Conference ricks::dechips

692.0. "SGI: future of Mips" by ROM01::OLD_CIPOLLA (Bruno Cipolla) Mon May 12 1997 17:49

    +  SILICON GRAPHICS REVEALS THE FUTURE OF ITS MIPS RISC CHIPS
    
    In answer to the predators in its high-end workstation market
    that come brandishing shiny new Pentium II processors, Silicon
    Graphics Inc has revealed two new generations of MIPS RISC
    microprocessors for its own machines. The new H1 processors in
    the pipeline start with a family that includes a 0.25 micron
    device which will deliver 5Gbps throughput, equivalent to the
    industry's 'highest main memory bandwidth.' But the H1
    processors, due in production by 1999, will, by the year 2001,
    be eclipsed by the H2. Company bosses are tight-lipped about
    details but expect to use the vector processing requirement
    used in its Cray Research vector supercomputers. At the same
    time, a major drive into commercial markets is planned by
    handing over responsibility for development of all other MIPS
    devices to partners supplying the commercial and games markets.
    It is wooing them with the R12000, a pepped up development of
    the MIPS IV architecture, which will be available in speeds up
    to 300MHz by mid-1998. The company clearly believes that the
    boost in royalties will offset losses by having partners handle
    sales to the volume markets. Aware that its own markets could
    be vulnerable to Pentium II's multimedia capabilities, Silicon
    Graphics own MIPS processors will be equipped with 'Mad Max' -
    or MDMX - extensions. The word is that the H2 will include
    on-board techniques for scaling to configurations of 1000s of
    processors. It will have between 25 and 30 million transistors
    and is scheduled for 2001. The company expects a rising stream
    of cash from partners supplying booming markets such as those
    for games consoles such as Nintendo64 and Sony Playstation,
    set-top decoders, and handheld and notebook computers. IBM
    Corp, moving to strengthen its future in network computing,
    says it will buy the remaining 30% of the Advantis data network
    services business from partner Sears, Roebuck & Co for $450m.
    IBM currently owns 70% of the business that the two companies
    formed in 1992 to provide network, data processing and
    value-added telecommunications services to US-based customers.
    IBM says that the purchase reflects the company's belief that
    network computing will become increasingly significant to its
    revenues. The sale will allow Sears to focus more on its core
    retailing business.