amd

Graphics chip market seeing big changes

To quote the iconic 1960s drummer Buddy Miles, the graphics chip market is "going through them changes."

As Nvidia falters, Advanced Micro Devices' ATI graphics unit is on the rise, spurred by "radical" shifts in the market, according to Mercury Research, which tracks the market for GPUs or graphics processing units.

"AMD surpassed Nvidia this quarter in overall shipments...(and) is now the leading supplier of standalone GPU and of notebook standalone GPUs, and the second largest supplier of graphics solutions overall," the Mercury Research report says. Intel is the longstanding No. 1 supplier because it includes the graphics function in its chipsets, which accompany its processors, and more recently is building the function into the central processing unit or CPU.

There are, of course, good reasons why AMD knocked Nvidia out of the No. 2 spot. AMD is gaining in laptop share just as the total mobile graphics market surpasses the total desktop graphics market for the first time, according to Mercury. In particular, AMD's ATI Radeon HD 5000 series (used in both laptops and desktops) saw a "a huge burst" in shipments in the second quarter, Mercury said.

And the composition of the mobile GPU market is changing. "The mobile integrated graphics CPU market...has surpassed both the mobile standalone graphics market and the mobile integrated chip set market for the first time." Translation: the CPU now subsumes the function of the GPU, due to Intel's newest mobile silicon based on the Core i3 and i5 processors. These chips take the GPU function--which had been separate--and combine it with the CPU.

How does AMD fit into this change? Its graphics chips… Read more

AMD tops Nvidia in graphics chip shipments

Advanced Micro Devices passed Nvidia in graphics chip shipments in the second quarter, according to a report from a marketing research firm on Wednesday, adding to Nvidia's woes.

AMD's ATI graphics unit took 51 percent of the standalone, or "discrete," graphics chip market compared to Nvidia's share that was just shy of 49 percent, according to Mercury Research, a Cave Creek, Arizona firm that tracks graphics chip shipments. This is a sharp reversal from the same period a year ago when Nvidia had about 59 percent of the market and AMD had just under 41 … Read more

FTC extends Intel antitrust settlement deadline

The Federal Trade Commission has extended by two weeks its deadline for reaching a settlement with Intel.

The FTC said Wednesday that the extension "allows the Commission more time to consider a proposed settlement." The original order was issued on June 21 and was set to expire this coming Friday. This action extends the withdrawal until 12:01 a.m. on Friday, August 6.

On December 16 of last year, the FTC filed a complaint alleging that Intel had illegally used its dominant market position in microprocessors--also referred to as CPUs or central processing units--for a decade to … Read more

Tweeting from the womb

Links from Tuesday's episode of Loaded:

Google and China comment on their agreement regarding search filtering Intel and the FTC have apparently reached an agreement regarding antitrust accusations against Intel A new online privacy bill is to be introduced this week The HP Slate may be renamed the HP PalmPad Motorola and Sprint introduce the i1, the first Nextel push-to-talk phone that runs Google's Android operating system The Kickbee will let baby tweet from the womb with every kick

AMD beats expectations for second quarter

Advanced Micro Devices reported better-than-expected second-quarter results as demand for notebooks helped the chipmaker beat estimates.

On Thursday, AMD reported a net loss of $43 million, or 6 cents a share, on revenue of $1.65 billion, up from $1.18 billion a year ago. Non-GAAP earnings were $83 million, or 11 cents a share. Wall Street was expecting AMD to report earnings of 6 cents a share on revenue of $1.54 billion.

Like Intel, AMD's much larger rival, the company said that it was benefiting from increased demand for PCs. Both Intel and research firms such as … Read more

CNET's back-to-school 2010 retail desktop and laptop review roundup

With the back-to-school season upon us, many laptop and desktop shoppers are looking for a new system suitable for dorm room living or high school homework. We've hit the well-stocked store shelves of brick-and-mortar retail stores to find boxed versions of popular PCs, from entry-level systems starting at less than $300, to $1,000-plus high-end multimedia and gaming rigs.

These specific retail models are similar to those you'd be able to configure online from companies such as Dell and HP, but they may have slightly different names and features. Also worth noting, thanks to frequent retail discounts, they … Read more

Hands-on with Gateway's LT32 premium Netbook

Netbooks have settled into a comfortable set of stock components, offering basic PC functionality for prices unheard of even a few years ago. The typical setup of a 10-inch display, Intel Atom N450 CPU, 1GB of RAM, and Windows 7 Starter is easy to find for as little as $299, and more than adequate for many tasks, from e-mail to Web surfing.

But those low, low prices mean PC makers are eager to upsell, and a handful of Netbook-plus systems have turned up, with larger HD displays, more RAM, and even better CPUs and graphics capabilities, such as the Asus Eee PC 1201, which pairs a bigger screen with Nvidia's ION GPU for what some call a "Premium Netbook" experience.

The latest system to offer a little more Netbook for a little more money is the Gateway LT32. This 11.6-inch laptop skips the typical Intel Atom for an AMD Athlon Neo II K125 processor. While still a single core chip, AMD has always positioned the Neo as a better performer than the Atom, and during initial anecdotal hands-on use, that certainly seems to be the case. The LT32 also includes ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4225 graphics--still not a discrete GPU, but a small step up from the integrated Intel graphics found in most Netbooks.

Almost as important to the end user experience is the 2GB of RAM (double what's in a typical Netbook) and Windows 7 Home Premium operating system instead of the more common Windows 7 Starter Edition.

The design of the LT32 is reminiscent of the Acer Ferrari One, an excellent 11-inch Premium Netbook from earlier in 2010. That system was even better, with a dual-core AMD CPU and 4GB of RAM, but it also cost nearly $600, putting it in solid mainstream laptop territory. … Read more

Intel, FTC in talks to settle antitrust claims

Intel and the Federal Trade Commission are in settlement talks, according to a statement released by Intel.

Intel made the following statement Monday afternoon: "Lawyers for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Intel Corporation today filed a joint motion to suspend administrative trial proceedings while the parties consider potential settlement of the case originally filed by the FTC on Dec. 16, 2009."

The statement continued: "The motion opens a window through July 22, 2010, during which time the parties will review and discuss a proposed consent order. The terms of the proposed consent order are confidential and … Read more

Intel challenges AMD 'Black' chips with new K-Series

Despite trailing Intel in chip-for-chip performance over the past few years, AMD has still kept a measure enthusiasts love with its "Black Edition" desktop chips. Unlike Intel's generally stand-offish stance toward overclocking, the Black Edition Athlon and Phenom chips have provided the DIY and boutique PC crowd with a cost-effective, user-friendly means to increased PC performance. Intel's new K-Series CPUs, announced today, show that Intel sees value in that same market, and wants a piece of the action.

The K-Series launches with just two desktop CPUs, the $342 2.93GHz Core i7-875K, and the $216 3.2GHz Core i5-655K. The 875-K CPU is a four-core/eight-thread chip (via HyperThreading), and the 655K is a dual-core/four-thread chip. Both fall under the Lynnfield class of Intel's Nehalem architecture, and as such work on the LGA1566 CPU socket, found on Intel's P55, H55, and H57 motherboard chipsets.

What the K-Series brings to these new CPUs is the ability to overclock the individual CPU cores and memory frequencies. This method allows for more granular control than the bus-overclocking method commonly used with older Intel CPUs, such as the previous overclocker's favorite, the Core i7 920. With bus clocking, you end up applying one change that affects all of your components. With unlocked core multipliers, you have far more control, and can build your system accordingly.… Read more