AMD Fab 30 aims for 1GHz chips

AMD is set to unveil the latest weapon in its battle against Intel for PC chip supremacy: a fabrication plant capable of producing 1GHz processors.

Fab 30, located in Dresden, Germany, is designed to allow for the manufacture of Athlon processors at higher clock speeds than are currently possible.

The first samples of Fab 30 Athlons running at approximately 900MHz are expected later this quarter. Final production-level chips will debut in Q2 2000, with volume production to follow by the second half.

Intel's first 1GHz desktop chip, code-named Willamette, is due in late 2000 or early 2001. The full story is online at www.zdnn.com .