World's Highest Performance PC Processor Now Available

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(March 8, 2000)--Intel Corporation introduced the Intel Pentium III processor 1 GHz (gigahertz or 1,000 megahertz), the world's highest performance microprocessor for PCs. The Pentium III processor at 1 GHz delivers a 15 percent performance gain over the fastest processors currently on the market.(2)

"Intel's Pentium III processor operating at 1 GHz is the highest performance microprocessor for PCs, enabling Intel's customers to ship the fastest personal computers in the world," said Paul Otellini, executive vice president and general manager of the Intel Architecture Business Group. "Intel continues to provide the best performance today and we have a microprocessor roadmap that will continue to keep our customers at the forefront of technology in the future."

The Pentium III processor 1 GHz achieves the highest PC performance scores ever, based on today's most current industry standard benchmarks. The Pentium III processor 1 GHz achieves a SPECint2000(1) benchmark rating of 410 and a SPECfp2000(1) result of 284, versus 355 and 256 scores, respectively, for an Intel Pentium III processor 800 MHz. Using the BAPCo's SYSmark(1) 2000 running under Windows(1) 2000, the Pentium III processor 1 GHz delivers a score of 188, besting the previous record of 170 held by an Intel Pentium III processor 800 MHz. For Internet performance, using Ziff-Davis' Internet benchmark iBench (using Windows 98), the Pentium III processor 1 GHz outpaced the 800 MHz by 14 percent for loading complex Web pages.(3)

At the Intel Developer Forum last month, Intel showed production-level PCs from Dell, HP and IBM featuring the Pentium III processor 1 GHz and its processor line up for the balance of this year. The company demonstrated its next generation microarchitecture for performance PCs - code named Willamette - operating at 1.5 GHz. Eight workstation and server manufacturers showed Intel's new 64-bit microarchitecture - the Intel(R) Itanium(TM) processor - in systems targeted to reach the market later this year. These Itanium processor-based computers will become the engine for e-Business. In addition, Intel showed Timna, a product that features smart integration to enable PCs that will cost less than $600, also targeted for the market place this year.

Intel's Pentium III processor 1 GHz is available now in limited quantities and is being offered by leading computer makers targeting today's PC enthusiasts, who demand state-of-the-art performance for media-rich Internet sites and advanced applications such as digital photography, video editing, music, voice recognition and 3-D gaming.

High Performance Features

Last October, Intel introduced Pentium III processors featuring an integrated Level 2 cache that runs at the full speed of the processor core. This feature, named the Advanced Transfer Cache, enables application performance to scale with increasing clock frequencies. This technology is a key to the outstanding performance of the Pentium III processor 1 GHz. Most other processors on the market offer older technologies that keep the cache memory from operating at full frequencies, limiting the PC's full ability to deliver performance to the user.

Pricing and Availability

The Pentium III processor 1 GHz in SECC2 packaging is priced at $990 in 1,000-unit quantities, and is available now in limited quantities.

Intel, the world's largest chipmaker, is also a leading manufacturer of computer, networking and communications products. Additional information about Intel is available at www.intel.com

(1) Third party marks and brands are the properties of their respective holders. (2) Performance tests and ratings are measured using specific computer systems and/or components and reflect the approximate performance of Intel products as measured by those tests. Any difference in system hardware or software design or configuration may affect actual performance. Buyers should consult other sources of information to evaluate the performance of systems or components they are considering purchasing. For more information on performance tests and on the performance of Intel products, reference www.intel.com/procs/perf/limits.htm or call (U.S.) 800/628-8686 or 916/356-3104. (3) iBench 1.01 Load Complex Pages 1 GHz = 13.1 seconds, 800 MHz = 15.0 seconds. i-Bench(1) is a tool created by ZD, Inc., to evaluate the performance of computer functions related to retrieving content from the Internet. Variations in the configuration or performance of the network over which the test is run (including the Internet) and differences in system hardware or software design or configuration may materially affect test results and actual performance. For more information on i-Bench, see i-bench.zdnet.com/ibench/i-bench.htm.