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Pentium III bug in new chips
Chip and change: Intel, AMD and Apple are in fierce competition |
The new Pentium III computer chip made by Intel has a bug which interferes with the start-up routine of a PC.
The bug, announced by Intel late on Wednesday, affects a small percentage of all the Coppermine chips made so far.
"If a system is powered all the way down, and someone turns it on, it may not boot until you turn it off and on again," said Michael Sullivan, a spokesman for the chip-making giant.
He added that this scenario has only occurred so far in a laboratory setting and that the company estimates that between one and two percent of chips are affected.
Shipments stopped
However, Dell Computers said that it has just stopped shipments and manufacturing of its systems which use the new Pentium III chips, while it performs more testing in its labs.
"We have put a hold on manufacturing, which means we are not filling orders," said Ken Bissell, a Dell spokesman. "Based on the outcome of the tests, we expect to resume shipping within the next day or two, perhaps even tomorrow."
But he warned that it is still dependent on the outcome of Dell's internal testing. Dell uses Intel's new Pentium III processors in its Optiplex GX110 systems.
Killing the bug
Intel said that it has just recently characterised the bug, which it calls an erratum, and it is now informing its customers of the problem. Mr Sullivan said that Intel will eliminate the problem in the next manufacturing cycle of the Pentium III line.
"The only reports we have are from a small number of customers in laboratory environments," Mr Sullivan said. "If anyone had a question we would advise them to contact their supplier."
The launch of the Pentium III family, unveiled on 25 October, had already been delayed due to problems with the 820 chipset. The 820 chipset accompanies some versions of the processor and had difficulties using memory-enhancing technology made by Rambus.
The Pentium III chips are designed using a new manufacturing process called 0.18 micron, which create transistors with finer linewidths.
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30 Nov 99 | Sci/Tech |
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13 Oct 99 | The Company File |
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