RE: AS/400 on Intel??

["Murphy, Guy" <murphy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Title: RE: AS/400 on Intel??

Check out http://www.midrangecomputing.com/mmu/currentissue1.cfm?991004

-----Original Message-----
From: Richard Rosenbluth [mailto:rose400@pacbell.net]
Sent: Tuesday, October 05, 1999 4:15 PM
To: MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com
Subject: AS/400 on Intel??

> 
>         InformationWeek Daily 10/5/99
>         Tue, 5 Oct 1999 01:05:15 -0600
>         InformationWeek <news@daily.informationweek.com>
>
>
> - Intel: Itanium It Is, And IBM's On Board
>
> Intel officials said yesterday they've raised with IBM the possibility of
> replacing the chip used to power the company's popular AS/400 server
> line with Intel's forthcoming Itanium processor, which until now has been
> known by its code-name, Merced. While Intel said that IBM hasn't
> committed to using Itanium in the AS/400, it has agreed to transition its
> Pentium-based servers onto the processor beginning next year, when the
> chip ships. "They're interested, but they haven't made a commitment" on
> the AS/400, says Ron Curry, director of marketing for Intel's IA-64
> product group, adding that, "For the Netfinity line, they have."
>
> Currently, the AS/400 runs on PowerPC chips designed jointly by IBM
> and Motorola. Intel, however, claims that the 64-bit Itanium chip, which
> features what the company calls Explicitly Parallel Instruction
> Computing, will be faster than RISC-based PowerPC chips. IBM officials
> weren't immediately available for comment. Along with IBM, other
> companies that have committed to Itanium for at least some of their
> server offerings include Compaq, Dell, and Hewlett-Packard, according to
> Intel.
>
> Intel's comments about IBM were made as the company announced
> Itanium as the official moniker of the often-delayed 64-bit chip.
> Explaining the choice, an Intel spokesman says, "There's the obvious
> association with a very high-tech metal that connotes strength."
> Samples of Itanium are shipping to developers and Intel's OEM
> partners, the spokesman says.  - Paul McDougall
>

Wouldn't this be a step backwards for the 400. Or would they only be
considering it for the very low end?

--
Richard Rosenbluth
Rose Information Management Co.
mailto:rose400@pacbell.net