Intel gets support for PII-450

A raft of PC vendors will support Intel's introduction of its 450MHz Pentium II and its two enhanced Celeron processors. (See other stories on this page). Although the original Celeron failed to garner much support at its launch, vendors including IBM, Dell, Hewlett Packard, Toshiba and local companies including Carrera are expected to incorporate some, if not all of the offerings, into PCs aimed at the September market. But sources said that Compaq is delaying introducing machines based on the chips, although it will follow suit with a 450MHz Pentium II shortly. The two Celeron processors, which use a Mendocino core, are aimed at the sub-$1,000 market but the PII/450 is prices much higher and will be aimed at what Intel calls the "Performance PC" rather than the "Basic PC" market. UK company Carrera, however, said it is able to introduce its Power Pro II-450 at a price of £1,299 for a configuration which includes 100MHz of synchronous DRAM, an 8.4Gb drive, and other options including DVD drive, Video Logic Sonic Storm card and a 56K modem. Carrera did not say whether it would introduce machines using the Celeron processors. Jez Deacon, technical director at Carrera, said that the PII-450 offers the ultimate performance for high end power users. Intel is expected to cut prices again on September 14th next, although the company refuses to say which parts, apart from the Celeron 266MHz, will be affected. ® None of the companies mentioned in this article are investors in The Register