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Power Mac G5

Based on the 64-bit PowerPC 970 processor from IBM, the G5 desktop features a 1 GHz front-side bus and supports up to 8GB of memory. The new systems utilize 400 MHz 128-bit DDR SDRAM, PCI-X, AGP 8X Pro graphics and dual Serial ATA hard drive interfaces. Apple CEO Steve Jobs took the stage Monday at WWDC 2003 in San Francisco, ushering in a new era of 64-bit desktop computing. Jobs offered developers a first look at Apple’s upcoming release of Mac OS X version 10.3, code-named “Panther” and put to rest a myriad of rumors and speculation with the introduction of the Power Mac G5.

“The 64-bit revolution has begun and the personal computer will never be the same again,” said Jobs. “The new Power Mac G5 combines the world’s first 64-bit desktop processor, the industry’s first 1 GHz front-side bus, and up to 8GB of memory to beat the fastest Pentium 4 and dual Xeon-based systems in industry-standard benchmarks and real-world professional applications.”

View more : BetaNews

here’s a selection of some of the reviews and what the folksters think. There’s a longer list at AMD ZONE , which is likely to be updated as the day goes on.

HEXUS reckons a 200MHz front side bus can’t hurt. here. There’s a picture of a brown semiconductor, also known as the “brains of a computer”.

TOM’S HARDWARE has a controversial conclusion about the 3200 and describes it as a “spineless paper tiger”. It thinks the 3200 is “much too aggressive” and it should be an XP2800 . Here.

FIRING SQUAD says AMD’s odyssey for the performance crown has been a little more treacherous than Her Indoors, but welcomes the introduction of the 3200 and the 400MHz bus, Here.

TECH REPORT says there’s not much new to report about the 2.2GHz chip apart from the fact that it runs on a 400MHz front side bus. But it reckons that the release is timely. There’s a picture of a brown semiconductor which appears to resemble the brains of a computer. Here.

LOST CIRCUITS contrasts the real brown brains of a computer with the hypothetical 3200 brains of a computer it previewed a month or two ago. That review is Here.

BIT-TECH reckons that AMD’s finally released the processor that the 3000 should have been, denies the site’s too pro-Intel, and puts it through its paces. There’s a picture of a brown chip which appears to be the brains of a computer, Here.

News source : Inquirer

Pentium 4-based PCs will get a performance boost next week when Intel Corp. begins shipping its 875 chipset, formerly known by the code name Canterwood. The new chipset revs up the highest speed of the front-side bus used with Pentium 4 chips from 533MHz to 800MHz. Pentium 4-based PCs will get a performance boost next week when Intel Corp. begins shipping its 875 chipset, formerly known by the code name Canterwood. The new chipset revs up the highest speed of the front-side bus used with Pentium 4 chips from 533MHz to 800MHz.

Intel has scheduled a press conference to be held in Taipei on April 15 to announce the new chipset.

Chipsets are a key component in PCs, where they are used to connect the processor to the main memory and to provide an interface with other PC components, including the graphics card and hard-disk drives.

To coincide with the launch of the 875, Intel also plans to release a version of its 3GHz Pentium 4 chip that will support the faster bus speed. Additional Pentium 4 processors that support the 800MHz front-side bus supported by the 875 are expected to be released in the near future.

Currently, the fastest front-side bus speed supported by the Pentium 4 runs at 533MHz. A 400MHz front-side bus, which was supported by the earliest Pentium 4 models, is also available. The increase in speed to 800MHz will result in increased overall system performance for PCs with the 875 chipset.

The 875 is the first of two chipsets that Intel will unveil that supports the 800MHz front-side bus. A second chipset, known by the code name Springdale, is expected to ship in May, according to motherboard makers. In addition to support for the faster front-side bus, Springdale incorporates a revamped architecture that Intel says will boost the performance of Gigabit Ethernet networking performance.

Engineering samples of 2.6GHz and 2.8GHz Pentium 4 processors that support the new 800MHz front-side bus, both yet to be announced by Intel, were on display Wednesday in at least one shop in Tokyo’s Akihabara electronics district. Staff at the shop, called Jyanpara, were unable to provide any more information on the chips, including an anticipated launch date and price.

The chips had been obtained by the shop from one of its customers, a member of the staff said.

Sumner Lemon is Taipei correspondent for the IDG News Service.

Martyn Williams is Tokyo correspondent for the IDG News Service.

Source : ITworld.com

AMD HAS LET THE CAT out of the bag on a new version of its Athlon processor. DigiTimes has learned that the company has informed chipset designers and motherboard makers that a version of Barton with a 400MHz front side bus (FSB) will become available in May. The only difference between the current Barton and the newer processor will be the FSB speed. However, that could be enough to cause a reasonable jump in both performance and PR rating. Based on previous increases in FSB speeds, there should be at least a 5% improvement in performance, probably turning a 2.17GHz 3000 Barton into a 2.2GHz 3200 .

Chipset makers and motherboard manufacturers have indicated that they will support the new chip. The timing could be better for some of them, AMD has only just introduced the Barton with a 333MHz FSB and Via’s latest KT400a only supports that speed. Perhaps there will be a KT400B?