Introducing CyberALADDiN-P4 For Intel Pentium 4, Trident and ALi's Latest Integrated Graphics Chipset

Business Wire, Feb 25, 2002

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 25, 2002

Trident Microsystems, Inc. (Nasdaq:TRID), a pioneer in integrated 3D graphics notebook solutions, and Acer Laboratories Inc. (ALi), one of the world's leading portable PC chipset and multi-media solution provider, today announced CyberALADDiN-P4(TM), the low-power integrated graphics & core logic chipset supporting Intel's Pentium(R) 4 processor family, enabling OEMs and ODMs worldwide to deliver Pentium 4-based platforms at a very compelling performance level for mainstream and value notebook buyers.

Based on the proven Shared Memory Architecture (SMA), CyberALADDiN-P4 interfaces to Pentium 4 processors through the ALi-licensed Intel P4 Front Side Bus. It integrates ALi's mass-produced core logic ALADDiN-P4 North Bridge and Trident's high-quality DirectX 7.0 CyberBLADE XP2(TM) graphics core. Manufactured in 0.18um CMOS process, CyberALADDiN-P4 chip size is among the smallest in its class, which results in optimized power consumption and cost, and reduces the cost of notebook thermal designs as well as prolongs battery life. It is a highly optimized, low-risk chipset to OEMs and ODMs who are seeking to balance the costs, power, performance and functionality in their Pentium 4-based notebook designs.

"CyberALADDiN-P4 continues Trident and ALi's well-recognized leadership in providing the best value to notebook OEMs and ODMs by delivering the lowest-power integrated graphics & core logic solution together with an optimal combination of low-cost, rich feature set and competitive performance," said Frank Lin, president and CEO of Trident Microsystems, Inc.

"CyberALADDiN-P4 is the fifth successful product of Trident and ALi's 4-year-old close partnership in developing low-power integrated graphics & core logic chipsets for the mainstream and value notebook market," said Dr. Chin Wu, president of ALi. "We stay very committed in working together on several next generations of advanced and exciting integrated products."

CyberALADDiN-P4 integrates Trident's latest CyberBLADE XP2 graphics core, which contains dual-pixel, quad-texture rendering pipelines with full DirectX 7.0 hardware for excellent image quality and performance. CyberALADDiN-P4 interfaces directly to TFT liquid crystal display up to UXGA resolution (1600x1200) through an on-chip dual-channel LVDS driver and provides DVD hardware support with both Motion Compensation (MC) and Inverse Discrete Cosine Transform (IDCT). Patented state-of-the-art on-chip video de-interlacing logic significantly improves the display quality of interlaced DVD video output on standard PC-based VGA monitors. Support for TV out is also available with Trident's new external NTSC/PAL TV encoder (TVX2), capable of up to 1024 x 768 screen resolution.

The core logic north bridge in CyberALADDiN-P4 is ALi's ALADDiN-P4. ALADDiN-P4 supports 64-bit DDR system memory up to PC-2100. The memory controller within CyberALADDiN-P4 is fully optimized with the graphics core, which ensures maximum performance for all interfaces: P4 Front Side Bus, AGP 4X, DDR memory and PCI. With seamless interface to ALi's industry-proven, highly integrated south bridge (M1535 ) through standard PCI bus, CyberALADDiN-P4 provides all the necessary peripheral functionality (IDE, USB, Super I/O, etc.) to completely fulfill the chipset requirements.

CyberALADDiN-P4 design kit is available now for customer evaluation.

The integrated graphics/core logic portable market is forecasted to grow from 2.6 million units in Q4 2001 to 5.5 million units in Q2 2002, corresponding to a growth from 34% to 67% of the total portable market respectively, according to Mercury Research Inc., of Scottsdale, Arizona. It remains to be the fastest growing segment of the PC market.

About Trident Microsystems, Inc.

Trident Microsystems, Inc. (Nasdaq:TRID) with headquarters in Sunnyvale, California, designs, develops and markets digital media for the masses in the form of graphics controllers and multimedia integrated circuits for PCs. Trident's products are sold through a network of OEMs, original design manufacturers and system integrators worldwide. For further information about Trident and its products please consult the company's web site: http://www.tridentmicro.com

About ALi

ALi (Acer Laboratories Inc.) is one of the world's leading suppliers of integrated circuits for a number of market segments including personal computers, PC peripherals, DVD players and embedded PC systems and appliances. Its product offerings include core logic chip sets, DVD products, and imaging peripherals. ALi was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, with its North American & European operation based in San Jose, California. ALi is available on the web at http://www.ali.com.tw.

Note to Editors: Trident is a registered trademark of Trident Microsystems, Inc. All other company and product names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Features, pricing, availability and specifications are subject to change without notice.