DATE: Thursday, May 8, 1997                 TAG: 9705080401

SECTION: BUSINESS                PAGE: D01  EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY AKWELI PARKER, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   70 lines

OLD PENTIUMS NOT OBSOLETE - YET

Intel's unveiling of the 300-megahertz Pentium II processor Wednesday proves that if there's one constant in the computer business, it's obsolescence. Intel's own screamin' demon of yesterday - the Pentium Pro - could soon be a quaint little putt-putt if the new product succeeds.

But mainstream computer users needn't worry about replacing their systems just yet, according to local computer experts.

Although several major computer makers announced support for the superfast processor, many area computer retailers hadn't even heard of the chip Wednesday.

``I've been in the business awhile,'' said Robert Graham, president of Norfolk Web presence provider Wildfire Communications. ``It sounds like hype.''

Graham said many capabilities of Intel's musclebound microprocessors - like better multimedia performance - can be obtained with plain old 486 chips and some tinkering with other system components.

Nonetheless, computer makers are eagerly hopping onto Intel's marketing bandwagon.

South Dakota-based Gateway 2000, which has offices and a manufacturing facility in Hampton, said it sold thousands of Pentium II-equipped computers within hours.

Workers wore special T-shirts to celebrate the product roll-out, said a Gateway spokeswoman.

Compaq, Digital Equipment Corp., IBM and other top computer makers also announced they'd support the new technology.

The microprocessor acts as the ``brain'' of the computer and handles millions of calculations per second. Intel's family of new processors claim clock speeds as fast as 300 megahertz - about a third faster than most high-end processors on the market today.

It's expected to provide a big boost for memory-greedy applications like full-motion video and 3-D graphics.

For the time being, the Pentium II's biggest appeal will likely be to engineers, graphic artists and others with a big need for processor speed.

``If you're looking for the hardcore software applications for this, they're not out there,'' said Paul ``Victor'' Kossler, system administrator for Wildfire and an expert on computer innards.

He said applications might include running automated assembly lines and doing the complex math required for ultra-realistic video games.

The processor's most visibly unique - and to competitors, perhaps worrying - feature is the packaging. In what Intel calls a Single Edge Contact cartridge, the new wrapper makes the processor easier to install and saves precious motherboard space.

It also dispenses with the conventional pin-and-plug interface that's been an industry standard for years.

Analysts see the new design as a way to make trouble and expense for chip-churning rivals Advanced Micro Devices and Cyrix, who make less expensive clones of earlier, pin-interface Pentium models.

If the Pentium II catches on, AMD and Cyrix would have to rejigger their own assembly lines to make chips compatible with the new ``Slot 1'' interface, which is built into the computer.

That's somewhat good news, said Wildfire's Kossler: ``It means people are less likely to (mess) them up.''

The down side, at least for those thinking they could easily swap their current chips: ``You're going to end up having to buy a new board,'' said Kossler. ILLUSTRATION: Color photos

THE OLD VS. THE NEW

The difference between Intel's Pentium II processor, right, and the

Pentium, left, is more than speed. The Single Edge Contact cartridge

makes the processor easier to install and saves precious motherboard

space.

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