MIPS Technologies Inc is hoping to grab a share of the action in the personal computer market by launching a hybrid daughterboard design which includes both Pentium and MIPS RISC chips. The board, to be sold with utility software as a kit, will be called Ultra-P. Users would boot the system in iAPX-86 mode, and would switch systems by activating a switch utility that would communicate the change to the motherboard. The design, which supports R4200, 200MHz R4400 and R4600 chips, will be licensed to personal computer manufacturers free of charge. MIPS reckons that the design will appeal to users because it means that they will not have to invest in two machines.
