exercise
greater creativity and innovation than in the past," Caldwell added.
"Alpha's performance, up to two times that of Intel's Pentium Pro,
positions it to become the Windows processor of choice for compute-
intensive applications such as image rendering, 3D animation, and
both electronic and mechanical computer-aided design."
The new Alpha 21164 chip is priced at $1,602 for the 366MHz
version and $1,913 for the 400MHz version, both in quantities of
1,000. Samples are available today and volume shipments will begin
in the spring.
Digital Semiconductor, a Digital Equipment Corporation business
headquartered in Hudson, Massachusetts, designs, manufactures and
markets industry-leading semiconductor products including Alpha
microprocessors and PCI chips for networking, bridging, and
multimedia, as well as low-power StrongARM microprocessors under
license from Advanced RISC Machines Ltd. Mitsubishi Electric
Company is a second source for Alpha microprocessors. World Wide
Web site: http://www.digital.com/info/semiconductor
Digital Equipment Corporation is the world's leader in open
client/server solutions from personal computing to integrated
worldwide information systems. Digital's scalable Alpha platforms,
storage, networking, software and services, together with industry-
focused solutions from business partners, help organizations compete
and win in today's global marketplace.
####
Note to Editors: Digital, Digital Semiconductor, and the Digital
logo are trademarks of Digital Equipment
Corporation. Windows is a registered trademark
and Windows NT is a trademark of Microsoft
Corporation. SPEC is a registered trademark of
System Performance Evaluation Corporation.
Intel, Pentium, and Pentium Pro are registered
trademarks of Intel Corporation. StrongARM is a
trademark of Advanced RISC Machines Ltd.
CORP/96/194
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