AMD Unabashed About 1.1GHz

If you bought a leading-edge $2500 PC with a 650MHz AMD Athlon processor last year, you'll be kicking yourself now. This month, AMD Athlon 1.1GHz processor-based systems will retail at approximately the same price.

AMD announced today that it has begun to ship the 1.1GHz processors to computer manufacturers. These lucky people include Compaq, Fujitsu-Siemens, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, IBM and NEC, many of which aim to introduce systems featuring the processor as soon as August 28th.

"What a difference a year makes," said W.J. Sanders III, chairman and chief executive officer. "The AMD Athlon and AMD Duron processors are reshaping the landscape of the PC industry. AMD is supplying the highest performing products in volume, creating vital new partnerships to bring innovative solutions to market, and offering business and home users a broad and powerful portfolio of computing solutions."

Right. AMD is more than on track to meet its goal of doubling shipments of seventh generation PC processors to 3.6 million units in this quarter, and again doubling shipments to 7.2 million units in the fourth quarter. The realization of these grand sale projections is certainly helped by the long list of worldwide awards AMD's Athlon processor has received, including PC World Product of the Year and Analyst's Choice Award For Best PC Processor.

The new AMD pricing scheme is as follows:
The 1.1GHz, 1GHz, 950MHz, 900MHz, 850 MHz, and 800 MHz AMD Athlon processors are priced at $853, $612, $460, $350, $282, and $215 respectively, each in 1,000-unit quantities. The 700MHz, 650MHz, and 600MHz AMD Duron processors are priced at $138, $103, and $79 respectively, each in 1,000-unit quantities.

Sanders confidently claimed unabashedly:
"AMD's superior product architectures, outstanding execution, and ability to manufacture high volumes of high-frequency parts have resulted in tremendous changes in the marketplace. AMD's success in these three areas has redefined the performance segment of the market, which now extends from 800MHz to 1.1GHz, and the value PC, characterized by systems that typically sell for less than $1,000, ranging from 600 to 700MHz. The result: at any system price point, business and home users will get a more powerful PC with an AMD processor-based system."