Samsung Introduces High Performance ATX Motherboards
for the Alpha 21164 Microprocessor

* New motherboards to target Windows NT server and workstation applications

* Exceptional speed and flexibility for high performance visual computing applications

 

SAN JOSE, Calif., November 17, 1997 -- Samsung Semiconductor today released two new highly integrated and fully featured ATX form factor motherboard products which support the Alpha 21164 microprocessor, also from Samsung. Running on Windows NT, Samsung' s AlphaPC 164UX and AlphaPC 164BX motherboards enable OEMs to create Alpha workstations and servers. Created with standard components, these systems will deliver unmatched performance with Windows NT compatible applications such as computer based video systems, computer-aided design (CAD), financial analysis, Internet servers and high-end graphics applications such as 3-D rendering and animation. The motherboards will be available in Q1 ' 98.

Today's multimedia rich applications require network ready systems designed with high-performance I/O and sufficient PCI slots to support the necessary peripherals as video capture cards, 3D accelerators, video editors or DVD playback devices.

AlphaPC 164UX and AlphaPC 164BX Motherboard Features

The boards are based on Digital's 21174 single chip core logic which includes a DRAM memory controller and a 33 MHz, 64-bit PCI bus controller. The integration of the 21174 chip technology ensures support for all current and future applications and components that support Windows NT on Alpha. The new 164UX and 164BX motherboards support a 128-bit wide high speed cache bus that can deliver bandwidths in excess of 3 GB/sec and support 128-bit main memory access with >1 GB/sec achievable bandwidth.

Powered by Samsung's Alpha 21164 CPU, the 164UX and 164BX motherboards are fully upgradeable from 400 MHz to 700 MHz. Currently available speeds for the 21164 processor are as high as 600 MHz, but future speeds are expected to exceed 667 MHz. The clock speed can be set in 33.33 MHz increments through configuration jumpers. The Alpha 21164 chip supports more than 2,500 native Windows NT applications and has full Windows NT compatibility with Digital's FX132 binary translation utility. Advanced features of the 164UX motherboard include on-board Ultra-Wide SCSI and 10/100 Mbs Ethernet.

Feature Set of AlphaPC 164UX Motherboard

The AlphaPC 164BX has the same features as the AlphaPC 164UX, with the exception of on-board Ultra-Wide SCSI and 10/100 Mbs Ethernet.

" The Samsung AlphaPC 164UX and 164BX motherboards highlight Samsung's commitment to deliver a total solution for Alpha OEMs that significantly enhances the performance and competitiveness of the Alpha platform," said Dr. D. J. Chin, CEO, System LSI Products." These new motherboards will enable our OEM partners and customers to improve their time-to-market and deliver the highest performance Windows NT systems at affordable prices."

" These new motherboards will enable our OEMs to offer sub $3,000 systems with unmatched performance, upgradeability and features,"said Syed Ali, Executive Director, CPU Marketing, Samsung Electronics. " The introduction of cost effective, industry standard Alpha motherboards by Samsung is a key element of our strategy to enable the Alpha market.”

Pricing and Availability

Production units of the AlphaPC 164UX and 164BX motherboard will ship in the first quarter of 1998, and they will also be bundled with the Alpha 21164 from Samsung. Contact Samsung Semiconductor for pricing details.

About Samsung Semiconductor

Samsung Semiconductor is a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, an $18.8 billion dollar division of the $88 billion, Korean-based, Samsung Group. Samsung's Semiconductor Division is the seventh largest semiconductor manufacturer and the leading producer of memory products in the world. Samsung Semiconductor's North American headquarters are located in San Jose, California. Samsung was the first company to introduce the 64-Megabit DRAM and the first fully functional 256-Megabit DRAM in 1994. In November 1996, Samsung had the world' s first working silicon for the 1-Gigabit DRAM. Samsung' s non-memory products, called System LSI, include ASICs, microcontrollers, power devices, media products and the Alpha processor.

Product Guide

21164 Alpha Microprocessor (KP21164)

Alpha PC 164LX Motherboard (MB164LX)

Alpha PC 164UX Motherboard (MB164UX)

Alpha PC 164BX Motherboard (MB164BX)