Phoenix Technologies Announces New Software To Bring Windows NT 4.0 To Portable Systems And PC Cards

Business Wire, July 23, 1996

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 23, 1996--Phoenix Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: PTEC), a leading supplier of standards-based system enabling software for the PC industry, announced today a series of products aimed at enhancing the Windows NT 4.0 operating system for use in Portable PCs.

The products specifically engineered for NT 4.0 include NoteBIOS, PowerPanel, BatteryScope, and PhoenixCard Executive. This suite of Phoenix products will enable users to run Windows NT 4.0 on notebook computers with the critical mobility features they now demand in advanced portable systems.

"Phoenix Technologies is uniquely qualified to enhance the operation of today's complex portable PCs, and to provide support for new and sophisticated operating systems such as Windows NT 4.0," said Dr. Gayn Winters, vice president of the Personal Computer Systems Division and chief technology officer for Phoenix Technologies. "I am very pleased that Phoenix is the first to provide portable manufacturers with a set of robust system enabling solutions for this new operating environment."

Industry analysts forecast that major corporate users will make a strong transition to Windows NT over the next 12 to 18 months. With features such as increased security, reliability, remote access, advanced multi-tasking, and server based applications, Windows NT 4.0 is an ideal operating system for large corporate environments. Many corporate users, however, want the same operating system on their portables as they use on their desktops. Because Windows NT 4.0 has no built-in power management, and includes only basic PC Card support, portable PC users will not fully benefit from converting to Windows NT 4.0. Corporate acceptance of NT 4.0 for notebook computers could be delayed without these critical functions.

The Phoenix Technologies suite of NT solutions unlocks the power of Windows NT for portable users. Some of the key features of NoteBIOS 4.0 for NT and PowerPanel 2.0 for NT include: Save-to-Disk, idle, standby and suspend modes; active power management for video, hard drive, and other devices; and on-screen power management with a simple push-button interface. BatteryScope 2.0 for NT provides users active battery usage information and support for one to four intelligent batteries using the SMBus or compatible specifications.

"Portable PC users have grown increasingly sophisticated in the features they demand in their notebook computers," stated Roger Mohme, vice president of the portable systems group at Phoenix Technologies. "The products that Phoenix is providing will enable our PC OEM customers to offer their users portable systems with the advanced power management and robust PC Card support they need to take the power of Windows NT 4.0 `on the road'."

PhoenixCard Executive addresses the need for enhanced PC Card compatibility in Windows NT 4.0 by supporting today's most popular PC Card host controllers. The list of supported PC Cards includes over 200 devices, including each of the major categories such as Fax/Modem, LAN, Storage, Flash memory, multi-function as well as CardBus and Zoomed Video. It features an intuitive, easy-to-use interface -- providing users complete configuration and control of their PC Cards. PhoenixCard Executive's unique architecture is designed specifically for the Windows NT environment and allows unprecedented flexibility in device compatibility so that PC OEMs, PC Card manufacturers or even field support personnel can easily add support for other cards.

"PhoenixCard Executive for Windows NT brings the robust capabilities of our PhoenixCard software family to OEMs serving Windows NT 4.0 users," said Rhod Williams, product line director for Phoenix's PC Card Software product line. "The added features we are providing will enable NT 4.0 users to enjoy the ease of use and flexibility they've come to expect from Phoenix and our key PC manufacturing customers."

Detailed specifications for Phoenix's suite of Windows NT 4.0 products for portables and PC Cards are now being provided to key customers worldwide. Phoenix expects several of its customers to demonstrate NoteBIOS 4.0 for NT, PowerPanel 2.0 for NT, BatteryScope 2.0 for NT and PhoenixCard Executive this November at Fall Comdex in Las Vegas.

Phoenix Technologies Ltd. is a leading supplier of standards-based enabling software to the personal computer industry. The company's system-level software products, such as PhoenixBIOS for desktops, NoteBIOS for portables, and ServerBIOS for servers, allow PC manufacturers to increase product differentiation, reduce product development time to market as well as cut internal engineering costs. Phoenix provides a line of products and services for Special Purpose PCs and interconnect standards including PC Cards/CardBus, Universal Serial Bus and other emerging interfaces.

Phoenix has also developed an expanding family of software products for consumers such as Phoenix Telephony Suite and Phoenix MUSE, that increase personal computer functionality and make PCs easier to use. Information on all Phoenix Technologies products is available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.ptltd.com.