SUN EXPERT3D-LITE OFFERS PROFESSIONAL GRAPHICS FOR $995.

Expanding its range of professional-level graphics solutions, Sun Microsystems, Inc. (Nasdaq: SUNW) has introduced the Sun(TM) Expert3D-Lite graphics accelerator for $995 --a price more typically associated with PC industry graphics.

Developed for professionals in such markets as mechanical computer-aided design (MCAD), geographic information systems (GIS), digital content creation and medical imaging, the Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics board provides customers with a new price standard without quality trade-offs.

Additionally, the Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics accelerator has been extensively tested and certified with a number of leading technical software application developers, including Alias|Wavefront, Autometric, Dassault, EAI, ERDAS, GeoQuest, Landmark, PTC, Paradigm Geo, SDRC and Unigraphics.

"Customers buying Sun workstations and graphics are making million dollar decisions every day based on what they see," said Fred Kohout, director of marketing, Technical Market Products Group at Sun Microsystems. "They demand tested, mission critical quality graphics and will not tolerate inaccurate renderings or displays. The Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics board maintains our commitment to provide high quality, professional-level graphics for an extremely affordable price."

The Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics board is based on 3Dlabs' newly introduced, high performance Wildcat II chip set. Co-developed with 3Dlabs, exclusively to Sun specifications and requirements, Sun Expert3D-Lite leverages the advanced architecture of Sun's high end Expert3D graphics board announced in 2000. Sun Expert3D-Lite's architecture consists of three dedicated memory banks, a geometry accelerator, a rasterizer and a bus interface. Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics is able to offer many of the same capabilities of Sun Expert3D, but at one-third the price.

When compared to the Sun(TM) Elite3D m3 graphics board, the Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics accelerator gives users 300% greater texture mapping performance, 58% higher 3D resolutions support, 30% faster geometry performance, and 300% more onboard memory -- all for about half the cost.

"With the new Sun Blade(TM) 100 workstation and Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics accelerator board, Sun has yet again re-set the standards for 3D graphics computing," said Sarang Ghatpande, Research Analyst, D.H. Brown. "Sun has accomplished this by focusing on the entry-level 3D graphics market with a perfect blend of professional level graphics, 64-bit computing -- in both architecture and operating environment -- and solutions geared towards addressing market requirements with an ever more affordable price band."

Flexibility Improves Quality, Increases Productivity

The new Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics accelerator supports a wide range of systems running on the robust Solaris(TM) Operating Environment, from the entry level Sun Blade(TM) 100 workstation, to the Ultra(TM) 60 and 80 workstations, and up to the high-performance Sun Blade 1000 workstation.

To help customers increase productivity, Sun's 3D graphics workstations offer greater flexibility by supporting as many as four graphics accelerators in a single system. Applications using Sun workstations and graphics solutions can span multiple displays and can be viewed as one single virtual display.

Other features and benefits include the following:

-- 4.1 million triangles/second with up to 88 Mpixels/second texture fill rate: improves designer productivity by providing fast and realistic 3D graphics, allowing users to capitalize on 3D application functionality with a cost-effective graphics solution.

-- 32 MB dedicated frame buffer memory supporting all of Sun's displays at resolutions up to 1920 x 1080 pixels (HDTV): allows users to display several application windows on-screen with little or no overlap, enabling the user to see more data at once.

-- 16 MB dedicated, hardware-accelerated texture mapping memory: improves on-screen design quality and provides high-performance hardware-based texture mapping operations for fast visual feedback; helps ensure that there are no trade-offs between display resolutions, texture memory, and z-buffering depth.

-- 3D volumetric rendering: makes it possible to render internal textures of objects, a capability especially important in medical imaging (e.g., to view a 3D CCAT scan) as well as oil and gas exploration.

-- 32-bit Z-buffer: eliminates "poke-through" anomalies, in which objects appear to penetrate each other and flicker in and out as the image is moved.

-- Stereoscopic video graphics support at 960 x 680 pixel, 1152 x 900 pixel, and 1280 x 800 pixel resolutions at up to 120-Hz refresh rates: improves the design visualization of complex 3-D relationships that may not be seen otherwise; reduces perceived flicker on screen, lowering occurrences of fatigue and eye strain.

Availability, Price And Support

Sun's Expert3D-Lite graphics accelerator is currently available worldwide for $995 (U.S. list). The Sun Expert3D-Lite graphics board can be purchased directly from Sun and through standard Sun channels. The Expert3D-Lite board is backed by Sun's standard service and support and a one-year warranty.

About Sun Microsystems, Inc.

Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision -- "The Network Is The Computer(TM)" -- has propelled Sun Microsystems, Inc., to its position as a leading provider of industrial-strength hardware, software and services that power the Internet and allow companies worldwide to dot-com their businesses.

For more information, visit http://www.sun.com or call 650-786-7215.