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Touchy today, huh Chip? Imagine $10B in paper losses could do that to you guys.
Great thing about the market is that it lives in the future, not the past, and the market is saying that maybe INTC has gotten off course a little. Wonder why? Perhaps it is the fact that Mr. Irrelevant, AMD, is suddenly kicking Intel’s butt. While Intel has been stumbling,AMD has been winning the battle for the “performance” and, certainly, “price/performance” crowns. Further, AMD is innovating in 64-bit; no longer content to just follow. Playing catchup is becoming a new reality for INTC, huh?
Who was it today who suggested that INTC needs to innovate and recommended, GASP, acquisitions as a way of doing it? Oh, yeh, Goldman. What do those guys know.
Regards, WSH
Intel lost $10.5B in market cap this afternoon in after-hours trading. That is more than 2 1/2 times the market cap of
AMD; 40 times the market cap of TMTA!
Hard to see INTC's valuation returning anytime soon, with stiff competition from AMD at the high end, particularly 64-bit chips.
Will Intel also face stiff competition in the mobile/low-power sphere?
Wonder if Intel is concerned that it may be left dominating only the stagnant middle of the chip market, faced with tight margins and unhappy shareholders?
regards, WSH
Article from The Register on Orion Multisystems computers
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/30/orion_delivers_personal_cluster/
Apparently the Orion desktop is shipping Oct 1 with 1.5GHz Efficeon chips. This is great news on three fronts. First, chips are flowing from the Fujitsu foundry. Second, MPerry was being conservative when he announced initial SKUs for the low-wattage 90nm Efficeons as 1.4GHz. Apparently they already have squeezed some more speed out of them.
Third, while this is a market which TMTA will likely end up sharing with INTC and AMD, it seems to have the potential to be a very nice niche market. Orion seems destined for success with the team they put together.
Regards, WSH
A desktop Green Destiny; DESKTOP DESTINY, perhaps?
So that is what Colin Hunter has been up to. Wondered why his name in no longer mentioned in connection with OQO.
Interesting that TMTA chips are now in use at the extremes of PC computing: handtops and desktop supercomputers.
Tal, as the desktop unit is available Oct. 1, do you know which Efficeon chip is being used? Hope it is 90nm.
WSH
Handtop Roundup
Interesting article comparing handtop options.
An interesting tidbit from the article is that the FlipStart might bypass the Crusoe in favor of an Efficeon chip. I have suspected this might be the case; why otherwise give OQO a 3, 4 month headstart?
http://www.handtops.com/show/news/34
regards WSH
BEIJING, Aug. 29 (Xinhuanet) -- The first batch of 500 laptops designed by mainland Chinese company Amoi has come off the assembly line, which marks a breakthrough in China's computer industry, according to China Radio International Sunday.
Officials from the Information Industry Ministry say the V3 laptop, which is completely designed by Chinese researchers, marks a breakthrough in China's computer industry.
Amoi invested 10 million yuan or about 1.2 million US dollars, in the research and development of the computer.
In recent years, the market for laptops in China has grown by 40 to 50 percent each year.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-08/29/content_1917490.htm
This level of investment suggests that Amoi expects to be a long-term customer of Efficeon processors.
regards WSH
Glad TMTA is finding uses for the stockpile of 130nm Efficeon chips. Have to like the potential for a Chinese designed, Chinese mfg'ed computer. Perhaps future ODMs from Amoi aimed at the US market?
Couldn't find actual photos of the Amoi V3, but it is sort of viewable at the Amoi website:
http://www.amoi.com.cn/english/html/products_detail.asp?tid=24&tname=V3&sid=10&sname=Not....
BTW, this looks like a neat computer. Real small and light with WiFi and a nice list of components. Battery life isn't all that, however.
Dimensions (for those of us who still prefer a Medieval form of measure) 10.63" x 7.2" x 1"; 2.6 lb. Wonder the price?
WSH
thanks wbmw, I also thought the two readouts might be power (in watts) but didn't have a point of reference to an idling ULV INTC chip that you kindly provided.
I agree with your point that at present LR2 technology has most utility for niche markets for PC chips, primarily UPCs and ultralight laptops. However, these markets are going to experience higher levels of growth than more conventional mobile PCs. I fully expect UPCs to have sales in the millions by 2006.
LR2 has applications far beyond PC chips, which is one of the reasons I am so intrigued. NEC licensed the technology for use in its next generation(s) of cellphones. Can Samsung, Nokia, Motorola, et al. be far behind? Cellphone mfgs are very familiar with license fees as a cost of doing business. QCOM and IDCC do real well licensing their patented technologies for use in cellphones. Would love for TMTA to join that club.
Beyond cellphones, the tech would be great for smart phones, wireless handsets, wearables, military apps, various consumer electronics, etc.
A little further down the road, the tech seems to compliment the implementation of OLED display devices and, hopefully, advances in battery tech. Who doesn't want a cellphone that will standby for weeks without a charge?
WSH
wbmw,Chip, anyone - need help interpreting this set of charts, which can be found on a NEC Japanese-language site:
http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2004/0325/transmeta.htm
The charts appear to be from a NEC/TMTA presentation in Japan at the time NEC took a LR2 license and appear to be a graphical display of the advantages of LR2.
One chart shows parameters of a chip with LR2 while running:
=
The other parameters of the same chip at idle:
=
At idle, the leakage drops way off, as does power, and transistor threshold voltage goes way up. This seems quite significant, but I have no real world experience for a comparison.
WSH
OT: Bird, here is the address:
weaksidehelp@yahoo.com
Chip, Dew, good questions without answers at this point.
The fact that NEC was willing to invest in TMTA and pay a large upfront license fee seems to support the view that the technology is unique enough to support a patent registration. It also is likely that since LR2 is a combination of hardware and software, part of the technology (the software side) will remain proprietary whether or not a patent issues.
I suspect that some possible licensees are holding off on serious discussions of licensing LR2 until the patent issue is resolved.
WSH
TMTA is being cautious on LR2 disclosures until the patent issues.
Bird, thanks for the info. I finally was able to talk with IR and learned that the patent application for LR2 technology is still pending at the US Patent and Trademark Office. Apparently it was filed sometime around the first public mention of LR2. Until a patent issues, the company will not issue any "white papers" nor made any conference presentations on LR2. It only discloses the technology to potential licensees under NDAs.
Bird could you send me an email at yahoo.
WSH
wbmw: " . . .then the specs above put them at rough parity with Intel's current performance levels"
I was under the impression that if/when TMTA delivers a 1.4 GHz 7w TDP Efficeon chip and a 1.6 GHz 12w Efficeon chip they will enjoy a considerable speed advantage over the Intel Pentium M low-and ultra low-processors.
While I find it difficult to get disaggregated info from the Intel site, it seems like the Pentium M ultra low voltage chip is 1.0 and 1.1 GHz at 7w and the Pentium M low voltate is 1.3 and 1.4 GHz at 12 w. This does not include a northbridge, which I assume would draw somewhere between 1-2 w?
Could you answer a question regarding these Intel chips. Do these chips maintain the same speed/watt specs on battery as when plugged into the wall, or is there a current version of Speed Step where chip speed immediately is stepped way down once battery power was sensed by the processor (like the Mobile PIII).
BTW, I agree with you on the 2.0 GHz Efficeon drawing 25 watts. That seems a rather unimpressive offering.
As far as a TMTA dual core offering, I believe they feel it is has no technical utility and hope that it will not have any marketing utility.
regards, WSH
I am not as pessimistic regarding the long-term prospects of the HW side of TMTA, at least not since I listened to MPerry present at Soundview.
Here is how I think TMTA mgt is presently viewing the situation. They realize that the Co. could be trimmed back by around 2/3s and become a profitable SW house (assuming LR2 is for real). Yet, a huge profitable company may yet be built around HW, and it is way too early to pull the plug.
Consider, TMTA is likely 2-4 weeks away from being in production with 90nano chips capable of speeds of 1.4 GHz while drawing 7w TDP on battery power; and 1.6 GHz chips pulling 12w on battery power. These chips include a northbridge and are 1/3 the size of a comparable INTC offering. Other chips are on the immediate horizon, including a 2.0GHz 25w intended for big portables.
Admittedly the TMTA chip menu was not competitive with INTC in main mkts in the past, but the 90nano Efficeons should be more than competitive in thin & light portables, UPCs, blade servers, and entertainment boxes. Have to remember that INTC is not without its own problems these days and their proposed solutions are cetainly less than elegant: Eg, INTCs dual core approach is a kluge as only one core will be operating while the computer is on battery power.
Further, the older Crusoes are finding homes in various embedded products (with long life cycles) as well as in early entry UPCs and thin clients. They should own x86 embedded devices, thin clients, and UPCs, and have significant market share in thin and lights. These markets are potentially enormous, but will play out over the next few years.
To break even on HW, they need Q sales of around $35-40M. This assumes allocating a portion of overhead to SW. At asp's of $75 on average (again from Soundview), that represents quarterly sales of say 500K chips. At Soundview, MPerry indicated that a mainstream mobile computer will generate oders of around 100K-150K chips per quarter. I interpret this to mean a typical DELL laptop, for example. All TMTA would need would be four such orders to break even. It is not hard to envision how the HW side can make a lot of money and pretty quickly. Lots of "ifs", but certainly not impossible or even unlikely. I am willing to give mgt a few more Qs to play it out.
I am confident that OQO and FLipStart are going to take off much quicker than the analysts think. Everyone I talk to about this class of product: a) has never heard of it; b) immediately senses unique utility from such a device; and c) wants to know how much and when will it be available. While these units are currently designed for 1 GHz Crusoes, it is likely that the next generation will be designed for 1.4 GHz Efficeons (should be 1.5 or 1.6GHz by then), which have been further downsized (also discussed at Soundview). I also think the introduction of these products over the next few months will immediately change public perception of TMTA in the investment community. What could be better than a new hot product class with off the charts potential, one that can only be powered by a TMTA chip, or at least not by an Intel or AMD chip. I think that gets the immediate attention of Wall Street.
There really is an amazing disconnect at present between perception and reality when it comes to TMTA. The company's prospects have never been better and yet the pps has never been lower. I can recall when I first invested in TMTA in the fall of 2001. I paid $1.90 a share and thought I was getting a bargain. While I have been in and out a lot since then, I never have felt better about owning this stock. Guess TMTA/MPerry is like the boy who cried wolf too many times. This time they are going to have to bring the wolf to the public square in a bag to convince people.
regards, Weaks
Expected reductions in leakage current due to LR2 are all over the map in online reports. I have seen references of cut by 1/6, cut to 1/6th, and reductions of an order of magnitude. Perhaps the problem is in translation from Japanese, or perhaps it is a component/overall system issue.
Could anyone help translate some of the Japanese-language discussions of NEC's license of LR2? This article appears to include a lot of detail regarding the technology:
http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2004/0325/transmeta.htm
What is intriquing to me is that a huge and world class company like NEC has decided to forego its own development of a crucial technology to buy it from TMTA for a license fee of apparently around $9M, annual maintenance fees, and royalty fees on products sold. This seems to confirm huge potential for LR2 both as a technology and profit center to TMTA. Just wish I had a better handle on it. I do think that another major license agmt for LR2 and TMTA's share price takes off like a rocket.
regards, Weaks
TMTA Patent Portfolio (as of Aug '04)
PAT. NO. TITLE
6,754,892 Instruction packing for an advanced microprocessor
6,748,589 Method for increasing the speed of speculative execution
6,738,893 Method and apparatus for scheduling to reduce space and increase speed of microprocessor operations
6,738,892 Use of enable bits to control execution of selected instructions
6,728,865 Pipeline replay support for unaligned memory operations
6,725,361 Method and apparatus for emulating a floating point stack in a translation process
6,714,904 System for using rate of exception event generation during execution of translated instructions to control optimization of the translated instructions
6,668,287 Software direct memory access
6,640,297 Link pipe system for storage and retrieval of sequences of branch addresses
6,615,300 Fast look-up of indirect branch destination in a dynamic translation system
6,604,188 Pipeline replay support for multi-cycle operations wherein all VLIW instructions are flushed upon detection of a multi-cycle atom operation in a VLIW instruction
6,594,821 Translation consistency checking for modified target instructions by comparing to original copy
6,571,316 Cache memory array for multiple address spaces
6,513,110 Check instruction and method
6,430,668 Speculative address translation for processor using segmentation and optical paging
6,429,491 Electrostatic discharge protection for MOSFETs
6,415,379 Method and apparatus for maintaining context while executing translated instructions
6,363,336 Fine grain translation discrimination
6,356,615 Programmable event counter system
6,289,433 Superscalar RISC instruction scheduling
6,199,152 Translated memory protection apparatus for an advanced microprocessor
6,172,925 Memory array bitline timing circuit
6,031,992 Combining hardware and software to provide an improved microprocessor
6,011,908 Gated store buffer for an advanced microprocessor
5,958,061 Host microprocessor with apparatus for temporarily holding target processor state
5,926,832 Method and apparatus for aliasing memory data in an advanced microprocessor
5,905,855 Method and apparatus for correcting errors in computer systems
5,832,205 Memory controller for a microprocessor for detecting a failure of speculation on the physical nature of a component being addressed
Weaks
Longrun2 - How does it work?
I have been trying to figure our LR2 withour great success. Can anyone explain how LR2 controls transistor leakage? wbmw, could you help us out?
Background info on LR2:
this is from an Oct '03 PR from TMTA:
"Transmeta's first generation LongRun(R) power management technology was introduced in January 2000, and was the first technology in the industry to adjust MHz and voltage dynamically, hundreds of times per second, to reduce power consumption. Transmeta's second generation LongRun2 technology extends this approach further to include dynamic adjustments of transistor leakage under software control. Software control is important in order to adjust leakage due to changes in runtime conditions, such as voltage and temperature, which are not predetermined when the chip is manufactured.
"Transmeta's new LongRun2 technology is able to control transistor leakage through software while a chip is running. Transmeta's LongRun2 software works to control leakage as an interdisciplinary solution in combination with special circuits in the Efficeon processor, and with a standard CMOS process.During the demonstration at the Microprocessor Forum conference, Transmeta showed the Efficeon processor adjusting leakage up to hundreds of times per second while playing a video game, playing a DVD movie and going into standby. In standby mode, Efficeon core leakage power was reduced by approximately 70 times by using LongRun2 technology."
Demonstration board on LR2 (from NEC site)
http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2004/0325/transmeta08.jpg
article from NE Asia Online
http://neasia.nikkeibp.com/nea/200407/features_316493.html
“. . .A source at NEC Electronics explained, "We possess a range of technologies at the circuit and device level, but it became evident that they would not provide the answer. We could have developed our own system-level technology, similar to LongRun2, but estimated it would take at least one to one and a half years D and that would be too late."
“. . .LongRun2 varies the potential of the IC silicon substrate to dynamically adjust transistor threshold voltage, providing system-level control. It can be used to calculate the threshold level providing the lowest possible dissipation for the required operating system or application load, and vary the potential of the Si substrate to achieve it. During standby, for example, the threshold voltage would be boosted to slash leakage current. As a source at NEC Electronics put it, "We should be able to reduce dissipation by about one sixth, on average, although it will depend on chip specs."
a best guess flowchart developed by Nikkei Electronics:
http://neasia.nikkeibp.com/image2/nea0407TF5fig1.jpg
interesting article from ComputerWeekly
http://www.computerweekly.com/Article129486.htm
My lay understanding: the focus is on transistor threshold voltage (tv), the voltage required to turn on a transistor. When a given transistor is idle (hundreds of times per second regardless of what the chip is doing), the software sets the threshold voltage to its highest level. At such a level, it takes more power to turn on the transistor, so it is not activated as it would be by lower voltage levels. Not active, not leaking. So, the transistor stays off when it is supposed to be off.
One of the references indicates that NEC is licensing know-how and a patent from TMTA. However, I could not find any indication of a US patent for this technology being issued to Transmeta.
I will post the list of TMTA patents
Weaks
Agree on Soundview - very positive remarks by MPerry
Gentlemen and Lady, hope I am still welcome here.
I have followed TMTA from afar for the last year and
contrary to conventional wisdom was somewhat enthused by the last CC (but not the financials). The Soundview conf. seems to now confirm that the CEO has a clue and the Company might just have the products and licensing opportunities to finally become profitable, perhaps very profitable. In any event, the risk/reward at the present time seems very favorable.
In addition to Bigs excellent comments, the following came out at Soundview:
Leakage current only starts to become a significant issue at 90nano and grows exponentially at 65nano and 45nano. It is going to have to be addressed somehow in battery-powered devices with the tighter lithography. If LR2 is an optimum means to address this issue (wish we knew this), we might look forward to increasing, very significant LR2 licensing revenues as products transition to 90, 65 and 45nano over the next few years.
NEC is licensing LR2 for 90, 65, and 45nano products. Also, the $3M fee paid to date by NEC is only an installment of the license fee. More $ to be paid by NEC over the next two Qs.
MPerry confirmed that one of the two qualification issues for the 90nano Efficeons has been resolved and the other turns out to be a “test setup” issue and not prob in chip design or process. Matt seemed to almost guarantee that the 90nano chip will be in limited production this Q.
MPerry claimed that the 90nano Efficeons will be the "only low power processors” to support MSFT's no-execute tech in SP2. I found this surprising, and encouraging.
The SKUs for the first two 90nano Efficeons (TTM 8800):
7w TDP, 1.4 GHz --- a 300 MHz advantage over 1.1 GHz Intel Pentium M (90nano); and
12w TDP 1.6 Ghz --- a 200-300 MHz advantage over Intel 1.3, 1.4 Pentium M (90nano)
Minor tweaking will result in higher speeds for these chips over the next few months.
a 1.7GHz Efficeon is being sampled.
a 25w 2.0 GHz Efficeon will be sampled by the end of the year and might find a home in mainstream notebooks and media centers.
Matt also provided some insight into what volume of chip purchases we might expect if things get rolling. He indicated that common chip order sizes for mainstream portable computers total 100K-150K per quarter. Further, once one or two such orders are generated, "quick followers" in the industry should place similar orders and sales can ramp very quickly. He used the analogy of a log jam; get a log or two headed our way and a lot will follow, and fast.
Must be the time away. Hope I don't sound too much like a pumper. Hard to believe that I find myself half-believing MPerry at this point. I was all for runing him out of Santa Clara last year.
Weaks
Low-power Centrino chips for ultra portables
Intel rounds out mobile chip family
By John G. Spooner
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
January 24, 2003, 2:54 PM PT
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-982100.html
Intel is making sure not to leave out the little notebooks when it introduces its Centrino chip family in March.
The company will unveil three versions of its low-power Pentium-M processor, formerly code-named Banias, as part of the Centrino package. Aside from coming out with a standard Pentium-M chip, which is expected to run at speeds ranging from 1.3GHz to 1.6GHz, the company will release two as-yet-undisclosed lower-power versions of the chip, sources close to the company said.
The new chips include an ultra-low-voltage Pentium-M that will debut at 900MHz and a low-voltage Pentium-M chip that will begin at 1.1GHz, according to the sources. The chips, along with the rest of the Centrino family, will allow Intel to target the full range of notebook models sold by manufacturers.
Like the standard Pentium-M chips, the low-voltage and ultra-low-voltage processors will be sold under Intel's new Centrino brand name when used with its new mobile chipset and wireless networking module.
"The Centrino mobile family will support all notebook segments from the full-size desktop replacement all the way to the ultraportable," said Shannon Johnson, an Intel spokeswoman.
Johnson declined to provide additional details on the chip family.
Intel has said its Pentium-M chips will deliver more performance and consume less power for full-size and thin-and-light notebooks than its Pentium III-M or Pentium 4-M. But the lower-power Pentium-M chips will run at even lower voltages and therefore consume less energy than a standard Pentium-M.
The low- and ultra-low-voltage Pentium-M versions should increase performance and battery life in the smallest notebooks--ultraportables and mini-notebooks that weigh 3 pounds or less---and tablet PCs. While tablet PCs based on Microsoft's Windows XP Tablet PC Edition software are fairly new to the market, mini-notebooks are popular in Japan and also among business executives who spend a lot of time on the road.
Power consumption is especially important for battery life in these machines, because they don't have large spaces to incorporate large internal batteries.
While battery life differs among notebook models and manufacturers, Intel is aiming to extend battery life with the Pentium-M chip by at least an hour, depending on the version. This could give some notebooks in the 5-pound range a battery life of six hours or more. Meanwhile, a tablet PC that gets three hours of battery life with a Pentium III-M chip would get about four hours with the Pentium-M.
Intel is eyeing the Pentium-M as its next flagship mobile processor. The chip is expected to replace its Pentium 4-M in business systems at first, while the low-power versions should provide a replacement for Intel's low-voltage and ultra-low-voltage Pentium III-M chips. The company is expected to begin phasing out the Pentium III-M chip, but its Pentium 4-M is likely to hang on in larger and consumer-oriented notebooks for some time.
While the new low-power Pentium-Ms will offer more performance and longer battery life than Pentium III-M chips, they aren't expected to cost much more. Intel likely will charge only a small premium for the new chips when they debut.
While the Pentium-M won't run as fast as the Pentium 4-M, Intel is looking to boost its performance by including a 1MB cache for storing a large amount of often-used data.
Oh, the OTHER message board. I don't follow Yahoo very closely these days. For that matter, I don't follow TMTA very closely. At this point, I am from Missouri. I want to see some revenue gains QoQ, not listen to plans/projections/promises from MP. Three quarters of stagnant growth for a "growth company" has been sobering for me. No longer a true believer; but, perhaps, agnostic.
Was I the only one who read the Vulcan PR and felt deja vu all over again? That PR might have been taken word for word from OQO's PR from 3/2002. Apparently, 18 months ago P Allen, the OQO founders, and the IBM researchers all had the same brainstorm at the same time. Last year when IBM and OQO went public with their grand plans, they were met with press and public acclaim. In response to enormous market pull for such a product, IBM entered into a license with a 5 person Colo firm and OQO demonstrated a prototype as a sideshow at every TMTA presentation and hid behind an incomprehensible flash website. A year late to the party (why?), Vulcan now now has appeared with PR and a prototype (maybe). I really find this all pretty baffling. I would have thought by now I could buy an Ultra PC from five OEMs and from retailers worldwide.
I guess the good news is that a true cynic like glanta now feels that Ultra PCs will carry TMTA to break even at the end of 2003. I truly hope so. I truly believe the market is there.
BTW Bird, does iHub now have a problem with links?
regards, wsh
Found another article on embedded apps, wandering around Google News. Lot of same old, same old, but it mentions use of Crusoe SEs in industrial controls for robots and the like, as well as in medical instrumentation. Hadn't seen that before. Also, offers a volume price for the Crusoe SE.
BTW, Bird, what glanta/1stfife thread are you talking about. I have been missing ol' glanta for months now.
wsh
http://www.eetuk.com/tech/news/OEG20030106S0004
Transmeta burrowing into embedded controls
By Crista Souza, EBN
Jan 6, 2003 (2:09 AM)
Having struggled to make headway in the mainstream computer market dominated by Intel Corp., microprocessor maker Transmeta Corp. today will announce its entry into embedded controls. While not abandoning its pursuit of low-power mobile applications, Transmeta has retargeted its x86-based Crusoe chip for use in lower-volume areas like industrial automation, medical instrumentation, point-of-sale terminals, and automotive "infotainment."
The new Crusoe SE (Special Embedded) will offer a range of performance from 667 to 933MHz in low and standard power versions with low operating temperatures.
Transmeta said it is sampling the device and has aligned with approximately 20 embedded software and silicon vendors, including Microsoft Corp., MontaVista Software Inc., and Silicon Motion Inc.
The company also said it has set up a distribution and sales channel geared toward embedded customers in the United States, Europe, and Asia, but declined to name its partners prior to today's official Crusoe SE launch.
According to Tom Lee, director of Transmeta's embedded business development, OEMs have already adopted Crusoe in embedded systems for the same reasons it was attractive in mobile applications: a lot of horsepower in a small space without the need for a cooling system.
"Typical embedded processor applications like point-of-sale terminals or robot arm controllers that use x86 range in speed from 133MHz to 1GHz, so you'll see the Pentium I and II, and even the PIII in that market," Lee said. "The problem is, once you get any significant processing power, you have to add a fan, which causes significant reliability and heat issues."
Crusoe's LongRun power and thermal management feature is present in the SE model, allowing embedded systems to automatically scale operating frequency and voltage up or down, depending on processing needs.
About the only thing that's different in Crusoe SE is that it will undergo more rigorous reliability testing to stand up to Transmeta's guarantee of 24/7 operation for 10 years, and is also guaranteed to be available in production for five years.
As various processor architectures have migrated out of the embedded arena, the x86 has quietly gained ground, particularly in point-of-sale terminals and industrial controls, according to Tony Massimini, an analyst at Semico Research Corp., Phoenix.
Semico forecasts the x86 embedded market to grow from sales of $460 million in 2002 to more than $600 million this year. By 2005, sales are expected to surge to $900 million, as x86-based designs in retail kiosks and automotive infotainment kick in, Massimini said.
Transmeta alluded to a possible foray into the embedded market in October, when it announced that Microsoft had certified Crusoe processors for the Windows CE.NET operating system. Crusoe SE is also designed to take advantage of the Windows XP Embedded OS, the company said.
But Transmeta hasn't given up on the mainstream market. The Santa Clara, Calif., company is working on a re-design of Crusoe, called Astro, scheduled for a third-quarter launch. Astro will have "significantly higher performance" while maintaining low power consumption, according to a company spokesman.
"Trying to compete in the computing market is tough," said Semico's Massimini. "Intel and AMD have done a good job of bringing power consumption down and addressing the low-cost, low-power notebook market that Transmeta was counting on."
Despite a number of high-profile mobile and tablet PC design wins, Transmeta continues to be a niche player, with revenue of $6.4 million in the third quarter.
Outside the PC market, where unit price is less of a factor than reliability, power consumption, and temperature, there's more opportunity for a relative newcomer, analysts said.
The x86 architecture's strength in the industrial and instrumentation markets is largely a function of its low cost structure, a characteristic Transmeta hopes to work to its advantage. Typical embedded processors range from $50 to $100, and Transmeta said volume pricing for its 667MHz Crusoe SE will start under $50.
However, the complexities of the embedded world and the stamina required to survive are often underestimated by companies that seek its stability as a safe haven from less predictable markets, said Bert McComas, an analyst at InQuest Market Research, Higley, Ariz.
Still, no vendor or architecture dominates the space, so it may be easier for a company like Transmeta to penetrate--as long as investors are patient, he said.
"It takes a lean operation to play in the embedded market," McComas said. "The design cycles are long, the production ramp is long, so it's not an immediate payoff. It's a question of how long they can hold their breath.
"But once you get designed in, it's not as if Intel can come along and, in the next refresh spin, replace you with an Intel processor."
Sharp launches latest Transmeta notebooks
By Martyn Williams
IDG News Service, Tokyo Bureau
21-01-2003
http://www.idg.com.sg/idgwww.nsf/unidlookup/DC19747FA0B1F83948256CB5000A8D7E?OpenDocument
TOKYO - Sharp Corp. has unveiled the latest in its line of low-power, light and slim notebook computers based on processors from Transmeta Corp.
The Mebius Muramasa PC-MM1-H3 is a faster version of a machine launched in October last year and now features a Transmeta TM5800 processor running at 1GHz, Sharp said on Friday. The USB (Universal Serial Bus) has also been upgraded from version 1.1 to the new and much faster version 2.0 while other major specifications stay the same.
They include 256M bytes of DDR (double data rate) DRAM (dynamic RAM), a 15G-byte hard disk drive, 10.4-inch XGA resolution TFT (thin film transistor) display and built-in Fast Ethernet (100Base-T/10Base-T) and wireless LAN (IEEE802.11b). The machine's standard battery provides enough power for 3.1 hours of use while a medium-size battery pack extends this to 5.7 hours and a large-size battery pack to 9.5 hours, according to Sharp measurements based on Japanese industry standards.
The computer also supports Sharp's new docking station that allows data to be synchronized while the machine is in standby or hibernate mode.
The computer will be available in the domestic market later in January in two versions both including the Windows XP Home operating system. The PC-MM1-H3W will be priced at around ¥170,000 (US$1,445) and the PC-MM1-H3S, which includes Office XP, will cost around ¥190,000.
Sharp's use of the Transmeta chip makes the new machine the latest in a growing line of notebook computers from the Osaka company to feature the processors. Japan, where notebook computers outsell desktop machines, has proved to be Transmeta's most lucrative market and was where it chalked up 65 percent of its sales in the third quarter of its fiscal year 2002, according to the company.
Launch of the new machine comes in the same week that Transmeta announced it had found a new customer in Asia. Tsinghua Unisplendour Group in Beijing, China, will use an 800MHz version of the TM5800 chip in a notebook computer targeted at women. The company is the second Chinese notebook maker to pick Transmeta after SVA Group did the same in October last year.
Dew, the parallels between our posts are eerie, but I always knew you were very insightful <g>.
Hope you are right about Dell. If the ultimate Intel OEM were to deflect, that would get a lot of attention and TMTA's pps would get a heck of a lift.
BTW, read from time to time your contributions to iHub's INTC Board. Great work!
regards wsh
I was somewhat disappointed by guidance for 1Q03, but hopefully the unnamed white knight will arrive to boost revs for the quarter.
Did anyone else notice, perhaps, a slip in the timetable for the TM8000. Production no longer is "early 2H03" but now "mid 3Q03."
Was glad to hear that the yields continue to improve.
Steak, no mention any longer of Gericom. Any idea what happened there?
If margins don't improve, I have a hard time seeing TMTA getting to break even at the end of 4Q03. If margins don't get over 40%, quarterly sales are going to have to ramp to over $50MM.
regards, wsh
Steak, I hope you are right, but suspect you are being somewhat optimistic.
My gut feeling is that you are correct that the NAZ is due for a rise and your figure of 20% feels about right over 1H03.
TMTA's current market cap is $184MM. If it rises with the other "boats" in the NAZ, TMTA would then be at a Mkt Cap of $220MM, and a share price of $1.62 or so.
A further, merit-based jump up to a mkt cap of $500MM seems a bit much to ask, during a period when Banias figures to take center stage and we will not have too much in the way of new revenues from tablet and embedded chip sales. I thought I was somewhat optimistic in thinking/hoping TMTA could get to a share price of $3 by 7/1, but then show accelerated growth in 2H03 when the TM8000 starts to get traction and we see some results from the embedded space. I really think 2H03 will be the period of growth for TMTA.
Steak, Bird, it was great to read on future security capabilities of Crusoes. While the articles don't mention it, security passwords/codes/algorythms held in CMS could be upgraded over time by simple downloads to keep the chips state of the art in terms of security. This should prove to be a big advantage to TMTA chips.
wsh
Interesting NYTimes article on CES
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/13/technology/13DIGI.html
At Big Consumer Electronics Show, the Buzz Is All About Connections
By SAUL HANSELL
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 11 —— Not too long ago the only way to put your vacation snapshots on your television was with Scotch tape. Mainly, photos stayed on paper, music on the stereo, e-mail on the computer and movies on the television.
But since the consumer electronics industry has persuaded people to convert their music, photos and television into digital form, it is now possible for nearly any bit of sight or sound to be disgorged by nearly any digital electronic device. And that sets the stage for the industry's next big opportunity: selling products that link all these digital devices into various forms of home networks.
At the Consumer Electronics Association's annual trade show, which was held here Wednesday through Saturday, the industry was jubilant over its success with digital products. Despite economic uncertainty, sales of consumer electronics in the United States increased by 3.7 percent in 2002 to set a record of $96.2 billion, according to the association. The trade show, with 2,200 exhibitors and 100,000 attendees, has become the largest convention in North America, eclipsing the Comdex annual computer show.
What excited the manufacturers here most was the prospect that all these digital devices will create even more needs to fill. Now, the companies say, people need so-called media hubs and computer servers to store and organize photos, music and video. They need wired and wireless networks to move them around their houses. And they need portable gizmos to keep all the content in their pockets wherever they go.
"The boundaries of what constitutes consumer electronics and computers are getting blurred," said Gerard J. Kleisterlee, the chief executive of Royal Philips Electronics in an interview here. "As we get wireless networking in the home, everything starts to talk to everything."
No one is shipping a product that does all of this yet, but the show featured myriad new products that connect something to other things. Most common were systems to route music, downloaded from the Internet or copied from CD's, to home stereo systems, rather than confining it to tinny computer speakers. Other systems enable television sets to view photographs as well as home videos and, in some cases, to record television programs stored on devices in another room.
A new class of portable devices also appeared, one that lets users watch downloaded videos on the go, much as they now listen to MP3 audio files.
Amid the cacophony of product introductions here were the rumblings of an underlying debate about what sort of device will be at the center of these home-based networks.
Electronics companies like Philips, Samsung, RCA and Pioneer have created stand-alone devices to sit in a stack with other audio and video components. But computer companies like Hewlett-Packard and Viewsonic have introduced expanded Windows-based PC's to control audio and video signals.
"The place where it all comes together, your video and audio and your preferences, is the PC," said Bill Gates, the chairman of Microsoft, which makes a version of its Windows XP operating system that is used by the Hewlett-Packard and Viewsonic media computers.
"People want things in one place," he added. "When you had things in tape formats, you were always wondering where they were. It's very different than having it on a hard disk where you can say, `Christmas '97,' and see it right away."
Article continues . . . see link
News from CES /timetable for OQO
http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,108754,00.asp
Transmeta Pushes On, Plans Astro Launch
Once flamboyant chip maker settles in for another battle with Intel.
Tom Mainelli, PCWorld.com
Monday, January 13, 2003
Manufacturing miscues, management shakeups, and a flagging technology industry have made for several tough years at Transmeta. Undaunted, the upstart chip maker is set to again challenge giant Intel, boasting a handful of new design wins and a brand new mobile processor.
The company recently demonstrated an early version of its upcoming processor code-named Astro, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Executives were eager to tout some new products using Transmeta's Crusoe 5800 chip, and to talk about the company's future.
Astro is Key
Transmeta plans to ship its first Astro TM8000 processor in the third quarter of this year. Built brand-new from the ground up, the chip represents the company's future, and executives are confident it will bring success.
"This will drive us into mainstream notebook," says Michael DeNeffe, director of marketing. "And it is going to be very competitive with Banias." Banias is the upcoming mobile-only chip from Intel, which recently officially branded the processor and its surrounding technologies Centrino. Intel plans to ship it in the first half of this year.
Astro represents a significant leap forward in technology for Transmeta, DeNeffe says. The current Crusoe 5800 is a four-issue processor; Astro doubles that with eight 32-bit instructions per clock, making it a 256-bit chip. The end result: A processor that completes more work per clock cycle while continuing to run at low power.
"It's a dramatic improvement over the 5800," he says. The chip provides better overall performance and can launch applications up to 40 percent faster than the 5800.
These traits should appeal to vendors making 12- to 14-inch notebooks, a market that where Transmeta would like to compete with Intel, he says.
The company hasn't announced clock speeds for the Astro chip yet, but its focus on better performance per clock tick suggests that megahertz won't be top priority. In a market bred to love speed, that can be tough; but Intel will likely face the same situation with Centrino.
In fact, Transmeta is counting on Intel's larger marketing budget to lead the way in continuing to educate buyers that GHz isn't everything, DeNeffe says.
The company is confident its new chip can give Intel's a run for its money, he says, and at a significantly lower price.
Crusoe Steams Ahead
In the meantime, Transmeta continues to sell its Crusoe 5800 chip, and recently launched an embedded version called the 5800SE.
One of the anticipated upcoming products to use the 5800 is OQO's ultra-personal computer, a hand-sized unit that has all the power and features of a full-sized notebook for about $1500.
Due in the second quarter of this year, the unit will run Windows XP. "It is your one computer in the same way that your cell phone can be your one telephone," says Colin Hunter, president of OQO.
Transmeta's DeNeffe says the company has been pushing modular computing for some time, and is proud to be inside the OQO product. "This is a great product with off-the-shelf technologies, great integration, and some proprietary power management technologies."
The 5800 will appear in another modular computer from Antelope called the Mobile Computing Core. Based on IBM technology, the unit is about the size of a laptop battery. It's a fully operational computer that you slide into a desktop or notebook shell to use.
The 5800 is also finding its way into new Tablet PCs and Smart Displays based on Microsoft's technology, he says. Among the company's key wins in this area is Compaq Tablet PC TC1000 from HP that's been shipping since November.
"Tablet PC is very important to us," he says. And having a major U.S.-based vendor like HP choose Transmeta for its tablet PC was a big win for the company, he says.
It's something the company has yet to do on the notebook side. While it's made strides with vendors in Japan, the company is still waiting for a break in America.
DeNeffe admits it would be good to have a U.S. vendor sign on for Astro, but the company doesn't need it to survive. "It would be nice to have, but it's not necessary. A single U.S. manufacturer is just a small part of the bigger market."
Renewed Optimism
Transmeta can worry about winning over domestic vendors later; what's important right now is finishing Astro and shipping it on time, DeNeffe says. It was manufacturing problems in 2001 that led to long delays on the 5800.
"We had a stutter step in 2001 going to the new process," he says. The company transitioned its chips from .18 micron to the more efficient .13 micron at that time. At the same time it was transferring its manufacturing from IBM to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. The combined problems led to delays of about six months he says.
In the meantime, management shakeups saw Chief Executive Officer Mark Allen forced out and eventually replaced by current CEO Matthew Perry. The company was also forced to downsize, cutting its staff from a high of 450 to 290 now.
Now, the once showy company--which made enough noise before its initial launch to get Intel's attention--is ready to move forward, quietly creating new and better processors and delivering them on time, DeNeffe says.
Thanks Dew. I have been lurking some, but have been actively trading other accounts lately. Might want to keep an eye on DYN.
I disagree somewhat regarding the embedded space. While it takes awhile to get one's chips "embedded," once they are adopted into products a steady cash flow is realized for a long product cycle. Certainly the margins aren't very high, but long-term dependable income from multiple sources provides a foundation for a company like TMTA. An analogy would be to the various chipsets that Intel has sold over the years, allowing income from other than microprocessors.
I am actually quite excited about this push for the embedded space. It seems well planned and promoted. Hope this is a lead-in to good earnings/guidance and not a substitute.
Regards, wsh
Transmeta climbs into embedded market
By Michael Kanellos
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
January 5, 2003, 9:00 PM PT
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-979186.html
Transmeta on Monday will release its first line of chips for cash registers, industrial equipment and other embedded applications in an attempt to diversify its business.
The Crusoe SE processors are similar to the company's notebook chips but will be incorporated into a wider variety of nontraditional devices, such as point-of-display terminals or in-car entertainment systems. Embedded chips typically perform a limited number of functions and run only a few software applications, but must be far more resistant to breakdowns and environmental hazards, such as dust, than PC chips.
The Transmeta chips fill a niche between products from ARM and MIPS, which are fairly popular in the embedded world, and processors from Intel and AMD, said Tom Lee, director of embedded business development at Transmeta.
The Crusoe SE line runs at 667MHz to 933MHz, faster than most ARM chips, but consume less power than competing Intel and AMD chips, thereby eliminating the need for internal cooling fans.
"The last thing you want is a fan. Reliability is king in this market," Lee said. "What you want is something that won't break down from grease being sucked into the French fry machine."
The chips also can run Windows and Linux software, he noted.
After a glamorous start, Transmeta has been trying to recover from a disastrous slide in 2001. The company's Crusoe 5800 chip was delayed several times that year, prompting Toshiba to cancel a Transmeta-based notebook for the U.S. market. Revenue fell to below $2 million a quarter, forcing the company to replace CEOs and lay off employees.
Although Transmeta continues to lose money, it managed to get the 5800 out the door in 2002 and is currently working on a new chip, called the Astro, which will debut later this year. Revenue also has risen lately.
The embedded market differs substantially from the PC market. Embedded chips typically sell for less than their PC counterparts and companies often need fewer chips. On the plus side, there are far more potential customers, Lee said.
Contracts also can run for far longer. Notebook manufacturers refresh their product lines every six months, requiring chipmakers to continually pursue new agreements. By contrast, a cash register manufacturer might sell the same model for several years, effectively guaranteeing a revenue stream to companies that supply its components.
To that end, Transmeta says it will promise to sell the same chips for five years, so that manufacturers won't have to worry about redesigning their systems or boards, said Lee.
The company will initially make six Crusoe SE chips. The chips will run at 667MHz, 800MHz and 933MHz. At each speed grade there will be a regular and low-power model, Lee said.
regards, wsh
wbmw, can you refresh my memory on die size for the .13micron Banias. That would be without a north bridge I would assume?
You indicated: With the increase in complexity, the Astro is sure to dissipate more heat than the TM5800, but at least the extra die size will allow for additional cooling.
The early info on the Astro was that it required around 1/3 less energy than the TM5800 (this is from memory, but it was around there), so with a larger die size I would think the chip would be very cool. Perhaps some info on the Astro energy requirements will soon leak from Las Vegas.
regards, wsh
Comdex preview from PCWorld
http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,106992,00.asp
. . . Many Tablet PC makers and Tablet PC software vendors have their first big showcase at Comdex. They only recently unveiled their wares, after Microsoft released its Windows XP Tablet Edition earlier in November. Now, the Tablet PC proponents are gearing up to convince buyers they need the new device. Hewlett-Packard, Fujitsu, and Toshiba are among those displaying recently announced products.
"It will be interesting to see the formal coming-out of the Tablets," says Roger Kay, IDC's director of client computing. "Several non-name-brand vendors are coming out of the woodwork."
One such firm is Gerak Mobile Technology, which is launching at Comdex what it calls the world's smallest Tablet PC. Software firm FrogPad is hopping onto the Tablet PC pad, with peripherals like a one-handed keyboard. Corel is showing Corel Grafigo, a Tablet PC program for sketching, annotating, and creating graphics.
regards, wsh
Thanks Bird, NEC using the 1GHz TM5800 is great evidence that TMTA can produce the fast chip in quantity, and for OEMs other than HPQ.
BTW, thank the Royals when you see them for getting back in the tabloid news. Great stuff. What is going on "behind" the scenes at Buckingham Palace with those buttlers?
Good article by Maureen Dowd:
http://www.iht.com/articles/76852.html
regards, wsh
response from HPQ
I sent an email to HPQ several days ago and it was routed to a staffer involved in the marketing of the TC-1000. Specifically, I asked re the marketing channels for the product and when the units would be shipped in commercial quantities.
Here is the answer I received:
Product will be sold in the standard commercial channels and online. No plans to sell in retail at this time. Target market is the business users and vertical markets are secondary target.
We are currently shipping TC1000.
If someone is interested, send me a message at weaksidehelp@yahoo.com and I can provide the HPQ email address.
regards, wsh
Some new info on Tablet PC, including list of 3rd-party application developers
http://www.societyreview.com/read.asp?ID=4450&CatID=1163
Windows XP-Based Tablet PCs Arrive with Broad Industry Support
Next-Generation Mobile PC Enables New Levels of Productivity For Information Workers
NEW YORK, Nov. 7 -- The long-held industry vision of mainstream pen-based computing today became a reality as Microsoft Corp. and a broad range of computer, software and microchip companies announced the availability of Tablet PCs. Bill Gates, chairman and chief software architect of Microsoft, was joined by corporate customers and partners to showcase the capabilities of the Tablet PC as the evolution of today's notebook PCs.
Tablet PCs combine the full power of the Windows(R) XP Tablet PC Edition operating system with the capability to use a digital pen in addition to a keyboard or mouse. The result is a computer that can be used more often, and in more places, than traditional notebook PCs.
"The launch of the Tablet PC marks an exciting new era of mobile computing that is limited only by the imagination of its users," Gates said. "The Tablet PC is a great example of how computers are adapting to how people really work, whether they're taking notes in a meeting, collaborating wirelessly with colleagues or reading on screen. We're just scratching the surface of what is possible."
Underscoring the flexibility of the Tablet PC, Gates and Jeff Raikes, group vice president of the Productivity and Business Systems Group at Microsoft, showcased early enterprise momentum from Electronic Data Systems Corp. (EDS) and Merck & Company Inc., two of the 26 corporate customers that are taking part in Microsoft's Tablet PC rapid deployment program.
New Hardware, Software Shown
Attendees at the launch event were able to view shipping hardware designs from Acer Inc., FIC, Fujitsu PC Corp., HP, Motion Computing Inc., NEC Corp., Tatung Co., Toshiba America Information Systems Inc. and ViewSonic Corp. In addition, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd. announced its intention to build a Tablet PC under the Panasonic brand. Tablet PCs are available in two primary designs: One features an attached keyboard and can be configured in the traditional laptop "clamshell" mode, and the other uses a variety of detachable keyboard designs in a so-called "slate" form factor. All Tablet PCs are designed to be a user's primary business PC, recognizing input from a keyboard, mouse or pen. Tablet PCs are powered by chips optimized for low power consumption and longer life from Intel Corp., Transmeta Corp. and Via Technologies Inc. Tablet PCs are available at retailers throughout the United States. Final retail prices are being announced by each manufacturer.
Raikes demonstrated several new software applications for the Tablet PC, showcasing the power of the platform. Tablet PCs ship with extensions to Microsoft's Office XP suite that bring the power of digital ink to key Office XP applications such as the Outlook(R) messaging and collaboration client, Microsoft(R) Word, Excel, and the PowerPoint(R) presentation graphics program. With a Tablet PC running Office XP, users will be able to incorporate the comfort of handwriting into everyday tasks such as creating e-mail, annotating word documents and marking up PowerPoint presentations.
For on-screen reading applications, Gates announced the availability of Microsoft Reader for Tablet PC, the latest version of Microsoft's eReading application, optimized to take advantage of the Tablet PC. Purchasers of Tablet PCs from select manufacturers will be able to take advantage of a special promotional offer that enables new Tablet PC owners to download an engaging selection of free eBooks* targeted to business professionals. A link to the promotional site will be preinstalled on Tablet PCs from participating OEMs. In addition, Gates announced that several prominent newspaper and magazine publishers, including The New Yorker, Forbes Magazine, Slate Magazine and the Financial Times, are working with Microsoft's Advanced Reading Technologies Group to make their publications available to Tablet PC users.
Raikes demonstrated new applications from several third-party companies, including Corel Corp., SAP AG, Stentor Inc. and FranklinCovey. Below is a full list of companies that have developed applications for the Tablet PC.
-- Adobe Systems Inc., network publishing solutions
-- Agilix Labs Inc., mobile wireless solutions
-- Alias/Wavefront, drawing
-- Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc., mobile clinical
automation software for physicians
-- Autodesk Inc., design solutions
-- Avanade Inc., mobile solutions
-- BAE SYSTEMS, systems integrator
-- Corel Corp., graphics and business productivity applications
-- Dassault Systemes, computer aided design
-- ESRI, mapping
-- FranklinCovey, personal and collaborative planning and
scheduling
-- Groove Networks Inc., collaboration solutions
-- Hanwang Technologies Inc., wireless communications
-- iSoft Corp., peer-to-peer communications software
-- Iteration Software Inc., real-time event-driven reporting
-- Keylogix International Ltd., document automation
-- Leszynski Group Inc., custom software solutions
-- Microsoft Office XP, business productivity suite
-- Microsoft Reader for Tablet PC, eReading
-- Microsoft Visio(R), business drawing and diagramming solution
-- SAP AG, business processes
-- ScanSoft Inc., document imaging software
-- Siebel Systems Inc., eBusiness applications software
-- Stentor Inc., medical imaging
-- WebEx Communications Inc., Web-based whiteboard/conferencing
-- Zinio Systems Inc., digital magazine technology and services
About the Tablet PC
Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition enables next-generation personal computers to be optimized for mobility, convenience, reduced weight and comfort. The Tablet PC operating system enables Windows-based applications to take advantage of various input modes, including keyboard, mouse, pen and voice. With software developed and optimized by Microsoft for the new platform, the Tablet PC can function as a sheet of paper.
Handwriting is captured as rich digital ink for immediate or later manipulation, including reformatting and editing. The link between the pen input process and a wide range of Windows-based applications will give users new ways in which to collaborate, communicate and bring their PCs to bear on new tasks. Its high- resolution display makes Tablet PC ideal for immersive reading and rich multimedia applications.
The Tablet PC's full Windows XP capability will enable it to be a user's primary computer. Utilizing a high-performance x86-compatible chip architecture, the Tablet PC takes advantage of key technology improvements in high-resolution, low-power LCDs; efficient batteries; wireless connectivity; and data storage to deliver a rich set of functionality that adds the dimension of pen-based input
HP: Pleased with TC1000's performance/battery life
Some news on the TC1000
http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/20430-1.html
Tablets are "highly personal, highly mobile," said Ted Clark, Hewlett-Packard Personal Systems Group’’s vice president for new notebook business. He said the 3-pound, $1,699 Compaq Tablet TC1000 will have the 1-GHz Crusoe TM5800 processor from Transmeta Corp. of Santa Clara, Calif., which lengthens battery operation up to 4.5 hours without heating up as much as earlier mobile processors.
"We’ve been very pleased with the performance and battery life we’’re getting with Transmeta," Clark said.
The metallic-silver TC1000 builds in 30G of hard-drive storage, a V.90 modem, IEEE 802.11b wireless connectivity, and Universal Serial Bus 2.0 ports for hooking up floppy and CD/DVD drives. Clark described the LCD glass as a "hardened and tempered" writing surface for the stylus, which costs $49 to replace. Included is a zippered portfolio for slipping in the LCD like a legal pad. A docking station adds $299 to the price.
http://news.com.com/2100-1040-958804.html
The Evo tablet PC, announced last June, will be able to transform into a tablet-style PC as well as a traditional notebook. In "tablet mode," the computer screen will lay on top of (and cover) the keyboard. To operate as a notebook, the screen simply swivels around to sit in its proper position.
Incorporating a 1GHz Crusoe TM5800 processor from Transmeta will also allow the upstart chip company to expand into the corporate market.
LR, probably, but let's keep our fingers crossed.
You might recall this article from the Inquirer from August, citing our own (and Yahoo's) moldyegg as authority.
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=5036
regards, wsh
Dew, don't disagree, it is just that my antennae have been waving ever since M Perry announced in July that, after consults with OEMS, "improvements" were being made to the TM5800 to make "it even better," or some such verbiage.
I still have a feeling that there is more to this story than what has been reported, and, perhaps, the drop in TMTA's 3Q and est. 4Q sales is related somehow.
regards, wsh
Bird, the Compaq Tablet has nice spec's.
To your list apparently you can add a USB2.0 port and a NVIDIA 16MB video card. Here is a link to a table comparing specs for various Tablet PCs:
http://www.tabletpctalk.com/faqs/hwcomparison.shtml
The use of a 6-cell battery seems to indicate that the HPQ Tablet will have good battery life; just wish I knew what it was.
regards, wsh
Thanks for the link Bird.
Am I reading too much into this, or is this a signficant statement:
The latest model is equipped with Transmeta(R) Corporation's (Nasdaq:TMTA) enhanced energy-efficient 933MHz Crusoe(TM) TM5800 Processor with LongRun(TM) Power Management and comes with up to 384MB of system memory(2). The Crusoe processor adjusts power on-the-fly, about 200 times per second, providing only the power required at any given moment.
As you might recall, I was flummoxed to learn during the 2Q CC that TMTA intended to make improvements to the TM5800, primarily for power conservation (and ranted on about it on the Board). Is the reference above an indication that such changes have now been incorporated into an "enhanced" TM5800, or it might be only referring to the increase in clock speed. Perhaps we will know more when the HPQ tablet is released, or at least when they announce run time on battery power. Also, I don't recall ever reading before about power adjustments made 200 tps.
BTW, could you send me an email at weaksidehelp@yahoo.com. Thnks.
regards, wsh
We can hope. HPQ apparently is attempting to compete with Dell on price. I hope that adoption of Crusoe chips for Tablet PCs is a cornerstone of this strategy and not incidental.
I forgot to highlight another very interesting aspect of that Fortune article:
"To make all that work, you'll need the latest processor chips, hopes Intel. One of the chipmaker's biggest industry roles is as the advertising sugar daddy. It pays as much as 70% of the cost of all those PC ads that include the "Intel Inside" logo. It also spends hundreds of millions annually on its own direct advertisements intended to goose PC purchasing. Starting early next year, Intel plans a marketing push to promote wireless broadband. To handle this properly, computers will have to include the most expensive, state-of-the-art chips. Says CEO Barrett: "People get bored with the Yankees winning the World Series, and they get bored with megahertz. The industry needs a bit of new enthusiasm or jazz."
I never read before just how high a percentage of co-op advertising INTC is willing to contribute towards OEM PC advertising.
wbmw, do you have a sense if 70% is a typical level of financial support, or if a lower co-op percentage is more customary?
regards, wsh