NEC V20 Microprocessor

The NEC V20 was Nippon Electric Company's (NEC) first venture into reverse-engineering an Intel microprocessor chip instead of licensing the designs, as was common practice in the 1980s. The move heralded the beginnings of a surge in Japan's now-giant semiconductor industry. The NEC V20 was directly interchangeable with Intel's 8088 microprocessor line, and featured a die having 29,000 transistors and a clock speed of 8 to 10 MHz. Due to the complete pin and signal compatibility, and an Intel 8088 simulation mode, some computer users exchanged their 8088 microprocessors for the newer and faster NEC chip. Sony also produced this microprocessor under license from NEC as the V20H.