Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Development
    • Development

    Transmeta Goes Inside

    By
    Jeff Burt
    -
    January 6, 2003
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      Semiconductor upstart Transmeta Corp., known for its Crusoe line of low-power, low-heat processors, is expanding its product stable with a suite of chips for x86-compatible embedded applications. To help the move, the company is lining up an impressive list of big-name software developers to support the technology.

      The Crusoe SE (Special Embedded) processor line, which will be unveiled this week, is the latest effort by Transmeta to try to chip away at the dominance of Intel Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

      “We believe we do a better job [than Intel] of offering the right balance of price, performance, battery life and energy dissipation,” said Transmeta President and CEO Matthew Perry.

      The Santa Clara, Calif., company will release the first three Crusoe SE chips at 667MHz, 800MHz and 933MHz and target them for use in medical and scientific devices, retail kiosks, and point-of-sale terminals.

      The embedded chips boast attributes similar to those in other Crusoe processors—energy efficiency, optimization for x86 applications and integrated Northbridge technology for compact board design. But some of the code-morphing software in the embedded products was changed and the testing increased to address the demand for long-term reliability in embedded systems, Transmeta officials said.

      To emphasize the Crusoe SE chips compatibility with x86 architecture, since many embedded systems use x86-optimized software, Transmeta will be joined in its Crusoe SE announcement by almost a dozen other companies, including Microsoft Corp., Red Hat Inc. and x86 BIOS software maker Insyde Software Inc.

      The chips build on Transmetas introduction in November of its 1GHz Crusoe TM5800 chip, which is being featured in Hewlett-Packard Co.s Compaq Tablet PC TC1000 and in RLX Technologies Inc.s ultradense server, the ServerBlade 1000t.

      Officials are also talking up the next version of Crusoe, dubbed the TM8000 Astro, which will go into production in the third quarter. Astro will enable Transmeta to move up the notebook chain into products with 12- to 14-inch screens and compete with Intels highly touted and forthcoming Banias chip, Perry said.

      Despite the road map, analysts said Transmeta may have difficulty becoming more than a niche player in embedded systems for the same reasons it has struggled elsewhere—Intel and AMD already dominate these markets.

      And while users of Crusoe-powered devices are content with what the technology gives them, some also say they use Intel processors when possible.

      Wuchun Feng, team leader of the Research and Development in Advanced Network Technology unit at Los Alamos National Laboratory, in New Mexico, is building a 480-processor cluster dubbed The Green Machine, using RLXs Crusoe-powered 1000t blade servers.

      “Our environment is a very hot, dusty, confined space,” Feng said. “What Id like to do is use a lot of Intel [processors], but I cant. [The Transmeta technology] allows us to put in a much larger cluster and to run it reliably. Now, theyre maybe going to run half as fast [as more powerful Intel-based systems], but theyre going to run.”

      Transmeta has won some OEM converts as well. Tri-M Systems and Engineering Inc., which makes hardware for embedded systems, this quarter will ship its TMZ 104 module that uses a Crusoe SE chip. President and CEO Doug Stead said the Transmeta chip enables Tri-M to create boards that can dynamically adjust power usage.

      “Transmeta allows us to [use a lot of power] when we need to and draw down to microamps when we dont need it,” said Stead, in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia.

      Jeff Burt
      Jeffrey Burt has been with eWEEK since 2000, covering an array of areas that includes servers, networking, PCs, processors, converged infrastructure, unified communications and the Internet of things.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Applications

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Cloud

      IGEL CEO Jed Ayres on Edge and...

      James Maguire - June 14, 2022 0
      I spoke with Jed Ayres, CEO of IGEL, about the endpoint sector, and an open source OS for the cloud; we also spoke about...
      Read more
      IT Management

      Intuit’s Nhung Ho on AI for the...

      James Maguire - May 13, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nhung Ho, Vice President of AI at Intuit, about adoption of AI in the small and medium-sized business market, and how...
      Read more
      Applications

      Kyndryl’s Nicolas Sekkaki on Handling AI and...

      James Maguire - November 9, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nicolas Sekkaki, Group Practice Leader for Applications, Data and AI at Kyndryl, about how companies can boost both their AI and...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×