Digital's Alpha Salvo Scores Direct Hit; Eight-system Lineup Blankets
Competition

AlphaGeneration Systems Deliver Industry-Leading Performance

MAYNARD, Mass. -- November 3, 1994 -- Digital Equipment Corporation today
introduced new lines of Alpha workstations and server systems for open
client/server computing that boast the industry's best performance and
price/performance.

The AlphaStation and AlphaServer lines are the industry's first to
incorporate advanced 64-bit microprocessor technology with PC-style
advantages such as the industry-standard PCI bus. More than 6,400
applications are available, with a choice of operating systems including
DEC OSF/1 (UNIX), OpenVMS, and for the first time, Microsoft's Windows NT
across both lines.

Sales of the new systems will be enhanced by Digital's new channels focus.
Starting today, Digital's partners will begin showcasing the new systems
to thousands of customers at events in 175 locations worldwide.

Added Value, More Choice

"Digital's AlphaStation and AlphaServer systems deliver leadership
price/performance for customers and partners," said Enrico Pesatori, vice
president and general manager, Computer Systems Division. "They offer more
value by combining high-end performance and reliability with the low-cost
design of PCs. Not only do these systems cost less to buy, they cost less
to own. Customers can choose from a range of servers and workstations that
are scalable to their needs, and can buy from sales channels that suit
their business and service requirements.

"For our growing network of channels partners, we are introducing
simplified business practices, aggressive joint advertising campaigns, and
comprehensive support programs," Pesatori added.

Alpha System Lineup

Ranging from low-end clients to high-capacity enterprise servers, the new
Alpha offerings extend Digital's price/performance leadership in the most
rapidly growing market segments: the $10,000 to $15,000 workstation range,
low and mid-range servers, and mainframe-alternative systems. High-end
models are based on the Alpha 21064A microprocessor, the world's fastest
in volume production.

The new Alpha systems begin shipping this month. Three Alpha workstations
and five Alpha servers are offered:

- AlphaStation 200 4/166 and AlphaStation 200 4/233 mid-range
  desktop workstations
- AlphaStation 400 4/233 mini-tower workstation
- AlphaServer 1000 4/200 entry-level server
- AlphaServer 2000 4/200 entry-level multiprocessing server
- AlphaServer 2100 4/275 high-end SMP departmental server
- AlphaServer 2100 4/275 high-end SMP departmental server
  (cabinet version)
- DEC 7000 Model 700 multiprocessor enterprise server

As part of today's announcement, Digital introduced new AlphaServer and
AlphaStation trademarks, and renamed its highly successful Digital 2100
A500MP server as the AlphaServer 2100 4/200 system.

Builds on Performance Lead

Philippe Ribeyre, vice president, Workstation Business Segment, Alpha
Systems Business Group, commenting on the new workstations' performance
said, "The AlphaStation 200 4/166 is 70 percent faster than the IBM 25T,
offering the highest UNIX performance customers can buy in the $10,000
range. It also provides a high-performance alternative to Intel platforms.
Running Windows NT Workstation, it delivers 79 percent more floating-point
performance than 90MHz Pentium systems. The AlphaStation 200 4/233 desktop
and AlphaStation 400 4/233 mini-tower set a new performance standard in
the $15,000 range. They surpass HP's 715/80 and IBM's 41T system speeds by
50-80 percent and up to 75 percent, respectively," Ribeyre added.

"AlphaServer performance also beats comparable IBM, HP, and Sun offerings,"
according to Pauline Nist, vice president, Server Business Segment, Alpha
Systems Business Group. "The entry-level AlphaServer 1000 4/200
outperforms the HP 9000-800 E55, the IBM PowerServer 390, the Sun
SPARCserver 20, and the Compaq Proliant 1000 by 20-60 percent. The
AlphaServer 2000 4/200 is twice as fast as the HP G50 at a lower price,
and 75 percent faster than the IBM RS/6000-G30 dual CPU for 60 percent of
the price.

Similarly, the AlphaServer 2100 4/275 delivers up to twice the speed of the
HP I70 for the same price, and up to 50 percent more performance than the
Sun SPARCserver 1000E and IBM 59H at two-thirds the price or less.

"Our mainframe alternative, the DEC 7000 Model 700 system with six
processors, outperforms the HP 9000 Model T500 with 12 processors," Nist
added.

Modeled on AlphaServer 2100 Success

New AlphaGeneration systems exploit the design concepts of the highly
successful Digital AlphaServer 2100 system introduced in April. This
'breakthrough' server set a new level in price/ performance by combining
Alpha power, symmetric multiprocessing, and PC bus technology.

Today's new systems incorporate industry-standard Peripheral Component
Interconnect (PCI), ISA, and EISA bus technologies, enabling customers to
use many widely available, off-the-shelf peripheral devices. Further, they
incorporate large-system features -- high availability, scalability, and
reliability -- with smallsystem advantages including high-performance
graphics, multimedia, and PC-style packaging.

AlphaStation Markets

Digital's new AlphaStation systems offer the high-performance graphics and
network support needed for demanding technical and commercial applications
including mechanical CAD, EDA (Electronic Design Automation), software
engineering, mapping, technical publishing, and visualization.
AlphaStation systems feature the best RISC-based desktop workstation
warranty in the industry.

AlphaStation Pricing

Prices (excluding monitor) begin at $6,995 for the AlphaStation 200 4/166,
at $11,750 for the AlphaStation 200 4/233, and at $12,595 for the
AlphaStation 400 4/233 system. The workstations are currently available
through an extensive network of Value-Added Resellers, OEMs, and
distributors, or directly from Digital.

Best Servers for Critical Tasks

"In the current competitive and rapidly changing business climate where
users are asked to do more, faster, at less cost, they demand systems with
quick response times, fast application processing and uninterrupted
service. Digital's new AlphaServer systems emphasize high performance,
high availability, and security for business-critical commercial and
technical applications," said Nist.

AlphaServer systems are ideal for use as application and database servers,
especially for finance and accounting, PC LAN servers, installed-base
cluster consolidation, and high-performance computing. "The new
AlphaServer line offers the industry's best RISC-based warranty --
three-year, next-day response. Their design and warranties keep support
costs low. AlphaServer systems are the best machines on the market from a
cost-of-ownership perspective," Nist added.

AlphaServer storage subsystems combine reliability and high-availability
features such as controller-based RAID (Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive
Disks), hot-standby and hot-swap disks, and ECC (error-correcting code)
main and cache memory -- all within the system pedestal. All AlphaServer
systems also feature thermal management, automatic restart, and an
optional redundant power system.

DEC 7000 Model 700 AXP Server

The DEC 7000 Model 700 AXP Server is the industry's most powerful
enterprise server and winner for overall performance in AIM Technology's
1994 Hot Iron Awards for UNIX Computer Systems. Like the AlphaServer 2100
4/275, it incorporates Digital's 275 MHz Alpha AXP 21064A chip. With its
six symmetric multiprocessors, the DEC 7000 Model 700 boasts performance
of an estimated 1,350 transactions per second and an AIM rating of 643.5
with five CPUs -- the highest in the industry. The new server exceeds
SPECint92 and SPECfp92 performance of the DEC 7000 Model 600 AXP Server by
40 percent.

AlphaServer Pricing

Entry-level pricing for AlphaServer systems starts at $15,970 for the
AlphaServer 1000 4/200 system; $18,070 for AlphaServer 2000 4/200; $21,940
for AlphaServer 2100 4/200; $33,390 for AlphaServer 2100 4/275, and
$120,000 for the DEC 7000 Model 700 AXP system.

Digital Equipment Corporation is the world's leader in open client/server
solutions from personal computing to integrated worldwide information
systems. Digital's scalable Alpha platforms, storage, networking, software
and services, together with industry-focused solutions from business
partners, help organizations compete and win in today's global
marketplace.

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