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NEXGEN MICROSYSTEMS READY TO TAKE ON PENTIUM WITH Nx586
(September 23rd 1994) NexGen Microsystems Inc, Milpitas, California
this week launched the first full third party answer to Intel Corp's
Pentium with its Nx586 P100 RISC-based iAPX-86-compatible part,
fabricated by IBM Corp. The NexGen chips exclude the maths
co-processor and are not Pentium pin-compatible, but developers can
use a Baby AT form factor board design available free from NexGen.
The Nx586 93MHz P100 is $777 in quantities of 10,000 or more, against
$964 for Pentiums for 1,000-up. There are 84MHz, 75MHz and 70MHz
versions, the last costing $404.
NexGen's naming scheme for the chips is pretty disingenous. The P100
is only clocked at 93Hz, but is called the P100 because Nexgen's own
benchmarks show it running as fast as a Pentium 100MHz.
Compaq Computer Corp holds a 5% stake in NexGen but has not said it
will use the chip; it is said to be evaluating it, as is Ing C
Olivetti & Co SpA. NexGen is planning to offer the unit with a
separate maths co-processor mounted alongside it in a multi-chip
module in the first half of next year. Microsoft Corp has certified
the chips as Windows-compatible, NexGen says - without that, they
would be unmarketable. Some 22 smaller companies are said to have
committed to use the NexGen chip.