Albatron jumps on revolutionary AMD64 architecture with new K8 Mainboard — K8X800 Pro ll – to Support the AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor

SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- 9/23/2003 -- Albatron Technology, a leader in PC component technology, recently announced a new mainboard, the “K8X800 Pro II” based on AMD64 architecture, which is at the heart of the revolutionary AMD Athlon™ 64 processor. The much-anticipated AMD64 technology will finally be able make its mark for PC users as an extension of the long-standing 32-bit standard and establish itself as the next generation technology. The K8X800 Pro II will be backward compatible with 32-bit applications at the same time setting a new precedent for future 64-bit applications. Also, the new AMD Athlon 64 processors feature an exciting new innovation, HyperTransport™ technology, a chip-to-chip interface design which delivers high-performance, low-latency data transfers and provides a system bus of 1600 MHz.

“The Albatron mainboard offers customers the flexibility of AMD64 technology, which is a cornerstone of the AMD Athlon 64 processor,” said Tim Wright, director, desktop marketing, AMD’s Computation Products Group. “This platform offers PC users full functionality of today’s software with the flexibility to handle tomorrow’s data-intensive applications.”

“We are extremely excited to be designing mainboards for the revolutionary 64-bit AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor,” said Jack Ko, President Albatron Technology Co., LTD. ”This processor stands to set the precedent for future technology at the same time providing an important bridge for 32-bit applications. Our K8X800 mainboard takes full advantage of the AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor capabilities, giving our customers access to some of the most advanced, precision technology available today.”

The K8X800 Pro ll mainboard also supports the latest VIA K8T800 and 8237 chipsets, which are compatible with the AMD Athlon 64 processors. These chipsets can also support the AMD Athlon 64 processors’ simultaneous 32-bit and 64-bit processing as well as an AGP 8X interface. In addition, HyperTransport technology implementation in VIA’s chipset, dubbed “Hyper8™” technology, allows for full 16-bit/1.6 GHz CPU to Chipset connectivity, which adds to up to 6.4 GB/s bandwidth or a system bus of 1600 MHz. Also, the memory controller has been embedded into the processor, which can significantly decrease data read/write latencies. In short, the K8X800 can provide the fastest, most stable DDR400 interface, surpassing the performance requirements of even the latest 3D video gaming software.

In addition to performance features, Albatron has engineered a VIA Envy 24PT audio chip onto the board, which together with the bundled SPDIF bracket card, provides eight-channel audio capability allowing you to enjoy professional studio-quality audio without having to purchase a specialized audio card. In addition, a 3Com 1Gbit LAN chip provides 10/100/1000 Mbps LAN connectivity. Eight USB2.0 ports and two IEEE1394（FireWire®）ports allow for an adequate supply of interfaces for all of your peripheral devices. This board also supplies six PCI slots, two ATA133 channels (allows up to four IDE devices) and two Serial ATA channels (150 MB/sec transfer rates and supports Serial RAID 0,1).

The Albatron K8X800 Pro II is one of the first mainboards out of the blocks supporting the new AMD Athlon 64 processor family. Together with the latest VIA chipset implementations, the K8X800 Pro II boasts all the latest component technology to mark the arrival of AMD64 architecture and to help ensure that simultaneous 32- and 64-bit computing will make a significant impact in the direction of future technology.

AMD, AMD Athlon, and combinations thereof, are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. HyperTransport is a licensed trademark of the HyperTransport Technology Consortium. Other product and company names used in this presentation are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective companies.