AST COMPUTER BREAKS $1,000 WINDOWS 95, MULTIMEDIA PRICE BARRIER WITH
SPECIAL PCS MADE EXCLUSIVELY FOR WAL-MART

IRVINE, Calif., May 17,1996 -- AST Computer today announced it has begun
shipments of custom-configured PCs to Wal-Mart, thus becoming the first PC
manufacturer to deliver multimedia computer systems priced below $1,000
and configured with 8 MB of memory and the Windows 95 operating system.

The special AST Advantage! Adventure systems, which will be marketed
exclusively by Wal-Mart, feature several popular technologies, including
CD-ROM drives, sound card, integrated stereo speakers and multimedia
application software programs. Terms of the agreement between AST and
Wal-Mart were not disclosed.

"Once again, AST is first-to-market with custom-designed systems to fulfill
a growing market need," said Ian Diery, AST president and chief executive
officer. "With today's announcement, we have strengthened our strategic
relationship with Wal-Mart, the world's largest and most successful
retailer, to jointly deliver exceptional computing value for home-office
and education consumers."

The sub-$1,000 Advantage! Adventure systems feature 66MHz, 486-class
processors; 8 MB RAM; 540MB hard drive; Sound Blaster-compatible audio; 4X
CD-ROM drive; 14.4 kbps fax/data modem; stereo speakers; and a 14-inch
color monitor. Software offerings include the MicrosoftR Windows 95
operating system, as well as several beneficial applications for
home-office and education enhancement featuring Microsoft Works 4.0 (word
processing, spreadsheet, database and more); Microsoft Encarta 96
encyclopedia; Microsoft Money 4.0 financial planner/organizer; Microsoft
Fury 3 Special Edition multimedia adventure game; and Microsoft Golf 2.0
multimedia game. Each system is backed by a one-year warranty provided by
AST.

"The time is now right for consumers to purchase multimedia PCs priced
under $1,000," said Chuck Kerby, Wal-Mart vice president, divisional
merchandise manager. "Computer products have become one of the
fastest-growing categories throughout our nationwide network of stores and
AST has played a major role in our success. Expanding our relationship to
target the sub-$1,000 price point allows Wal-Mart to deliver on our
promise of providing superior value that is available every day at low
prices."

Wal-Mart will begin selling the AST Advantage! Adventure multimedia systems
later this month in all of its more than 2,200 stores, supported by local
high-impact advertising campaigns.

Wal-Mart is the world's largest retailer with sales of more than $93
billion annually. The company operates more than 2,200 stores worldwide,
including locations in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Hong
Kong, Brazil and Argentina.

AST Research Inc., a member of the Fortune 500 list of America's largest
industrial and service companies, is one of the world's leading personal
computer manufacturers. The company develops a broad spectrum of desktop,
mobile and server PC products that are sold in more than 100 countries
worldwide. AST systems meet a wide range of customer needs, ranging from
corporate business applications to advanced home and home office use.
Corporate headquarters is located at 16215 Alton Parkway, P.O. Box 57005,
Irvine, Calif. 92619-7005. Telephone (714) 727-4141 or (800) 876-4278.
Fax: (714) 727-9355. Information about AST and its products can be found
on the World Wide Web at http://www.ast.com.
 
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