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From: al...@OCF.Berkeley.EDU (Alan Coopersmith)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.powerpc
Subject: IBM PR: New PowerPC based RS/6000's & PowerParallels
Date: 5 Oct 1994 00:08:24 GMT
Organization: U.C. Berkeley Open Computing Facility
Lines: 219
Message-ID: <36sqpo$1fh@agate.berkeley.edu>
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[Note:  I don't work for or speak for IBM.  I don't know anything, so
	don't ask me. -alan-]

IBM ANNOUNCES INNOVATIVE NEW RS/6000 BUSINESS SERVERS,             
ENTRY RS/6000 WORKSTATION, LOWER-COST POWERPARALLEL SYSTEMS        
October 4, 1994            
       
          New RS/6000 Products Use PowerPC Technology,             
    Support New Storage, Software Offerings Also Introduced        
       
NEW YORK, Oct. 4, 1994 . . . IBM today introduced a sweeping       
set of enhancements to its popular RISC System/6000* (RS/6000*)    
computer line.  The announcements were highlighted by three new    
PowerPC* symmetric multiprocessor (SMP) servers that give          
business customers highly reliable, upgradable, and affordable     
systems for their most demanding client/server applications.       
       
The company also introduced a new desktop RS/6000 PowerPC          
workstation, priced at $3,995.  This system delivers the best      
value in the industry for an entry RISC workstation with superior  
configuration pricing, performance, expansion and processor        
upgrade capability.        
       
IBM is also significantly lowering the entry price of              
parallel computing by introducing an entry-level, two-node         
POWERparallel Systems SP2*.  At $145,000, it is priced more        
than 60 percent lower than previous entry models.  Other new       
hardware and software products greatly enhance the capabilities    
of the POWERparallel Systems family for mission-critical           
applications.              
       
Several new RS/6000 storage products announced today deliver       
flexible options for expanding businesses.  In addition, new       
software products for AIX* -- IBM's advanced version of the        
UNIX** operating system for RS/6000 and SP2 products -- allow      
greater productivity gains for users who rely on client/server     
networks to run their enterprises.             
       
"We are clearly focused on providing outstanding value for         
our customers," said Bill Filip, general manager of the IBM RISC   
System/6000 Division.  "Today's announcements draw on the          
expertise of many IBM divisions to deliver the broadest set of     
capabilities for UNIX-based client/server environments.  The use   
of common core technologies such as the PowerPC chip and AIX       
software allows us to offer our customers attractively priced,     
reliable, high-performance systems that meet their needs today     
and will grow with them in the future."        
       
PowerPC SMP Servers -- A Better Way of Doing Business              
       
IBM's new business systems are the RS/6000 Model G30, J30          
and R30 PowerPC servers.  They feature an SMP design, which        
allows two or more processors to be used in the same system.       
Prices for entry two-processor models begin at $40,900 for the     
Model G30, $70,500 for the Model J30 and $83,900 for the           
Model R30.  The systems will be available to customers on a        
limited basis beginning in the fourth quarter of 1994, with        
volume availability in first quarter 1995.     
       
SMP servers are often a preferred solution for large               
business customers such as banks, insurance firms and others who   
need to quickly process large amounts of critical data.  They      
tend to be very reliable, have a relatively low cost of ownership  
over time, and allow customers to extend the life of their         
systems investment through the addition of more processors to      
increase performance.      
       
According to industry consultant Andrew Allison, "The cost         
effectiveness and scalability of RISC-based symmetric              
multiprocessor systems are causing them to sweep the server        
market.  Combined into cluster configurations, SMP systems         
provide extraordinary power and flexibility."  
       
While other companies offer RISC-based SMP solutions,              
IBM's RS/6000 SMP systems stand out:           
       
     - they are made and sold by the most experienced              
       computing company in the industry;      
       
     - they use the PowerPC technology for high performance        
       and easy upgrades -- including upgrades from                
       existing single-processor RS/6000 models;                   
       
     - and they feature an innovative design that                  
       contributes to greater efficiency and higher                
       reliability, availability and serviceability.               
       Included is IBM SystemGuard*, a dedicated service           
       processor which can automatically diagnose and              
       correct many systems problems on its own.  If more          
       help is needed, it calls IBM service by itself.             
       
PowerPC 601* processors are at the heart of the new RS/6000        
SMP systems, which are available in mini-tower, deskside and       
rack-mounted versions and initially support from two to four       
processors.  Next year, customers can easily obtain more           
performance in two ways -- faster PowerPC chips and/or more        
processors.                
       
A free upgrade to the more powerful PowerPC 604* chip will         
be available to PowerPC 601 SMP users in 1995#, with even faster   
PowerPC chips such as the PowerPC 620* planned to be supported in  
the future.  Users of the PowerPC 601 or PowerPC 604 deskside and  
rack-mounted SMP systems will be able to take advantage of         
six-and-eight-way SMP processor upgrades in 1995 as well.          
       
"From a technical perspective, the RS/6000 SMP systems             
featuring PowerPC processors have been designed to easily          
accommodate future growth, not only through the addition of the    
604 and 620 chips but through their high bandwidth memory          
switching and advanced cache technologies," said Phil Hester,      
general manager, IBM Systems Technology and Architecture Division. 
"The enhanced scalability, reliability, and availability of these  
new UNIX systems reflect IBM's extensive experience in delivering  
multiprocessor solutions for our mainframe and AS/400* customers." 
       
The 601, 604 and 620 chips are members of the IBM PowerPC          
family of high-performance, low-cost RISC microprocessors,         
developed with Apple Computer and Motorola, Inc.  RISC -- or       
reduced instruction set computing -- is a technology invented by   
IBM to provide very high levels of computing performance.          
       
IBM was the first company to announce PowerPC-based                
computers, introducing new RS/6000 servers and workstations with   
this technology in September 1993.  Today's announcement marks     
the fourth time that IBM has introduced PowerPC-based products in  
its RS/6000 line.          
       
Best Workstation Value in the Industry         
       
IBM's new RS/6000 Model 40P workstation offers the best            
value in the industry for customers looking for a low-cost,        
expandable entry graphics computer, local-area-network             
(LAN)-attached client, or office productivity system that          
supports a UNIX-based operating system.        
       
The Model 40P uses the PowerPC 601 chip to deliver all the         
power that's needed for applications such as entry computer-aided  
design and desktop publishing.  As a LAN-attached client system,   
it provides easy access to enterprise data for applications such   
as retail and finance where low cost per user is a primary buying  
criteria.  An optional "Level 2 cache" capability allows greater   
performance for advanced technical and commercial applications.    
Even more performance will be available to Model 40P users in      
1995, when IBM will make a PowerPC 604 upgrade available.          
       
Along with the networking flexibility, performance and             
multi-tasking capability of a UNIX-based system, the Model 40P     
also supports popular PC-class standards such as the Peripheral    
Component Interconnect (PCI) interface and the Industry Standard   
Architecture (ISA) bus standards.  This blending of the best       
attributes of RISC workstations and PC systems makes for a very    
full-featured yet affordable system.           
       
Planned availability for the Model 40P is October 28.              
       
Lower Cost, More Capabilities for POWERparallel Systems            
       
IBM announced significant new capabilities for its                 
POWERparallel Systems family today.  In addition to the            
introduction of new two-node SP2 systems, customers can now        
purchase up to 512-node SP2 models as well by special order.       
       
Other new features contribute to improved reliability,             
security, availability, systems management, greater ease of use    
and higher levels of interoperability with System/390* systems.    
New disk drive technology doubles the rate at which information    
is transferred, and allows up to 18 gigabytes of storage per       
node.  
       
The SP2 can now attach to storage devices such as tape             
libraries, CD-ROM, storage subsystems and optical devices at very  
high speeds.  A new low-cost High Performance Switch for the       
entry-level systems provides superb communication among nodes,     
a key factor to the parallelism and scalability of the SP2.        
       
The POWERparallel Systems family, based on the RS/6000             
architecture and AIX, provides commercial and technical customers  
with a platform for highly available applications.  The systems    
can address a wide range of requirements, from retail stores that  
track thousands of items in hundreds of locations every day, to    
investment houses that analyze vast amounts of data and create     
new investment offerings for their customers, to the exploration   
and production department of an oil company doing seismic data     
research to find new deposits.                 
       
Sales and Information Support                  
       
The IBM products highlighted in this release are available         
from IBM and authorized IBM Business Partners in the U.S. and      
other countries around the world.              
       
In the U.S., IBM Credit Corporation offers flexible                
financing rates as low as 6.5 percent and a technology upgrade     
option for selected RS/6000 products.  Several special leasing     
options are available for the new SMP systems. 
       
Additional IBM product and marketing information is                
available on the Internet through the WorldWide Web.  General IBM  
information can be accessed at address www.ibm.com.  RS/6000       
specific information is also available at www.austin.ibm.com.  A   
self-service fax system in the U.S., 800-IBM-4FAX, also provides   
marketing and other literature.  The RS/6000 documents code is 2.  
       
       
*    Indicates trademark or registered trademark of                
     International Business Machines Corporation                   
       
**   UNIX is a registered trademark licensed exclusively by        
     X/Open Company Ltd.  Other trademarks are owned by            
     their respective companies.               
       
#    Applies to Model G30, J30 and R30 systems installed           
     prior to general availability of comparable PowerPC 604       
     SMP models.           
       
Please Note:               
Questions about the content or currency of this press release      
should be directed to your local IBM representative.