THE LEDGER-STAR
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, December 20, 1994 TAG: 9412200519
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: SANTA CLARA, CALIF. LENGTH: Short : 35 lines
Intel Corp. reversed itself today and said it will replace flawed Pentium microchips for anyone free of charge, no questions asked.
Owners with computers using the Pentium chip can ask for a replacement at any time if they feel uneasy, Intal said. The chip can botch some division calculations in rare cases.
The company had previously required that owners show why they needed to have the Pentium replaced.
``The past few weeks have been deeply troubling. What we view as an extremely minor technical problem has taken on a life of its own,'' Andrew S. Grove, president and chief executive officer, said.
Intel has placed the chance of hitting the flaw as one in 27,000 years.
``We were motivated by a belief that replacement is simply unnecessary for most people. We still feel that way, but we are changing our policy because we want there to be no doubt that we stand behind this product,'' Grove said.
Intel will either send the corrected chip to owners or owners can bring their computer to a dealer to be fixed. The corrected chip will be widely available within the next few months.
Last week, industry newspaper PC Week said its tests found the flaw can produce the wrong result, depending on usage, from once every two months to once every 10 years. by CNB