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@BEGIN_FILE_ID.DIZ       PowerUp - The Next Generation:
     phase 5 digital products announces
  an Amiga-OS-compatible computer for 1997
@END_FILE_ID.DIZ


PowerUp - The Next Generation:

phase 5 digital products announces
an Amiga-OS-compatible computer for 1997

 * Amazing hardware project from phase 5 digital products

 * PowerUP project continues to make progress

 * Motorola appreciates the concept of phase 5

 * Technology demonstrations

 * phase 5 digital products on the situation of Amiga Technologies

 * About phase 5 digital products

Oberursel, May 1996: Oberursel, May 1996: According to the plans of phase 5
digital products, Oberursel near Frankfurt, Germany, the coming year, 1997, will
be a year of joy for all Amiga enthusiasts.As an expansion of the PowerUp
project, which involves developing PowerPC processor cards for existing Amiga
models, the company has announced that an independent Amiga OS-compatible
computer system will be available in the first six months of 1997, representing
a revolution on the computer market.

"We will continue to give our full support to the Amiga idea because as we were
among the first Amiga users we continue to believe in the advantages and
superior concepts of the Amiga", says Wolf Dietrich, Managing Director of phase
5 digital products. "However, it is high time for a radical leap forwards in
technology that needs to be borne by a vision of a computer for the next
millennium. We have seen too many half-hearted efforts in the last few years."

In the view of Gerald Carda, Technical Director at phase 5, it is necessary to
take a step towards complete innovation in order to realise such a vision.
"Concepts that build up on the standard components of the PC world never offer
the scope that give a computer system the lead that the Amiga 1000 had over
other systems 12 years ago."

In line with this philosophy, the new computer will be based on a highly
integrated Custom Chip design which, as a central functional unit, will enable
the system to achieve a hitherto unknown performance. "We will demonstrate the
possibilities that are inherent in the resolute and single-minded pursuit of a
new development that does not become submerged in the mainstream of adaptation
to the Wintel world and the general tendency towards economy in the PC mass
market which more or less throttles innovation for the sake of saving one single
dollar", continues Gerald Carda. Despite this, the system now being announced is
not intended to become a dream machine in the high price category. In the words
of Wolf Dietrich: "On the basis of our current price calculation we will be able
to offer unusually good value for money for which our products for the Amiga
market are already renowned."

It is actually true that the extremely high degree of integration and the
realisation of novel concepts will make it possible to achieve a performance
that explodes existing bounds. Based on the PowerPC as the main processor, the
new computer, in addition to the high performance of the processor, offers
hardware support for multimedia (MPEG) and 3D functions, while even the basic
system offers a resolution of 1600x1200 pixels at 24-bit color depth and a
refresh rate of 72 Hz. At the same time special functions for image and video
effects have been implemented in the hardware. In addition there are audio
inputs and outputs in stereo CD quality, a video-compatible and Genlock-capable
24-bit video output and an FBAS/S-VHS video input. Along with the usual
interfaces, the system is rounded off by a Fast SCSI-II controller, a network
interface and an ISDN interface. With these features a complete system with a
120 MHz 603e PowerPC, 16 MByte memory, a SCSI hard disk of 1 GB and a quad-speed
CD ROM will be available for a purchase price of around 3,000 DM (1,400 £ or
2,000 US$, respectively) on the basis of the present market prices for the
components. "We hope that in just about one year from now we will even be able
to offer a 150 to 166 MHz 603e-processor at this price", anticipates Wolf
Dietrich. "In terms of performance the processor has no problems in keeping up
with a Pentium processor with an equally fast clock. However, there is no sign
of any comparable graphic performance anywhere the PC field and the features of
our systems will be difficult to match." There will be a similar system
available with a PowerPC 604-e processor and 150 MHz for about 4,000 DM (1,800 £
or 2,700 US$, respectively).

Although phase 5 digital products state that the total concept for the system
has already been under development for quite some time and has practically been
concluded, it is not possible to publish a more exact description of the system
features at the present point in time. "At the moment we are intensively
concerned with looking into whether it would be worth applying for a patent for
any of the concepts we have developed and, if so, for which. So unfortunately we
are not able to publish more precise details of the concept until after this
process has been concluded and we have possibly applied for protection by
patent", says Gerald Carda. For this reason we cannot reckon with any
publication of the full system specifications until the end of June.

Not only the hardware concept of phase 5, but also the software approach comes
as a surprise. The new computer system will be supplied with a completely new
operating system written in Native PowerPC code, but with binary compatibility
with Amiga-OS 3.x. Here Gerald Carda has the following comments: "As we are
already developing an Amiga-compatible PowerPC-Exec with an expansion library
and a PowerPC CyberGraphX version in the context of the PowerUp developments, it
is the logical consequence that the next step will be the innovative development
of the other components. An operating system that is compatible with Amiga-OS
3.x makes it possible for the user to continue to use the existing software that
can run under CyberGraphX, while developers who already give massive support to
CyberGraphX will be able to continue to maintain and develop their products at
the present level. In this way we will be enabling Amiga users to switch to the
new system without any problems." "In addition", continues Gerald Carda, "we
will be opening up ways of making considerable improvements in the internal
structure and extensive additions to the scope of functions". Besides the 24-bit
support which has already become a standard due to CyberGraphX, Gerald Carda
names the coming CyberGraphX 3D and multimedia interface as an example. There
will also be an optimisation of the system's performance and a revision and
adaptation of the user interface in line with the functional and optical state
of the art. "For years Amiga-OS has represented the conceptual realisation of
ideas that today are propagated by many to be special innovations. This means
that reprogramming will make it possible to achieve a really highly powered and
modern OS. Of course our system will also be open for other operating systems or
emulations, such as MacOS or an X-Windows link-up. The discussion concerning
so-called new operating systems, however, was intended more as marketing hype
than as a realistic alternative."

The commitment with which phase 5 digital products will force forward this
project is reflected not least in the considerable volume of investment that has
been made in the development. "By the middle of 1997 we will have invested
seven-digit figures in this project", says Wolf Dietrich. "We have the know-how,
the development team, the technical equipment, the support from third parties
(especially Motorola) and the financial basis for this project. The only thing
that we still need is massive and positive support from the Amiga user basis.
With this early disclosure of our objectives we expect to receive the
anticipated response from the users, for, after all, such a project only makes
sense if there is still a large number of convinced Amiga fans. We therefore
appeal to all Amiga fans to write to us, to send us faxes or to contact us via
E-mail (under the address specially set up for this purpose:
[e-mail]). Every positive reaction will strengthen this
forward-looking project."

PowerUP project continues to make progress

The PowerUp project also continues to make progress. "The delivery of the
developer PowerPC boards will now start in summer", says Gerald Carda.
"Unfortunately, we are a few months behind in our schedule due to extensive
discussions between Motorola, Amiga Technologies and phase 5. These companies
were to agree on a close cooperation and clarify a number of matters, especially
with regard to new standards specific to the new PowerPC. After the discussion
concerning a takeover by VIScorp started and the wave or redundancies that
directly followed at Amiga Technologies, which led to most of the contact
persons who had been involved in the projects leaving the company, AT abandoned
the present cooperation. For this reason we will waste no further time and will
continue with our project on our own, which was the way in which we started it.
Nor can we wait any longer to see what VIScorp might possibly intend or not
intend."

The support for external developers in the PowerUp program is now complete. More
than 250 developers - including practically all noted commercial software
suppliers in the Amiga field  - are registered and their numbers are growing
every day. This alone is evidence of the strong support for the future
Amiga-compatible PowerPC platform. As from the second half of May, the
registered users will now be able to order the PowerPC Beta developer boards
from phase 5 which mean the green light for the hot phase of the world-wide
software development.

Motorola appreciates the concept of phase 5

In the realisation of their new, innovative computer system phase 5 will be
fully supported by Motorola. "We appreciate the powerful and innovative concept
that phase 5 represents and we fully support the efforts of this company as a
partner in our global PowerPC strategy." says John Letham, European Technical
Marketing Manager, Motorola RISC Microprocessors. "We have had a number of joint
meetings now and we are impressed by the know-how and vision that is the basis
of phase 5«'s driving force."

Technology demonstrations

In close cooperation with Motorola phase 5 is preparing technology
demonstrations, to be shown in due course, which will demonstrate the impressive
capabilities of the next generation of PowerPC 603e CPUs at significantly
increased clock rates. This programme is already underway and Summer of 1996
will see phase 5 present prototypes of PowerPC boards for Amiga 3000/4000 as
well as for the Apple Macintosh 7500/8500/9500 series. "With the presentation of
these new processors, Motorola as a leading semiconductor manufacturer clearly
illustrates their capabilities demonstrating exactly why the next generation of
PowerPC CPUs will hold the pole position in the microprocessor performance
race". says Wolf Dietrich of phase 5. "Our computer system, when shipping next
year, will also offer these extremely fast processors, delivering true high-end
workstation performance. The higher speed of the CPUs will also deliver a
performance increase to the upgrade boards for existing Amiga systems." With the
presentation of this PowerPC technology demo on Apple MacIntosh system phase 5
digital products announces their entry into the MacIntosh accelerator market.
This new branch of their operation will make additional use of the PowerPC
know-how that is been build up in the Amiga development, while for both the
Amiga and the MacIntosh PowerPC products an even more attractive pricing can be
realized due to the higher quantity demands of PowerPC processors

phase 5 digital products on the situation of Amiga Technologies

 In addition to this project announcement, phase 5 also made some side remarks
on the current state of affairs with regard to Amiga Technologies. "To our
regret we found that Amiga Technologies offers us no sort of outlook or basis
for developing into the future", says Wolf Dietrich. "The first year of Amiga
Technologies was marked by a continued chain of wrong decisions which have been
responsible for the bad situation in which the company now finds itself. The
results must be adequate to the objectives set in the spring of 1995 and in this
respect they are more than disappointing. There is no getting away from this. In
fact the same mistakes were made that were previously made at Commodore and
partly by the same people.For example, attempts continue to keep technically
outdated products on the market at unrealistic prices, which is particularly
true in the case of the A4000T. Another point is that the marketing concepts are
completely outdated, there is an absence of any kind of futuristic vision and a
lack of any independent development, which is so pronounced that today AT
neither has any 68060 technology to show for itself nor even a sign of any
PowerPC technology.The brief spark of any independent development was
extinguished again by the latest wave of redundancies. In this respect the only
thing that we can just about expect from AT is that they sell off their large
quantities of existing stock. These do give us some cause to hope that the
existing products will be on the market for a while and that, in due course,
they will be offered at more realistic prices. Finally, the only thing that can
be said about the activities of AT is: They should have asked someone who knows
his stuff."

In the opinion of phase 5 a takeover of Amiga Technologies by VIScorp does not
awaken hope of any major innovations or any strengthening of the Amiga system.
"So far we have heard nothing from VIScorp that would cause us to assume that
anything different is being planned than the exploitation of the Amiga
technology in a settop box.Nor do we see why this company, which must certainly
concentrate all its efforts on realising its settop projects, should be
interested in further pursuing the primary aim of continuing with the Amiga
system. If this had been the case, it would already have been quite feasible for
VIScorp to initiate such a project as a licensee of the Amiga technology."
phase 5 sees this critical opinion confirmed by current events. "The actions of
VIScorp do not convince us that they are serious in continuing with the Amiga.
So far, for example, VIScorp has not directly spoken to the developers who were
the last to support the Amiga.Nor was there any reaction when we tried to make
contact. The VIScorp meeting in Toulouse that has now been announced lacks any
kind of organisation and was called without there being any recognisable concept
behind it. For this reason it is more than doubtful whether even a sign of any
constructive result can be expected to come out of it, so that in our view it
would be a pure waste of time to attend, as we have repeatedly found in the
recent year at ESCOM meetings. We don't need a repeat of that." Let it be
mentioned in passing that the hope often expressed in the general discussion,
i.e. that in VIScorp Amiga will find itself taken over by a company that will
finance the development of a new generation of Amiga products more or less from
the petty cash, is something that Wolf Dietrich considers to be very optimistic.
"For a start we had exactly the same expectations a year ago when everyone
thought that the giant ESCOM would get things moving at Amiga from a standing
position and quickly produce a new generation of Amiga computers for a more
competitive price. Secondly we should first wait and see whether the figures
that have been bandied about in the discussion concerning VIScorp's takeover of
AT have any sort of real fundament."

About phase 5 digital products

phase 5 digital products, based in Oberursel near Frankfurt, are internationally
operating manufacturers of hardware and software products. The company is
entirely owned by its founders, Gerald Carda and Wolf Dietrich. Since the market
launch of its first product line in 1992 this company, which consists of an
experienced team of the first Amiga users and developers, quickly established
itself as one of the leading manufacturers in the Amiga market. Since 1992 its
products have been distinguished many times, including 20 awards for Product of
the Year in Amiga journals. In 1995 phase 5 supplied accessories to the value of
some DM 12 million (5.5 million £ or 8 million US$) in the Amiga market alone.
Since the Christmas season of 1995 almost 30,000 hardware products have been
delivered. The product portfolio for Amiga includes accelerator cards, SCSI
controllers and graphics cards. In these fields phase 5 digital products has
repeatedly proved itself to be manufacturer that is a forerunner and an
innovative leader, for instance in bringing out the first Zorro III-DMA-SCSI
controller world-wide, the Fastlane Z3, in producing the first 68030 card
world-wide with a DMA-SCSI controller for the Amiga 1200, in offering the first
68060 card world-wide for Amiga systems (the Cyberstorm 060/50 for A4000), in
manufacturing the first 64-bit graphics card world-wide with full
system-integrated 24-bit support (the CyberVision64 for A3000/A4000) or in
bringing out the first 68060 card for the A1200 world-wide, the Blizzard 1260.
Along with intensive development activities as a Beta developer for Motorola in
the 68060 and PowerPC field, hardware developments at phase 5 include pure
research work in the field of multimedia high-performance DSPs and in the latest
development department ASE (advanced silicon engineering) VLSI chip design. An
expanding team of some 20 staff is currently working on these projects at the
company's headquarters in Oberursel on premises covering an area of 960 square
metres. In the adjoining service area, which covers an area of almost 600 square
metres, the company, as from August 96, will be producing hardware products -
including the new PowerPC products - in its own, highly modern manufacturing
plant using the most recent manufacturing techniques.

Contact:
phase 5 digital products
 In der Au 27
 61440 Oberursel, Germany

Intl. Phone:  [phone]
  Intl.Fax:  [phone]

Email: [e-mail] oder:   [e-mail]