« Reply #1 on: September 19, 2017, 09:17:19 AM »
https://web.archive.org/web/20000511225712/http://www.promise.com:80/Products/idecards/emax2.htmEIDEMAX II is the first jumperless 16-bit IDE drive upgrade and port expansion card and offers easy plug and play installation. It instantly upgrades your existing EIDE/IDE controller to support Ultra DMA storage capacities up to and beyond 8.4GB! Works on most older PCs regardless of type.
Adds 2 extra IDE ports for using more ATAPI devices. Using more independent IDE ports also ends device conflicts and intermittent errors caused by attaching faster hard drives and slower IDE devices on the same IDE cable.
Data Sheet (PDF)
News Release
Summary Points
Upgrades existing controller to accept drives up to 8.4GB and larger
Adds two extra IDE ports for more ATAPI devices
First jumperless 16-bit drive and port upgrade card
Helps reduce errors caused by conflicting devices on same cable
Allows using IDE CD-ROMs, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD, tape, and removable media drives
EIDEMAX Product Launch
To: All Distributors & Dealers/VARs
Date: April 24, 1995
Enhanced IDE for ISA Bus
Promise Technology introduces a better IDE solution for ISA: EIDEMAX. Users now can get more from their existing ISA-based IDE controller than ever before...more storage capacity, more device support, easier device recognition, and higher performance. Designed to work as the primary or secondary IDE disk controller on the ISA bus, EIDEMAX offers three low-cost, high performance answers to the corporate upgrade dilemma.
First, there's instant LBA Mode support for an existing IDE controller. Get all the storage capacity your customer needs by attaching two Enhanced IDE drives with 8.4GB capacity each to the existing controller card. Second, EIDEMAX adds a second drive connector to accept two more high capacity EIDE drives. Need multimedia or tape backup? Instead of two more drives, attach an IDE CD-ROM or IDE tape backup to EIDEMAX. It's completely ATAPI-ready. Third, EIDEMAX offers an advanced multiple sector read/write function to instantly boost ISA-based IDE disk controller performance by up to 80%.
For you, the reseller, to become fully aware of how best to position and sell EIDEMAX, we've put together information on these and other major product features, product positioning in the market, and our basic competition. Our product launch information specifically covers: market overview, product specifications, features & benefits, competitive analysis & product positioning, and cost vs. performance/features comparisons.
Market Overview
Increased data storage needs and larger program sizes (Word 6.0 and WordPerfect 6.1 take up to 30MB+ alone, for example) demand more from operating platforms and subsystems than ever before. Despite rapidly falling prices for hard disk storage and systems, many corporate users in particular are faced with large scale upgrades of their company desktops. Many individual users face the same decision at home. Simply to get more capacity or configure multimedia and tape backup support, these customers are faced with changing from ISA-based architectures to more costly and complex 32-bit platform choices.
One low-cost alternative to an expensive storage upgrade is Enhanced IDE with its large capacity hard drives and IDE-based ATAPI peripheral devices. The EIDE specification breaks through the 528MB barrier and provides faster data seek times, inclusion of four IDE devices and attachment of IDE CD-ROMs and tape backups. Up to now these advances have been available ONLY on the newest 32-bit platforms leaving ISA users to employ software drivers and/or partitioning to get more storage capacity. CD-ROMs and tape backup meant getting another SCSI card or using the slower floppy tape channel. No longer....
EIDEMAX serves as a very powerful way to extend the life of and investment in ISA bus systems. At the same time, users can begin taking advantage of the higher standards of IDE technology. This latest IDE technology revolution will, we believe, continue to evolve and grow. EIDEMAX gives the ISA bus-based PC user the chance to use this new technology immediately without complicated setups, upgrades or configuration costs.
EIDEMAX answers the needs of higher storage capacity support, faster data throughput (within the physical limits of the 16-bit ISA bus), and ATAPI device support for corporate and stand-alone users right now. EIDEMAX also offers easier set-up. An external smart BIOS auto-recognizes virtually all IDE drives and Enhanced IDE disk drives available.
With more than 30 million ISA-based PCs still on the market, and a majority of those still in corporations, the potential upgrade market for the EIDEMAX represents a tremendous opportunity for Promise and resellers alike.
EIDEMAX Product Specifications
Model EIDEMAX
Drive Types EIDE & IDE
Bus 16-bit ISA
ATAPI-ready Yes
# EIDE/IDE Hard Drives 2 EIDE drives on existing IDE card
Supported +
2 EIDE HDD or 1EIDE & CD-ROM/tape*
on EIDEMAX
Data Transfer Rate Increases ISA IDE data transfer rate
by up to 80% using multiple sector
read/write
Primary/Secondary Support Yes
Co-Exists** Yes
Max. Storage Capacity Up to 8.4GB per drive
Compatibility DOS 6.2, Windows 3.1, Windows for
Workgroups 3.11, OS/2 2.0, 2.1,
Warp, NetWare 3.1x, 4.01
Advanced Features Auto-senses drive parameters
Selectable IDE channel
Selectable BIOS Address
Driver for Windows 32-bit access
* Requires drivers from device manufacturer(s)
** Works with second controller
Product Features & Benefits
The following section highlights features and benefits of EIDEMAX.
IDE Device Support
Features Benefits
BIOS LBA Mode supports two high Allows higher storage capacities
capacity Enhanced IDE drives on for your software and data.
existing controller card
Controls two high capacity EIDE Provides additional storage
drives OR one EIDE HDD and capacity and/or CD-ROM device
CD-ROM/tape* on EIDEMAX option for single slot solution
Bundles drivers for Windows 3.1 Provides 32-bit access for
higher performance.
Advanced Hardware & Firmware Design
Features Benefits
Onboard BIOS implements multiple Offers higher data transfer rate
sector read/write for existing controller and
EIDEMAX
Selectable IDE channel EIDEMAX can stand alone as
single controller or provides
flexible boot-up controller
option
Compatibility
Features Benefits
Register-level compatible with Fully compatible with all ANSI
ANSI ATA standard ATA IDE devices
Compatible with DOS 6.2, Windows Provides higher level
3.1, Windows NT 3.1, Windows for compatibility with wide variety
Workgroups 3.11, OS/2 2.0, 2.1, of popular operating systems
Warp, Netware 3.1x, 4.01
* with manufacturer's driver
Competitive Analysis & Product Positioning
EIDEMAX's simple, yet high storage capacity and performance-driven solution to ISA IDE gives our customers the ability to mix and match system requirements and specs to fit their particular applications. EIDEMAX offers both enduser and reseller amazing flexibility options...an ideal solution for users looking for a cost-effective upgrade to their existing ISA PC systems on any PC with a 16-bit ISA slot.
Most 16-bit IDE disk controllers rely on external device drivers to recognize bigger drives. Our only other competitor, GSI, only offers BIOS support to connect high capacity drives and higher data transfer for their own card not for an existing controller...and at a higher cost. Of course Promise offers all of the above capabilities for EIDEMAX and for the existing ISA-based IDE disk controller at the lowest cost possible.
But you're also getting one more thing that our competitor cannot possibly offer. You're getting the satisfaction of the reliable and proven Promise Technology name. We are the creator of IDE disk accelerators with a proven track-record in innovative IDE controller products. EIDEMAX is 100% designed and manufactured by us -- not a nameless one-product wonder.
Only Promise Technology's EIDEMAX and GSI's Model 18 offer ISA-based controller support for high capacity drives. Yet Promise clearly demonstrates striking product/price/performance advantages. The following chart compares the major features of these cards that most affect user system performance.
Product Comparison Chart
Features PROMISE GSI Standard
EIDEMAX Model 18 ISA card
Stand-Alone 2.21MB/sec 2.13MB/sec 1.21MB/sec
Product
Performance Test*
Standard ISA card 2.21MB/sec 1.54MB/sec n/a
test results with (83% improvement) (no improvement)
add-on card
installed*
# of high capacity 4 2 0
drives supported
Primary/Secondary Yes Yes No
support
Maximum Storage up to 33.6GB up to 16.8GB up to 1.1GB
Capacity (4x8.4GB) (2x8.4GB) (2x528MB)
Windows 32-bit Yes No No
disk access
support
Price $39.- (SRP) $45.-** n/a
*Coretest v.2.92 (all tests performed on a 486/66DX-2 system, 4MB memory, Seagate ST31220A drive, test date 04/16/95)
**Based on nationally advertised price (no SRP quoted)
All trademarks are properties of their respective holders. Specifications subject to change without notice. Operating system and peripheral support quoted are current as of this publication date.
« Last Edit: November 27, 2017, 04:21:20 PM by chrisNova777 »
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