LET US NOT forget that as well as producing chipsets that take AMD and Intel microprocessors, Via also produces a family of CPUs of its own. And the firm appears to have made something of a breakthrough, judging by roadmaps recently seen by the INQUIRER. The firm is currently sampling the CM 400 chipset which will support 66, 100, 133 and 200MHz front side buses, and so has ensured that Socket 370 (S370) lives on for a good qhile longer.
This chipset will also include integrated UniChrome 2 graphics, and external AGP 4X/8X, with Via positioning the chipset as the mainstream and performance PC marketplace. It also appears that Via is contemplating build in WMV9 acceleration, although that is yet to be decided.
The chipset will go into mass production in the fourth quarter of this year, and coupled with the inexpensive C3 micrprocessor family, should do very well in soaking up the lower priced end of the PC market.
News source: The Inq
