Intel Corp has unveiled a new range of Pentium II processors that have been designed to cater for the lower end of the market, enabling it to stick its finger in another pie. Next year will see the release of a series of processors, code-named Deschutes, starting with the introduction of a processor clocked at between 333MHz and 450MHz and targeted at the mainstream desktop market. The company intends to have versions up to 400MHz available by the middle of the year. For basic personal computers Intel is introducing the Deschutes 266 and 300MHz range. Following that release will come the Deschutes 350 and 400Mhz eight way multi processor release for high-end servers and workstations, as well as a series of Mobile Pentium II 233, 266 and 300MHz machines with a 512K cache. Intel is launching the machines in an attempt to appeal to a broader market. It has not made a big song and dance about the new products, but said it wants to expand the scope of its microprocessors, and anticipates the new offerings will prove a considerable boost to its revenues. The company wants to compete in the less than $1,000 PC market and remain dominant in the microprocessor market. Coinciding with the product news, it has emerged that Pentium-based networked computers could be particularly vulnerable to system attack following the discovery of a possible new bug. News of the possible bug was posted on the BugTraq computer security mailing list and is thought to be a major problem for internet service providers, although it is understood that Pentium Pro and Pentium II processors are not affected. Intel has expressed no concern over the potential bug saying its not worried.
