Via To Throw Hat In 64-Bit x86 Chip Ring
Via Technologies, a Taiwanese chipmaker, is following Advanced Micro Devices and Intel with a compatible 64-bit x86 processor design of its own.
Source: c|netVia detailed the chip, code-named Isaiah and internally called CN, Tuesday at the Fall Processor Forum but didn't reveal when it planned to ship the new product. "CN has both the AMD and Intel variants of the...64-bit architecture," said Glenn Henry, president of Centaur Technology, Via's processor development unit. The chip also will have much better performance, particularly when handling video and audio information, Henry said. However, it won't depart from Via's emphasis on low cost, small size and modest power consumption. Via isn't the only low-power chip designer gunning for 64-bit support. Transmeta, whose chips run x86 software through a translation technology, is also working on 64-bit support, Chief Technology Officer David Ditzel said at the show.
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