AMD outlines Elite Performance laptop APUs with game-ready Wireless Display

AMD outlines Elite Performance laptop APUs with gameready Wireless Display

AMD isn’t focusing all its attention on its entry-level mobile APUs today: it’s also providing details for the faster Richland-based models. The new A6, A8, and A10 mobile variants fall under the Elite Performance badge, and theoretically beat Intel to the punch with up to 71 percent faster 3D graphics than the current Core i5 family. They also muster about 7.5 hours of battery life with web use, or about an hour longer than we saw in the previous generation. The roster includes both regular power (35W) and low-voltage (17W to 25W) APUs, in dual- and quad-core editions.

We’re more interested in how well the chips play with other devices and software, however. Besides the face and motion gesture recognition that we’ve seen before, AMD touts a new take on Wireless Display with low enough latency for game sessions, support for 1080p60 video and native Miracast sharing. The Richland upgrade also introduces a new Dock Port standard that can feed both USB 3.0 and up to three external DisplayPort screens through one cable. If you like what AMD is pitching, you won’t have to wait to try it — Elite Performance APUs have already been shipping with MSI’s GX60 and GX70, and other vendors shouldn’t be far behind.

Filed under: ,

Comments

Source: AMD

Acer Aspire V5 11.6-inch notebook leaked with $450 price tag, unexpected AMD Temash chip

Acer Aspire V5 11.6-inch notebook leaked with $450 price tag, unexpected AMD Temash chip

While AMD announced its new Temash APU (alongside others) at this year’s CES, the only device we’ve seen sporting it was an intriguing reference hybrid that made the rounds at the show. Now, details of an Acer Aspire V5 notebook have emerged, indicating the company is preparing its first Temash-powered device for general consumption. Acer already has a trio of Aspire V5 models with Intel Core processors and NVIDIA handling the graphics, but a half-complete product page for an unannounced V5-122P-0643 swaps those components out for AMD’s wares. Formally called the AMD A6-1450, the Temash APU combines a quad-core 1GHz processor — or 1.4GHz in “Turbo” state — with a Radeon HD 8280 GPU. When put into tablets, it has an unusually low, sub-5W power envelope that allows for passive cooling. While we don’t know exactly what wattage this Acer notebook will have, the presence of Temash should bode well for battery life. Head past the break for more details.

Filed under: , ,

Comments

Via: MiniMachines

Source: Acer

AMD reveals G-Series X embedded chips, drops a little ARM-powered bombshell

AMD reveals G Series embedded chips, drops an ARMpowered bombshell in the process

We’re no strangers to AMD’s embedded processors, designed for specialist applications such as casino gaming and dashboard infotainment systems. But this latest announcement of an updated G-Series processor reveals something totally unexpected. It’s not just that the chip contains four Jaguar cores of PlayStation 4 fame, or that it also includes a Radeon 8000 GPU and I/O module on a single piece of silicon — although that’s all interesting enough. The key thing is actually the “X” in the lower right corner of the logo, which signifies that this is an x86 chip of the type we’d normally expect from AMD. The question is this: Why bother even mentioning the “X” when everyone knows AMD is an x86 stalwart already? Read on and we’ll explain its true significance.

Filed under: , ,

Comments

AMD Richland chips will arrive in notebooks next month, promise better graphics, battery life and a few extras

First notebooks with AMD Richland chips due out next month, should bring better battery life and some nice little extras video

Yearly product cycles? AMD doesn’t need that long, thank you. It’s planning to release a fresh batch of low-power APUs just 11 months after Trinity. Known as Richland, this generation won’t be vastly different at the silicon level, as it’s built on the same 32nm process as Trinity, has the same number of transistors and offers very similar compute performance in terms of raw GFLOPs. However, there are some noteworthy upgrades in attendance, including a move to Radeon HD 8000M graphic processors, which are claimed to deliver a 20-40 percent increase in “visual performance” in higher-end models, plus power-saving tweaks that should provide over an hour of additional battery life while watching 720p video — perhaps even enough for two extra episodes of House of Cards. Some Windows 8 enhancements will also tag along for the ride, and these will promptly be revealed if you read on past the break.

Filed under: , ,

Comments

Meet the PS4’s Blazing AMD Guts

We don’t know squat about what the PS4 will look like since it didn’t make an appearance at Sony’s two-hour long press event last night, but we’ve learned a lot about what it’ll be like when it finally shows up. And now, we know it’s going to have AMD innards. More »

AMD announces Kabini, Kaveri, Richland, and Temash APUs at CES 2013

AMD held their press event here at CES 2013, and announced a slew of new accelerated processing units (APUs). And as typical fashion of any chipset maker, they were full of codenames. The company announced Kabini, Kaveri, Richland, and Temash APUs today, the first and the last being AMD’s first true SoC APUs.

image0000

As far as the other two go, Richland is an APU that’s currently shipping to OEMs and it promises to deliver a performance boost of 20 to 40% over the previous generation of the company’s A-series chips, and the Kaveri is a new 28nm chip that features heterogeneous system architecture (HSA), and it should ship to customers sometime during the second half of this year.

Richland will also be bundling some new software with the chip, specifically a handful of gesture- and facial-recognition tools. These new chips will be used in various HP, ASUS, and Vizio ultrathin laptops, as well as Vizio’s 24-inch AIO desktop. The company announced these earlier in the day.

Senior vice president and general manager Lisa Su made an appearance at AMD’s press event and mentioned that the company is dedicated “to bring true surround computing and immersive experiences to our everyday lives.” She also mentioned that the new APU’s are “the industry’s first x86 quad-core SoC,” proving the company’s leadership in the gaming industry.


AMD announces Kabini, Kaveri, Richland, and Temash APUs at CES 2013 is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

AMD cuts silicon wafer order by three quarters, gets a nasty fine

AMD cuts silicon wafer orders by three quarters, gets billed for almost the full amount anyway

If you’re in need of a concrete example of how the chip-making industry is trickier than ever, and how it rewards scale at the expense of flexibility, then please, look no further. AMD has just significantly reduced its order for silicon wafers from its old mate Globalfoundries, in an effort to avoid the inventory surpluses and write-downs that have recently plagued its balance sheet. Instead of buying the originally agreed $500 million-worth of cake trays this quarter, it’s now committed to spending just $115 million. Except it was never, ever gonna be that simple. In lieu of reneging on its contract at short notice, AMD will have to pay Globalfoundries a $320 million penalty on top, bringing the final cost of the deal to just $65 million less than what it would have paid for the full order.

On the plus side, of course, that’s still a major saving for a company which is going through an intense rough patch (to say the least) and trying to cling to every dime. Besides, AMD managed to get out of paying the fee as a lump sum, while also reducing its obligations for 2013 and agreeing to pay Globalfoundries less for R&D once it shifts to a more standard 28nm process — so it can’t entirely have run out of clout.

Continue reading AMD cuts silicon wafer order by three quarters, gets a nasty fine

Filed under: , ,

Comments

Via: HotHardware

Sony PS4 “Orbis” based on tweaked AMD A10 tip devs

Sony is shipping a new version of its PlayStation 4 development kit, insiders claim, codenamed “Orbis” and  based on AMD’s A10 Accelerated Processing Units. Described as “a modified PC” by VG247‘s sources, the APUs at the heart of the console-analog is supposedly a “derivative” of the A10 combined CPU and GPU Trinity chips AMD launched back in March, and is paired with “either 8GB or 16GB of RAM.”

There’s also set to be Blu-ray, in the final console at least, along with a 256GB drive “as standard.” The developers briefed by Sony this week did not say whether that would be an HDD or SDD, but it’s worth noting that 256GB as a capacity is more typically associated with solid-state drives.

Connectivity includes both WiFi and ethernet, along with an HDMI output, and in general there’s no difference in ports between Orbis and the existing PS3. Sony supposedly told developers that the goal was a machine that would be capable of satisfying “today and tomorrow’s market,” such as running 1080p60 games in 3D, but while still being “very affordable”; that challenging balance could well explain the apparent use of closer to off-the-shelf components than the Core chips at the heart of the current-gen console.

The latest machine is apparently the second in what’s expected to be a four system roll-out for developers with early access to Sony’s hardware. The first model was “essentially just a graphics card” while this second-gen version dresses that up in a PC. A third machine, expected in January, will supposedly be near to the final PS4 specifications, followed by the final version due “next summer.”

In addition to the introduction to new hardware, Sony is also using the Orbis developer system to demo the PS4′s updated interface, it’s claimed. “They’re trying to make it as fluid as possible” it’s said of the new UI, with the ability to jump out mid-game and use any other feature before returning, such as to leap into the PS Store and buy extra game content before heading back into play to actually use it. Sony expects the PS4 to be perpetually left in standby, with (optional) downloads in the background.

Orbis, as Sony is insisting on calling the PS4 in these early briefings, is expected to be announced just prior to E3 2013.

[Image credit: Tai Chiem]


Sony PS4 “Orbis” based on tweaked AMD A10 tip devs is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


AMD rumored to drop prices for APU Llano chips

AMD‘s recent launch of their new Trinity APUs may soon result in a drastic price drop of the company’s last-gen Llano APU chips. According to DigiTimes, sources familiar with several motherboard manufacturers have mentioned that the entire lineup of AMD’s Llano series will see price cuts, including the A4-3300, which is said to cost only $30 after the price drop.

AMD’s latest APU chips, codenamed Trinity, run off of the company’s new FM2 socket, meaning that if you want to snatch one of these bad boys, you’ll have to upgrade your motherboard as well. However, the upgrade will certainly be worth it, seeing that you can grab the entry-level A4-5300 for just $65. This will get you a 3.4GHz dual-core processor with Radeon HD 7480D integrated graphics.

Along with the AMD’s last-gen A4-3300, it’s said that the other Llano chips will receive a generous price cut as well, including the A4-3400, which is said to be lowered to $35. It’s also rumored that A4-5300 will see a price slash down to $30 sometime next quarter (Q1 2013) in order to compete with Intel’s Pentium series.

If you’ve never played around with an APU before, we highly suggest getting one if you plan on building a budget computer anytime soon. Don’t let the low price fool you either. The last-gen entry level A4-3300 is plenty powerful to play HD content and even a few games on medium settings or so. They make for great processor for HTPCs, and Windows 7 runs really well on them.


AMD rumored to drop prices for APU Llano chips is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


AMD Z-60 APU for skinny Windows 8 tablets revealed

AMD has revealed its new processor for tablets, the AMD Z-Series APU, intended to take on not only Intel’s Atom but the ARM-based chips found in the majority of slates on sale today. The AMD Z-60 has, with a 4.5W TDP, the lowest power consumption of AMD’s line-up, and is expected to bring its 1GHz dualcore speed to tablets as slim as 10mm with the first models – running Windows 8 – tipped for later this year.

The Z-60 includes Radeon HD 6250 graphics with 80 cores, as well as 1MB of L2 Cache and USB 3.0 support. There’s also support for AMD Start Now, the company’s fast boot/resume system, as well as an HDMI output capable of Full HD, and Microsoft’s DirectX 11.

AMD’s tablet reference design is built around a Z-60 paired with 2GB of DDR3 RAM, a 30Whr battery, and running Windows 8. On that sort of setup, the company says it’s seeing up to eight hours of browsing or six hours of playing back a looped 720p H.264 video with the display brightness set to 60 nits.

That’s on the dim side, mind. AMD’s own anecdotal research from back in 2009 found that many people set their displays at more than 2.5x that brightness as a level of minimum comfort, and that 60 nits is roughly equivalent to 20- to 30-percent brightness settings on notebooks tested at the time.

At idle, AMD is supposedly seeing up to 10hrs of runtime. AMD is already shipping the Z-60 to its customers, with tablets running the chip expected later in 2012. No word on what sort of pricing we can expect.


AMD Z-60 APU for skinny Windows 8 tablets revealed is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.