SAN JOSE -- Continuing to walk on a legal tightrope, Taiwan's Via Technologies Inc. here let it slip out that it is working on a 2-GHz microprocessor, which is reportedly a "clone" of Intel Corp.'s Pentium 4 processor. During a presentation at the Microprocessor Forum on Monday, a Via executive briefly mentioned the processor while curiously raising questions about the need for 2-GHz processors.
But later, in interviews, a Via engineer described the new "Pentium 4 clone"--dubbed the CZA--a device that utilizes the same design concepts as Intel's Pentium 4 chip. Based on 0.10-micron process technology, Via's CZA is being designed as a 2-GHz processor that can be scaled up to 3-GHz speeds.
The processor could be launched in 2003 or 2004, according to managers at Via, which is already being sued by Intel for allegedly violating patents in processors and new chip sets for Pentium 4-based systems.
During a presentation at the Microprocessor Forum on Monday, Taipei-based Via also announced the C5X and C5XL processors, which run at speeds from 1.1-to-1.5-GHz. The C5X and C5XL will ship by the first half of 2002. At present, Via's fastest processor runs at 866-MHz. Dubbed the C5C or C5M, that processor line from Via can also be scaled to run at 1-GHz clock frequencies.
But the real Microprocessor Forum showstopper seems to be the CZA.
During a presentation, however, an executive from Via was reluctant to discuss its new CZA processor in detail. He dropped hints about the CZA, and then insisted that 90-to-95% of the world's population does not require a PC, based on a 2-GHz processor.
Given its past history in processor designs, Via has been somewhat reluctant to develop high-end MPUs. The company specializes in low-cost processors. But still, it may have no choice but to jump into the processor-performance race to keep up with rivals Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Intel, according to analysts.
However, Via still is not convinced that most of the market needs high-end PCs. "Why does the world need a 2-GHz system?" quizzed Glenn Henry, president of Via's Centaur Technology Inc. subsidiary in Austin, Tex., which develops x86-based processors. Via acquired Centaur from Integrated Device Technology Inc. in 1999.
"Obviously, Intel wants to shove a 2-GHz system down our throats," said the outspoken Centaur executive during his presentation at the Microprocessor Forum. He said Intel believes "they will build 2-GHz processors and the market will come."
Via has another strategy. "We set out to build products that people need," he contended. "We are building products for 95% of the homes out there."
But still, Via is pressing on with the development of its CZA processor, reportedly to hedge its bets. Based on Via's new CZ microarchitecture, the CZA will utilize the same technologies and concepts as Intel's Pentium 4, according to information presented at the forum on Monday.
Like the Pentium 4, the CZA will use Intel's "Pentium 4 bus" and a "deep 18-stage pipeline architecture," according to C.J. Hothaus, an engineer at Centaur. "It's a 'Pentium 4' clone," said Holthaus in an interview on Monday. Sources believe the processor is Socket-478-compatible to the Pentium 4.
Via provided few details about the CZA. How Via will develop a "Pentium 4 clone" remains unclear. The Taiwanese company may have to obtain a license from its rival--Intel, which has recently filed several suits against Via in the past month.
Last week, for example, Intel fired the latest shot in its legal battle, claiming that Via's C3 microprocessor infringes on five of its patents. Earlier, Intel had accused Via of infringing upon its patents in new chip sets for Pentium 4 processors (see Oct. 12 column ).
But the suits are not stopping Via, however. "We're still in business," Henry said. "We're alive and well."
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