SiS chipset means cheaper P4 PCs

Computers with Intel's Pentium 4 processor will get a little cheaper next month with the release of a new chipset aimed at the lower end of the PC market. Taiwan's Silicon Integrated Systems (SiS) this week announced its SiS650 integrated chipset, aimed at PCs in the $800 to $1,200 range. The new chipset includes SiS's 315 graphics core and low-cost double data rate memory and PC133 memory, making it possible to build low-cost systems. Intel's equivalent is the recently released 845 chipset.

Until recently, Pentium 4 systems were available only at relatively high prices, partly because its chipset supported only expensive Rambus memory. SiS's new chipset will ship in October and sell for $39 each in quantities of 10,000. Intel has also signed licenses with Acer Laboratories and ATI Technologies to produce the chipsets. A chipset allows the processor to communicate with other PC components, such as memory and input/output devices.

Staff writer Matthew Broersma reported from London.