COMPAQ DELIVERS WORKSTATION PERFORMANCE AT PC PRICE.

Furthering its commitment to help more customers get the most out of enterprise computing, Compaq Computer Corporation (NYSE: CPQ), Houston, Texas, has introduced the Professional Workstation AP200, the latest member of the company's Affordable Performance (AP) line of Windows NT-based workstations targeted at customers requiring an optimum balance between price and performance. The Professional Workstation AP200 offers Compaq customers the most affordable workstation to date, starting at only $2,350 for a workstation with Intel's new 350 MHz Pentium II processor. Priced, serviced and managed like a PC, the AP200 delivers the performance of a workstation. With the AP200, technical, creative and business professionals whose budgets had previously relegated them to PCs can now afford a powerful, reliable Compaq Professional Workstation to power their increasingly demanding applications.

The Compaq Professional Workstation AP200 is the second product in the new AP line, which combines Intel's latest Pentium II processors with high-performance 2D and 3D graphics solutions to deliver workstation-class performance at new levels of affordability. AP workstations are ideally suited for mainstream computer-aided design (CAD), architectural engineering and construction (AEC), financial trading, digital content creation (DCC) and geographic information systems (GIS) applications, as well as s elect electronic design automation and software development applications.

In addition, the Compaq Professional Workstation AP200 - like all Compaq workstation products - is tested and certified with leading CAD, DCC, finance and EDA applications. Coupled with robust Unix and Macintosh interoperability testing and certificat ion programs offered by Compaq, customers can deploy these systems with total confidence.

"A growing number of workstation customers are demanding more than excellent performance; they are demanding this performance at an affordable price. That's exactly what we're delivering with the Professional Workstation AP200," said Les Crudele, vice president and general manager of Compaq's Workstation Division. "The AP200 provides the perfect balance between workstation power and PC affordability by combining best-in-breed workstation-level components, such as a Pentium II processors, robust graphics accelerators and 100 MHz SDRAM, with the low acquisition cost and low total cost of ownership of a PC."

Professional Workstation AP200 System Highlights

Although the AP200 is one of the most affordable workstations available, it offers many high-performance features, including a 350-400 MHz Intel Pentium II processor, 64-384 MB of 100 MHz ECC RAM, a choice of Ultra ATA or Wide-Ultra SCSI hard drive s (up to 9.1 GB) and a Fast Ethernet NIC that features Wake-on-LAN capabilities. Its innovative chassis design provides six total PCI, ISA and AGP expansion slots and five total bays for easy upgradability and can be configured to be a minitower or desktop to maximize workspace and fit virtually any working environment. The AP200 is delivered with an integrated EIDE controller (Wide-Ultra SCSI controller on select models), a 32X CD-ROM, Compaq PremierSound™ Audio, a three-button mouse and Windows NT Workstation 4.0 and Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 pre-installed.

The AP200 also ships standard with the ELSA GLoria Synergy+ AGP graphics accelerator, which supports the accelerated graphics port (AGP) for optimum 2D and 3D graphics performance at an affordable price. "Compaq's choice of our GLoria Synergy+ graphics accelerator is proof of ELSA's ability to not only deliver performance, extreme product stability and cost-effective graphics solutions for workstation PCs but also our continued commitment in supporting many ISVs in 2D and 3D CAD and visualization," said Theo Beisch, chairman and CEO of ELSA. "Our Synergy+, combined with the new Professional Workstation AP200, makes it possible for our mutual customers to reach high-performance productivity in conventional 2D CAD and 3D visualization for an outstanding price."

Integrated Management Capabilities

To minimize customers' total cost of ownership, the Professional Workstation AP200 ships standard with Compaq's award-winning Intelligent Manageability technology. These built-in management features - including support for DMI 2.0 - allow customer s to remotely manage the system from a central location to perform configuration management, fault management for detecting and controlling pre-failure events, security management for detecting unauthorized access to sensitive corporate information and as set management for effectively managing computing assets. Intelligent Manageability supports and can be integrated with leading third-party local area network and enterprise management applications.

Service and Support

For confident deployment in business critical environments, Compaq Professional Workstations are supported by Compaq's global network of service providers. These Compaq-trained and certified partners offer a wide range of flexible service and support offerings for any size computing environment. Customers can choose a customized, cost-effective solution including system design and planning, installation and integration, maintenance or consulting services.

Pricing and Availability

The Compaq Professional Workstation AP200 is available now with prices starting at $2,350 for a system with a 350 MHz Pentium II processor, 64 MB of 100 MHz ECC SDRAM, a 6.4 GB Ultra ATA hard drive and an ELSA GLoria Synergy+ AGP graphics accelerator.

For more information on the AP200 and other Professional Workstation products, see the following URL: http://www.compaq.com/products/workstations

Company Background

Founded in 1982, Compaq Computer Corporation is a Fortune Global 200 company. Compaq is the second largest computer company in the world and the largest global supplier of personal computers. Compaq develops and markets hardware, software, solutions, and services, including industry-leading enterprise computing solutions, fault-tolerant business-critical solutions, networking and communication products, commercial desktop and portable products and consumer PCs. The company is an industry leader in environmentally friendly programs and business practices.

Compaq products are sold and supported in more than 100 countries through a network of authorized Compaq marketing partners. Customer support and about Compaq and its products are available at http://www.compaq.com or by calling 1-800-OK-CO MPAQ. Product information and reseller locations are available by calling 1-800-345-1518.

All pricing listed herein is U.S. estimated street price, unless otherwise noted. Actual reseller price may vary.