SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1998 OCT 8 (NB) -- By
Matt Hines, Newsbytes. Bellwether microprocessor manufacturer
Intel Corp. [NASDAQ:INTC] reconfirmed its upcoming product
architecture plans yesterday. In addition to restating that it
will deliver the much anticipated 64-bit Merced chip by mid-2000,
the vendor divulged the code-names and planned arrival times
of several models which will come after that launch.

Intel officials said that, after the Merced processor, designed
for use in high-end workstation and server applications, it
will concentrate on delivering a chip code-named Foster which
may arrive by late 2000 or early 2001. This 32-bit processor
will reportedly feature a running speed of one gigahertz (GHz)
which is double the speed of the fastest 450 megahertz
(MHz) Pentium II chip which it markets today. The Foster chip
will target the lower end of the server market, Intel said.

Foster represents a successor to the long-running P6 32-bit
processor architecture which produced the Pentium II and many
other Intel designs. Intel said that Foster and a desktop
partner code-named Willamette will feature a different
"microarchitecture" than the P6-based models. The company did
not give a name to this new family and no arrival date was
projected for Willamette which will arrive after Foster,
according to Intel spokesmen. Willamette will replace the
current Pentium II chip line, while Foster will replace the
current Pentium II Xeon, which is aimed at the workstation
and server market.

The Merced processor is the first product Intel will market
that is borne of the IA-64 bit technology it co-developed with
Hewlett-Packard Co. Merced is being targeted at the extreme
top end of the workstation business where Intel hopes it will
find its way into workstations priced above $9,000. Intel
said that it is planning for volume production of Merced by
the mid-2000.

According to Intel, the Foster chip will match the Merced chip
in some capacities and may even run 32-bit software applications
faster. Foster will target machines with roughly one-third the
price estimated for Merced-based systems.

Intel also indicated that it will follow up the Merced
processor with a 64-bit chip code-named McKinley. The developer
said this product may arrive by late 2001 and that it will be
aimed at servers and workstations with special capabilities for
handling complex applications involved in data mining and data
warehousing. Intel said that McKinley will have a running speed
of roughly double that of the estimated 900MHz Merced. McKinley
has been in development for two years already, according to Intel.

Intel Spokesmen said that both Foster and Willamette will be
manufactured using the .18-micron process which it will continue
to adopt over the next year. Most of the company's chips are
built using the .25-micron process today.

The company also said that it will release another Pentium II
chip in early 1999 code-named Tanner. This processor will include
the Katmai new instruction set that Intel has developed for
two-dimensional (2-D) and three-dimensional (3-D) computing. After
that launch, Intel will bring its first .18-micron chip, Cascades,
to market.

Intel officials said the number of different processors being
planned right now prove that the company is dedicated to
its plan of providing different products to various market
sectors.