| A host of CPU manufacturers have revealed plans to
produce Intel-compatible processors for more specialized
applications. These companies include NEC Technologies,
Chips & Technologies, International Meta Systems,
Vadem, and NexGen. The earliest player in the Intel-compatible market was NEC, with its V range of processors, launched in 1984. The original CPUs were of Intel design, and NEC was a licensed second source. NEC then supplemented the range with chips of its own design. NEC now sells 30 versions of the V range, including the VHL lower-power, 3.3-volt CPUs. Its processors turn up in machines as diverse as Olivetti's Quaderno Sub-Notebook and Compaq's IDA drive controller. The latest processor is the V55 — an 80186-compatible processor running at 12.5 MHz. The original microcode used in the 8086 and 80186 has been implemented in hardware so that the majority of the instructions execute in one clock cycle. International Meta Systems (Fur, CA) has more ambitious plans. IMS claims it has a new 100-MHz RISC microprocessor, scheduled for mid-1993 production, that can emulate an Intel 486 or a Motorola 68040 at their full native speeds — and at a fraction of their cost. IMS is pitching the CPU for pen computers that need high performance for such tasks as handwriting recognition, but it also says the chip could be used to make a "chameleon computer" that runs both PC and Macintosh software. In April, the small San Jose-based chip-set designer Vadem introduced a single-chip, palmtop PC-on-a-chip design. Computer manufacturers can use the VG-230 Sub-Notebook Engine to bring small, inexpensive palmtops to market quickly. Vadem's chip design incorporates a 16-MHz NEC V30HL microprocessor into a single-chip device that holds an LCD controller, an internal keyboard scanner, and a built-in power management unit. A PCMCIA 2.0 module provides peripheral support. The latest version of the chip now supports digital ink — a facility aimed at pen-based systems designers. A secondary area of display memory contains an ink trail of where the pen has been moved, allowing the system to process for gesture and handwriting recognition without affecting the original image. C&T is also turning its attention to the hand-held market. In August, it announced that it will concentrate on integrated processor and logic chips that will allow PC vendors to buy a single-chip solution for their hand-held and notebook products. C&T already has the PC/Chip integrated processor that adds PC functionality to a high-speed 8086 core. It will now develop a 386 core for the PC/Chip and a VGA controller to replace the PC/Chip's low-resolution CGA display driver. Gordon Campbell, CEO of C&T, claims that the first significant systems that offer 50 hours of battery life from four to six AA-size batteries will appear before the end of this year. The Strange Case of NexGen Vapor is as common in Silicon Valley as morning fog is in San Francisco. Yet even in an industry where the horizon is frequently clouded by unreleased products, NexGen Microsystems of San Jose, CA, is an enigma. Founded in 1986, NexGen began work on a 386-compatible microprocessor. Six years later, the company has yet to market a finished chip. In 1990, NexGen seemed to be on the verge of something when it announced a chip set that used CISC architecture to achieve RISC-like performance while emulating 386/486 instructions. Computers based on this chip set would run twice as fast as a 486, SPARC, or Mips system and would approach an IBM RISC System/6000, promised NexGen. Most recently, NexGen said it will have a P5-compatible chip within a month or so after Intel introduces its next-generation microprocessor in early 1993. This time, some observers think that where there's smoke, there could be fire. Industry analysts speculate that NexGen could take the 486 core it has apparently developed, add parallel integer units, expand the cache, crank up the clock speed, and sell the chip as a "P5 compatible" by mid-1993. "They don't have a P5 chip," says Michael Slater of Microprocessor Report. "What they have is a fast implementation of the 486 instruction set that approaches P5-like performance." Ken Lowe, an analyst at the market research firm Dataquest (San Jose, CA), agrees: "NexGen is trying to do with its P5-compatible product what Cyrix has done with its 486-compatible product. They're comparing themselves to the P5 because they're trying to achieve P5-level performance. It's a reasonable marketing ploy." Whatever NexGen has under wraps, it may be the company's last chance to prove itself. Andy Redfern is BYTE's U.K./Europe bureau chief based in London. Dave Andrews is BYTE's Microbytes news editor. Andy Reinhardt is BYTE's West Coast bureau chief. Tom Halfhill is BYTE's senior news editor in San Francisco. You can reach them on BIX as "aredfern," "dave.news," "areinhardt," and "thalfhill," respectively. Copyright 1994-1997 BYTE |