VIA Technologies Inc (
The world's number two chipset maker and Taiwan's top designer of central processing units (CPU), VIA, also said yesterday it plans to launch the new "Samuel II" 750 Megahertz (MHz) chip by the end of March, followed quickly by an 850 MHz version under the same name.
"Our follow up prototype to (Samuel II) is Ezra, ... This will be built using a .13 micron process and this will come up to around 950 (MHz), to one Gigahertz hopefully by the middle of the year," said Richard Brown, director of international marketing for VIA.
The company, which surprised market pundits and rivals alike last year with 260 percent revenue growth due to phenomenal gains in the world market for computer chipsets, said year 2000 revenue reached US$1 billion. This year, "even though we are in a market that's slowing to some extent, we're still looking to increase our revenues by over 50 percent," said Brown.
Although VIA estimates CPU sales will hit around 10 million chips this year, securities firm CLSA Ltd (
"I take a positive stand in China for their CPU," said Henry Wang (
Wang expects the company to launch its low-cost `Value PC' -- a computer sold to consumers for under US$500 -- in China this year. VIA has teamed up with 3Comm to develop the system, but a prototype is not yet available.
As part of the plan to develop the value PC, VIA created the Samuel I microchips. A computer's CPU is the most expensive part of a computer system. By aiming its chips at low cost, Internet-era electronic devices, the company believes sales will rise sharply in the coming year.
Trouble is, analysts expect Intel and AMD to further strengthen their positions in the market for low-cost computer CPUs. In this arena, VIA plans to make up for its smaller name in microprocessors by competing on price.
Based on the prices listed on their Web sites, Intel sells its 500 MHz Celeron processors at US$118 each in lots of 1,000 units. A comparable VIA product, the 700MHz Cyrix III sells for less than half the Intel price, at US$62 each in lots of 1,000 units.
Brown said the company's relationship with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC,
VIA is a "fabless" chip firm, meaning the company does not manufacture its own chips. Instead, it depends on technological advances made by TSMC to smaller and smaller die sizes in chip making. VIA's Ezra chip is expected to be made in TSMC fabrication plants (fabs) with a ".15 process using a .13 transistor," according to Brown.
In related news, local media reported that Intel will license VIA, Silicon Integrated Systems Corp (
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source