Michael Viramontes, Senior Product Marketing Manager
ELSA, Inc.
408-919-9100 ext. 105
michaelv@elsa.com

Courtney Zoog
Focal Point Communications
415-289-0351
courtneyzoog@earthlink.net

ELSA SYNERGY II TM UNLEASHES POWERFUL 2D/3D ACCELERATION FOR GRAPHICS PROFESSIONALS

Synergy II Redefines Entry-Level Workstation Performance With 100% ELSA OpenGL, Full Streaming SIMD Extension Support and Application Specific Enhancements

National Design & Engineering Show (CHICAGO) -- March 15, 1999 -- ELSA, Inc., a world leader in computer graphics add-on and peripheral solutions, today announced Synergy II, an AGP 4X 2D/3D graphics accelerator that redefines entry-level workstation performance by offering professional-quality graphics acceleration for a compelling low price. With up to 32MB of memory, Synergy II delivers high performance graphics for workstation game development, computer-aided design and engineering (CAD/CAE), 3D animation, and image processing requirements. Optimized for IntelÆ Pentium IIIÆ, Synergy II combines ELSAís award winning OpenGL technology and certified application-specific enhancements with nVidiaís RIVA TwiN-Texel (TNT2) graphics processor to deliver extremely fast 3D and 2D performance.

The ELSA Synergy II graphics accelerator offers DCC, CAD and image processing professionals the most complete, high-performance solution on the market for an amazingly low price, said Uli Theissen, president of ELSA, Inc. By bringing ELSA's in-house OpenGL technology together with nVidia's RIVA TNT2 processor, Synergy II redefines entry-level workstation performance and delivers the application support necessary to exceed the requirements of today's most demanding graphics professionals.

Synergy II includes ELSA's SIMDream optimization for the Intel Pentium III processor, which delivers Streaming SIMD Extensions to ELSA's unique OpenGL and Windows NT drivers for optimal use of the Pentium III architecture. Utilizing the RIVA TNT2 processing engine as its integrated hardware setup core, Synergy II leverages the Pentium III core for high-bandwidth graphics processing such as geometry transform and lighting acceleration. With the implementation of Intel's new Streaming SIMD Extensions instruction set, ELSA will maximize the Pentium III's potential by accelerating important parts of the geometry pipeline to deliver significant application performance improvements to customers.

With support for both AGP 2X and AGP 4X, Synergy II offers unmatched Windows NT performance. The graphics controller has a dual-pixel 32-bit color pipeline with a 24-bit Z-buffer, 8-bit stencil buffer and per-pixel precision. With double the fill rate through the TwiN-Texel technology, it delivers fill rates of 250 million pixels-per-second, and can drive 8 million triangles per second. The Synergy II provides resolutions of up to 1920 x 1200 with a 300MHz RAMDAC.

The Synergy II is designed for use with professional applications such as AutoCAD, 3D Studio MAX, 3D Studio VIZ, LightWave 3D, Nichimen Mirai, ESRI ArcView, Microstation, and Adobe Photoshop.

"With nearly 20 years of experience in both the 2D and 3D graphics arena, ELSA consistently delivers reliable, high performance drivers for Autodesk products," said Amar Hanspal, director of AutoCAD marketing, Autodesk, Inc. "Reliable drivers can substantially boost our customers' productivity, particularly with the high-performance, 3D capabilities delivered in our new AutoCAD 2000."

ELSA Software Advantage:
The ELSA Software Advantage provides professional users with the performance and productivity advantage for OpenGL and 2D applications, and bundled software drivers and utilities for AutoCAD and3D Studio MAX/VIZ. ELSA OpenGL technology achieves a ProCDRS score surpassing eight. ELSA POWERdraft is the only drive worldwide delivering hardware acceleration for both AutoCAD R13 and R14. ELSA MAXtreme is for 3D graphics performance with a customized driver combining OpenGL, HEIDI, and ELSA technology. ELSAview 3D is a real-time 3D editor and viewer tightly integrated with AutoCAD R14, AutoCAD R13, MDT and ADT.

Through the ELSA Software Advantage, customers take advantage of a wide array of unique, high-performance drivers and utilities to enable Synergy and GLoria accelerator boards to achieve maximum 2D/3D graphics performance. ELSA leverages experience in CAD and high-end graphics to create high-quality drivers to accelerate professional applications such as AutoCAD or 3D Studio MAX.

Product Availability:
The Synergy II is scheduled to be available for OEM and channel distribution in Q2 1999, with initial pricing expected to start at $299 for the 32MB version.

ELSA Information:
ELSA, Inc. is a subsidiary of ELSA AG, a Germany based publicly listed company, trading on the 'Neuer Markt' trading segment of the Frankfurt stock exchange. Founded in 1980, ELSA has built a world-class reputation in high-performance 2D and 3D graphics solutions for professional workstations, commercial desktop and consumer PCs. In addition ELSA offers a wide range of communications products such as modems, ISDN-internet access solutions and PC based videoconferencing products.

The ELSA logo is a registered trademark of ELSA AG. All names mentioned may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.