SiS integrated chipset heralds cheaper P4 PCs

Matthew Broersma ZDNet.co.uk

Published: 26 Sep 2001 16:56 BST

PCs with Intel's Pentium 4 processor will get a little cheaper next month with the release of a new chipset that aims at the "value" PC market. Taiwan's Silicon Integrated Systems (SiS) announced its SiS650 integrated chipset this week, aimed at PCs in the $800 to $1,200 range (£560 to £840).

The new chipset includes SiS's 315 graphics core and low-cost DDR and PC133 memory, making it possible to build low-cost systems. Until recently, Pentium 4 systems were only available at relatively high prices, partly because its chipset only supported expensive Rambus memory.

A chipset allows the processor to communicate with other PC components, such as memory and input/output devices.

The 650, which follows on the heels of the SiS645, supports the Pentium 4 400MHz front-side bus chipset, and can connect with SiS's southbridge at 533 megabits per second.

The chipset will ship in October and will sell for $39 in quantities of 10,000.

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