Intel Dismisses 810 Chipset Glitch

Computergram International, June 4, 1999

A problem with the operation of the Intel 810 chipset which could cause system crashes if the forthcoming product is used with the Pentium III processor has been dismissed as a non-issue by Intel Corp. The erratum, called MaskMovQ, was discovered by Intel earlier this year and the company created a workaround for the Pentium III glitch. However, because the low-end 810, codenamed Whitney, is intended to be used in conjunction with Intel's Celeron CPU, the workaround was not implemented with the chipset.

"It wasn't validated or expected to be used with the Pentium III," explained Intel spokesperson, Dan Francisco. He said that Intel had only later tested the CPU with the 810 with Pentium III and found that there was a problem. Francisco said that if the two components were used in together in a PC, the system could behave unpredictably or hang. However, Francisco said that he knew of no companies that were planning to use the Pentium III and 810 chipset together. "We don't really expect this to have any effect on the market," he said.

The 810, the first of Intel's new 800 series of chipsets, includes an integrated 3D graphics accelerator and a software modem and audio functions. Francisco said that all of the forthcoming 800 range, including the delayed 820 Camino chipset, would function normally with the Pentium III. Whitney is expected to hit the streets this month.