SUNNYVALE, Calif.--Advanced Micro Devices Inc. today claimed the lead in high-performance processors for portable PCs with the launch of a 1-GHz AMD Athlon 4 and new speed grades of Duron chips for lower cost systems.
AMD's new Athlon 4 portable PC central processing units push CPU speeds to 1 GHz, while the Duron takes performance up to 850 MHz in the "value" segment of portable personal computers. The 1-GHz Athlon 4 hits the market at a price of $425 each in quantities of 1,000, while the 850-MHz Duron is priced at $197, said the Sunnyvale company.
During the weekend, Compaq Computer Corp. in Houston announced availability of notebook computers based on the 1-GHz Athlon. Compaq's 1-GHz Presario notebook series hit Home Shopping Network on Saturday.
The faster mobile AMD Athlon 4 and Duron processors are both fabricated by AMD with a 0.18-micron copper process technology in the company's Fab 30 in Dresden, Germany. The Athlon 4 processor features AMD's PowerNow! technology for extending battery life--up to 30%, according to the Sunnyvale company--without compromising performance. The Athlon 4 processor has 384 kilobytes of on-chip cache with hardware data pre-fetch circuits.
"AMD PowerNow! technology not only enables notebooks to run cooler and quieter, but also it offers extended battery life and up to 50% more performance than competitive systems running on batteries," said Pat Moorhead, vice president of desktop and mobile marketing for AMD's Computation Products Group.
In addition to the 1-GHz Athlon 4 processor, AMD is now offering lower speed grades of the CPU at 950, 900, and 850 MHz. These are priced at $350, $270, and $240 in 1,000-piece quantities, respectively.
The Duron processor is available with an 800-MHz performance grade in addition to the 850-MHz chip. The 800-MHz processor sells for $170 each.
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