Wyse Technology Announces Industry's Most Powerful Line of Enhanced Network Computers; Winterm 4000 Series Provides Up To 2X Performance Advantage; Access to Windows, Java, and Legacy Applications Server Agnostic Approach and Highly Flexible Connectivity

Business Wire, Nov 12, 1996

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 12, 1996--Wyse Technology has significantly bolstered its leadership in the network computer market with the industry's most powerful family of products, the Winterm(TM) 4000 line of enhanced network computers. Geared primarily towards corporate intranet use, the second generation Winterm 4000 line provides performance, application support and connectivity flexibility unrivaled by offerings from Sun Microsystems and other newcomers to the market.

The Winterm 4000 line is fully compliant with the Network Computer Reference Profile and, in addition, provides access to Windows(R) applications. Wyse licensed the JavaOS(TM) from Javasoft and implemented the StrongARM(TM) SA-110 processor from Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) to provide the most robust Java NC on the market. The StrongARM SA-110 delivers performance superior to Pentium-level processors. This superlative feature and technology combination provides up to a 2X performance increase over competitive models, some of which are rumored to provide performance equal to older 286-level devices.

For Corporate America, the Winterm 4000 line provides an all-important open system, "server agnostic" approach. The Winterm 4000 series incorporates FLASH memory, providing fast boot-up without a server, unlike competitive offerings which require a high-speed network server to "boot" the device. The new Wyse Winterm 4000 series devices may boot either locally or from a network. This makes these enhanced network computers ideal for the corporate desktop, "telecommuting" or public access sites.

"Our new Winterm 4000 line provides the highest level of performance in the industry along with an open approach to network access and connectivity," said Roy Graham, Wyse's senior vice president of Worldwide Sales and Marketing. "It has been said that some of our competitors build the most open, closed systems in the world. That is fine for certain environments but the Wyse Winterm 4000 family is comfortable in virtually any environment, regardless of preferred applications, servers, or method of connectivity. We have taken the concept of network computers and enhanced it beyond lesser industry standards, thus our enhanced designation to the Winterm 4000 line."

"We are delighted to team with industry leaders such as Wyse, Digital and Javasoft, to create the innovative new Winterm products with full Java support," said Robin Saxby, CEO and president of ARM. "Through business partnership such as this, we accelerate the proliferation and backing for the ARM architecture globally by networking the software, hardware and systems communities."

WINTERM 4000 SERIES TARGET "POWER USERS"

The Winterm 4000 series becomes the company's new flagship line of enhanced network computers and is offered in multiple forms. Including, the Winterm modular 4300SE (code named "Boogie Board"), the integrated Winterm 4700SE, and the 4600SE -- an active-matrix flat-panel version -- the 4000 series connects the "professional user" to mission-critical applications with emphasis on Java applets. Each model provides the first thin-client access to the combination of Windows, Java, HTML and legacy system programs.

The Winterm 4000 line is geared towards "power users" -- those who require a browser device with local application execution, including custom real-time apps developed in Java. It is designed to execute Java applications faster than any other NC in its class.

Through genuine market feedback garnered from Wyse's installed base of first generation Winterm users, the company has determined that there are three distinct groupings of user needs for the corporate intranet market.

The Winterm 4000 is ideal for users who work in "power workgroups" and require full access to multiple forms of information including databases, Web published material, and corporate custom applications. With intranet usage on a sharp upward path, users require the greater performance and application flexibility provided by the Winterm 4000 family.

"We're pleased that Wyse has chosen our StrongARM SA-110 chip as the foundation for their Winterm 4000 series of enhanced network computers," said William N. Johnson, vice president, Digital Semiconductor Business Segments. "As a first-to-market manufacturer of the NC, Wyse has garnered significant experience over the past year with the Winterm 2000 series. The fact that Wyse chose the StrongARM chip recognizes the enhanced performance and capabilities that StrongARM can bring to Winterm 4000 series `power users.'"

WYSE NETWORK COMPUTING INNOVATION FUELS CORPORATE DEMAND

Wyse became the first company to begin volume shipments of thin-client devices in January 1996 and has sustained its industry leadership position ever since. Since that time, Wyse has shipped thousands of Winterm devices and remains the only company to deliver a low cost, Internet-capable device that works in the corporation as well as the home. As a result, Wyse is the only thin-client technology supplier with "real world" user feedback. The company's new, multilevel product strategy addresses that user input.