Taipei, June 1, 2004- Silicon Integrated Systems Corp (SiS), a leading supplier of core logic chipsets, today announced its next-generation DDR2-667MHz chipset SiS656 – featured at Computex Taipei – is the only core logic chipset on the market that supports high-speed DDR2-667 memory.

The SiS656 is the first SiS chipset to support PCI Express x16. It also boasts a high-speed DDR2-667MHz memory controller, exhibiting SiS’ cutting-edge engineering in the development of high-speed memory interfaces. This follows SiS’ global lead in the debut of its DDR400MHz SiS648FX chipset, which established its reputation for innovation in chipset design.

The SiS656 is a high-end chipset that supports the Intel platform. Meeting DDR2-667 and PCI Express x16 specifications, it can be used on various computing platforms, including desktops, notebooks, workstations and servers. Dual channel DDR2-667 delivers transfer bandwidth of up to 10.6GB/s as compared to the 8.6GB/s rate of DDR2-533, which means 2GB more data per second is transferred for a nearly 20% increase in memory bandwidth. So far, DDR2-667 memory modules from Samsung and Micron have both successfully passed SiS’ compatibility test. Other brands, such as Infineon, Hynix and Elpida, are currently undergoing compatibility testing and are expected to complete the testing process shortly.

Compared to previous generation DDR memory, high-speed DDR2 memory offers the advantages of lower power consumption, higher performance and faster speeds. DDR2 thus meets the high-speed transmission requirements of next-generation PCI Express products and effectively enhances the overall operating performance of peripheral interfaces, such as graphic cards, LAN cards, SATA HDD and video capture cards.

"SiS656 designs, especially those high speed technology, are challenging to implement," said TS Jung, Vice President of Samsung. "Industry is evaluating DDR2-667 to achieve the high performance desktop computing. Samsung's demonstration of DDR2-667 and high performance technology is another important step in enabling desktop application customers with the latest high speed solutions."

"The SiS656 chipset demonstrates higher-level performance advantages realized with DDR2," said Terry Lee, Executive Director of Advanced Technology and Strategic Marketing for Micron's Computing and Consumer Group. "Micron is clearly a leader of DDR2 technology and a strong supporter. We welcome the opportunity to showcase this technology with leading edge platforms."

“DDR2 promises to bring new potential to desktop and notebooks, offering higher performance with lower power consumption and less heat,” said Daniel Chen, President and CEO of SiS. “Our SiS656 chipset gives SiS customers a necessary edge in today’s competitive market.”

About SiS656 Northbridge Chip
■ Host Interface
- Support Intel Pentium® 4 800/533/400MHz Front-Side Bus CPU
- Support Intel Hyper-Threading Technology
■ High Performance Dual DDR2/DDR Memory Controller
- Support Dual DDR-400/333/266, Delivering up to 6.4GB/s Bandwidth
- Support Dual DDR2-667/533/400, Delivering up to 10.6GB/s Bandwidth
- Support up to 1GB per DIMM, Total 4 DIMMs
■ Support PCI-Express X16 Graphic Port
■ MuTIOL® 1G Delivering 1GB/s Bandwidth
- Proprietary Interconnect between SiS656 and SiS965
- Bi-Directional 16-bit Data Bus at 533MHz Operating Frequency
■ Support proprietary Advanced HyperStreaming™ Technology