Intel unveils seventh wonder

INTEL has added a new high-end chip to its range of Pentium processors with the launch of a superfast 133-megahertz version targeted at both the high performance desktop and server markets.

The new processor is available to manufacturers immediately and should be on sale in Hong Kong stores within weeks. The 133-MHz version brings to seven the number of chips in the Pentium processor family, and is the third Pentium version launched this year.

According to Intel, the new chip delivers more than twice the speed performance of the original Pentium, a 60-MHz chip that was launched two years ago. The speed of the new chip is due to the 0.35 micron, 3.3. volt technology used in its manufacture.

Intel said the transition from the older 80486 base as the volume microprocessor to the Pentium platform had occurred faster than expected and pricing for entry and mid-range level personal computers had also fallen faster than the company had anticipated.

The company said that revenues for Pentium processors had exceeded that of 486 revenues for the first time during the first quarter of this year.

The new 133-MHz Pentium is priced in 1,000-unit quantities at US$935 each, which is slightly cheaper than the volume shipment price-tag carried by the original 60-MHz version of the Pentium when it was released two years ago.

Promising a continued downward trend in pricing, Intel's district manager for Hong Kong and southern China, Stephen Chan said: 'End users will have new price/performance points to choose from as Intel ramps the 133-MHz Pentium processor into volume.

'Our investments over the last five years in new technology are making these innovations possible and the PC user community is reaping the benefits.'