This announcement has the AMD AppZone Player made to work perfectly with Android apps even if they were made for phones or tablets. With the player, you’ve got BlueStacks providing you with an optimized experience that makes full use of AMD Radeon graphics and OpenGL drivers found in AMD APUs and GPUs. At the moment there are 50 free apps – some of the biggest names in the app universe in general – available for your perusal.

This technology also works with a Cloud Connect service that’ll allow you to sync both apps and SMS messages with your Android smartphone or tablet. You’ll need the BlueStacks Cloud Connect app on your Android device as well – but once you’ve got it, you’ll be up on both machines like a snap. Cloud Connect is up on the Google Play app store right this minute for you to download and utilize.

BlueStacks makes this process simple – just head to the AMD AppZone and download any app to your AMD-toting PC. When you do, you’ll have an automatic check to see if you’ve got the AMD AppZone Player, and if you don’t, you’ll have the option to download it instantly. So very simple for all the PC/Android lovers!

The 11.6-inch netbook will feature a 1366×768 display, AMD Radeon HD 6290 GPU, up to 4GB of RAM, and a 320/500GB hard drive. Acer has dubbed the display as “CineCrystal”, with up to 200-nits of brightness – hopefully that’ll translate into something slightly better than your average netbook. The Aspire One 725 also comes in at under one inch thick, and will come with a 4-cell battery.

As for ports, Acer has included HDMI so you can pipe some HD out your television, and there’s the usual array of wireless radios too: WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, and on some models there’s a HSPA option. That will feature support for the 850/900/1900/2100 MHz 3G bands for speeds of up to 7.2Mbit/s.

Acer didn’t let us know how much you can expect to pay for the Aspire One 725, or when you’ll be able to pick one up, but keep your eyes peeled for now if this sounds like your next netbook.

This device showed up at the FCC just this past week and has been revealed by Sapphire today, it coming complete with an AMD E-450 dual-core processor and Radeon HD 6320 graphics to keep you warm at night. This computer has the ability to support 4GB of RAM, has its own 2.5-inch hard drive bay with support for up to a massive 500 GB of hard disk space. Inside you’ll get Edge-HD3 or FreeDOS software out of the box, but you’ll be able to load Windows 7 or any other comparable operating system on command.

This unit measures in at 7.6 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches and weighs in at less than 1.2 pounds. You’ve also got Wi-fi, Ethernet, VGA port, HDMI port, and audio ports. You’ve also got 2 USB 2.0 ports as well as 2 USB 3.0 ports to keep you as connected as you’re ever going to want to be. It’s a love festival in a package that can fit in your giant pocket! Take a peek at the older models at the Sapphire site and see how they compare. Pricing and release date have not yet been released for this newest HD3 model – can’t wait!

[via Liliputing]

The Radeon 6670 itself costs upwards of $79.99, so we’re likely not looking at an inexpensive device in the end here. That said, the Xbox 720′s graphics processing power because of this beast of a GPU will be six times the Xbox 360. Compared to the upcoming Wii U (as seen in some lovely hands-on videos back a few months here on SlashGear), the Xbox 720 will be set to have a 20-percent greater performance on the whole.

For those of you out there in the world of developing for consoles can expect kits for the system in August. Now we’ve just got to wait for the third PlayStation and we can have the whole three mouskateers in the ring for 2013! Which one will you be picking up given the information we’ve got currently? Not one whole heck of a lot of information is out there, but the names are all here!

[via IGN]

ASUS, Acer and HP are all tipped to be throwing in with AMD and building new ultrathins based on Trinity, though none of the manufacturers are confirming anything at present. Trinity was last shown off in June 2011 at the AMD Developer Fusion Summit 2011, as a preview of what the 32nm chip could do.

AMD gave a surprise preview of Trinity at CES last week, promoting the APUs’ performance and power improvements over existing Llano chips, as in the following demo video filmed by AnandTech.

Power consumption is expected to drop significantly, with AMD claiming a 17W Trinity is equal in capabilities to a current 35W Llano. CPU performance is up 25-percent, it’s suggested, and GPU performance doubled.

[Image via PCInpact]

The C325 is powered by an AMD Fusion E450 1.65GHz processor with 8GB of RAM, 1TB of HDD, and includes a DVD drive. It has an embedded 0.3-megapixel webcam, 6-in-1 card reader, HDMI output, USB keyboard and mouse, and a special speaker feature that lets you play music from your MP3 player without having to boot up the computer. The multitouch touchscreen as well as optional USB 3.0 support will be available later on. The system is priced at $699.

The smaller C225 features the same AMD Fusion E450 1.65GHz processor, but comes in two standard configurations of one sporting 4GB of RAM and 500GB HDD while the other sports 6GB of RAM and 1TB HDD. The two configurations are priced at $499 and $699, respecitively.

[via LogicBuy]

BlueStacks released an alpha of its Player software for Windows earlier this month, allowing Windows users to load Android apps and run them with no modifications involved. Apps can be loaded from the regular .APK file, and played in either full-screen or windowed. A Mac version is in the pipeline, and the company confirmed it was in further talks with PC manufacturers regarding preloading BlueStacks onto new computers and tablets.

AMD says it expects to use the BlueStacks investment to leverage tablets and computers running on AMD processors, while Citrix is eyeing the software’s potential in enterprise settings. AMD has previously admitted that it was slow to broach the mobile computing market, only recently launching chips suitable for tablets and still ignoring smartphones.

Like Intel, AMD has struggled to gain traction among slates, seeing rival ARM picked for the majority of tablets for its chipsets’ low power consumption and solid multimedia potential. So far Windows-based models have been the exception, but Microsoft has confirmed it is working on Windows 8 on ARM builds for 2012.

Having cross-platform Android app compatibility could certainly work in AMD’s favor, and help the company differentiate between its chips and those of rival Intel. Reports out of Taipei have suggested AMD’s bargain pricing is already biting into Intel’s Atom sales.

[via GigaOm]

As you may or may not know, all AMD FX CPUs come with completely unlocked processor clock multipliers for you overclocking enthusiasts out there. Don’t burn down the house with all that power though, you’ll want to use your Guinness World Record holder CPU to keep on giving you what you need at least through the rest of this description. All of these processors also use AMD Turbo Core Technology that “dynamically optimizes performance” across the whole set of CPU cores, this offering you the full benefit of the cores you so gratefully payed for in the first place.

Starting TODAY, AMD FX CPUs will be available around the globe. In this first launch, there are four options from the line, with many more on the way soon. Have a look at this list and see what you might be wanting to get:

• FX-8150: Eight cores, 3.6 GHz CPU base (3.9 GHz Turbo Core, 4.2 GHz Max Turbo)
$245 suggested retail price (U.S.)

• FX-8120: Eight cores, 3.1 GHz CPU base (3.4 GHz Turbo Core, 4.0 GHz Max Turbo)
$205 suggested retail price (U.S.)

• FX-6100: Six cores, 3.3 GHz CPU base (3.6 GHz Turbo Core, 3.9 GHz Max Turbo)
$165 suggested retail price (U.S.)

• FX-4100: Four cores, 3.6 GHz CPU base (3.7 GHz Turbo Core, 3.8 GHz Max Turbo)
$115 suggested retail price (U.S.)

Of course the fine folks at AMD also want you to know about how you can combine these new CPUs with a brand new shiny AMD 9-series chipset motherboard and AMD Radeon HD 6000 series graphics card as well, these two combining to create what AMD calls the “AMD Scorpius platform” for an “astounding gaming and HD entertainment experience.” Of course this combo does offer more than simply an optimized experience as they hold hands together so well. With the Scorpius platform you get support for AMD CrossFireX technology, this allowing the combination of multiple graphics cards in a single PC, and AMD Eyefinity technology that’ll support super resolution on up to SIX monitors!

Power for the power hungry and gaming elite! Grab it all now at your local retailer or at shop.AMD.com, what are you waiting for!?

What’s that, you want to see the Guinness World Records video for this system? Have a look right here:

Both the AMD A4-3300 and A4-3400 desktop APUs combine the power of two x86 CPU cores with 160 Radeon cores, these enabling DirectX 11-capable discrete-level graphics as well as dedicated HD video processing on one single chip. In addition to basic functions, AMD A4-3300 and A4-3400 desktop APUs support the following features:

AMD Steady Video makes possible instant removal of jitters and shakes while re-watching video, all content looking smooth from here on out – users may activate this feature via their AMD Catalyst Control Center or the VISION Engine Control Center application. This feature will work on any player which has been programmed to work with AMD’s DXVA engine including Adobe Flash Player 10.2.

AMD Dual Graphics gives you a performance boost when paired with AMD Radeon HD 6000 Series graphics cards. AMD RadeonTM Dual Graphics requires an AMD A-series APU plus an AMD RadeonTM discrete graphics configuration and is available on a wide variety of versions of Windows OS. — Check with your component or system manufacturer for specific mode capabilities and supported technologies.

Integrated USB 3.0 Controller for lovely storage of digital content and rapid transfer of that content.

AMD VISION Engine Software to provide you the user with regular updates to system performance and stability and to introduce you to new software enhancements.

The AMD A4-3300 has a 2.5GHz CPU, 444MHz GPU, 160 Radeon Cores, 1MB of L2 cache and a TDP of 65W, and has a suggested retail price of $70 USD. The AMD A4-3400 has a 2.7GHz CPU, 600MHz GPU, 160 Radeon Cores, 1MB of L2 cache and a TDP of 65W, and has a suggested retail price of $75 USD. All AMD A-Series processors are made for use with FM1 motherboards, A4 APU’s requiring the AMD Vision Engine Control Center 11.8 driver release or later, and the two announced here in this post are available at Amazon.com, NCIX, and other fine retailers today.

The updated C and E series APUs will deliver enhanced HD graphics capabilities, performance boosts with enhanced memory, DisplayPort++ support for connecting to any HDMI or DisplayPort-enabled monitor or TV, and an extended battery life. The C series now has a resting battery life of up to 12 hours, while the E series is now up to 10.5 hours.

The updated E series will also feature DDR3 1333 support for enhanced memory bandwidth as well as faster performance and video playback. Additionally, it will support HDMI 1.4a connections, which allows for viewing 3D pictures and home video on 3D-enabled TVs and displays. Notebooks, netbooks, and other small form factor mobile PCs and all-in-one desktops using these updated APUs are available starting today.

To learn more about AMD Fusion APUs, make sure to check out our SlashGear 101.

[via AMD]

The A6-3500 APU combines three x86 CPU cores with 320 Radeon GPU cores, enabling DirectX11-capable discrete-level graphics and dedicated HD video processing on a single chip. It also comes with AMD’s Turbo Core and Steady Video Image stabilization technology as well as DDR3 1333 support, HDCP compatibility, and AMD VISION Engine software.

The triple-core APU runs at 2.1GHz but can be clocked up to 2.4GHz depending on workload, while the GPU cores are clocked at 443MHz and a TDP of 65W. Like its predecessors, the APU can be paired with select AMD Radeon HD 6000 series discrete graphics cards. The A6-3500 is available now for $95. For more information, you can visit the AMD product page. For more information on AMD’s Llano or Fusion APUs, make sure to check out our SlashGear 101 post.

Inside the Eee Top ET1611PUT is Intel’s 1.8GHz single-core D425 processor, paired with GMA3150 graphics, 2GB of RAM and a 250GB hard-drive. There’s a single-touch display, WiFi b/g/n, a 0.3-megapixel webcam and five USB 2.0 ports, along with gigabit ethernet and a pair of 2W speakers. It’ll be available either with Windows 7 preloaded or OS-free, priced at €449 ($641) or €369 ($526) respectively.

As for the larger Eee Top ET2011AUKB and ET2011AUTB, they both have a 1.6GHz AMD Fusion Brazos E350 processor, 2GB of RAM, a 500GB 7,200rpm hard-drive and a 1.3-megapixel webcam. There’s also a tray-loading DVD burner, WiFi b/g/n, twin 2W speakers and four USB 2.0 ports. The ET2011AUKB and ET2011AUTB will be priced at €539 ($769) and €589 ($840) respectively, each preloaded with Windows 7.

[via NetbookNews; Thanks Marco!]

The Llano has already been quite impressive, promising notebooks running the A-Series APU to achieve over 10.5 hours of battery life, while packing in up to four CPU cores and up to 400 Radeon cores. There’s support for HDMI 1.4a, DisplayPort 1.1, and USB 3.0. Pairing of an A-Series APU with discrete Radeon graphics, called Dual Graphics, can mean a 75 percent performance boost.

The AMD Trinity will be manufactured on the same 32nm process and is due out in 2012. The presentation this morning may be the first time the AMD Trinity was shown actually running on a notebook since it was announced last month at Computex. The Trinity APU promises 50 percent more power than the Llano or Fusion A-Series APU and this extra boost in performance will come from running “Bulldozer” x86 CPU cores with an updated DX11 GPU architecture.

[via LegitReviews]

Notebooks running A-Series APUs can achieve over 10.5hrs of battery life, AMD reckons, as well as offering discrete-performance graphics on an integrated chip. Each APU packs up to four CPU cores and up to 400 Radeon cores; that’ll allow OEMs to bake in gestural interfaces, multi-monitor support, 3D entertainment and real-time image stabilization.

There’s also support for HDMI 1.4a, DisplayPort 1.1 and USB 3.0 connectivity, as well as pairing an A-Series APU with discrete Radeon graphics in a system AMD calls Dual Graphics. That’s good for a 75-percent boost in performance, the company reckons.

Meanwhile, AMD has partnered up with VUDU to give Fusion and its AMD Vision technology a dash of real-world charm. More details in the video below. AMD’s Trinity APUs, the successor to the A-Series, are expected in 2012.

AMD & VUDU: Streaming Video Enhanced by AMD Vision:

Press Release:

AMD Ushers in Next Generation of Computing with AMD A-Series APUs

New AMD Fusion APUs enable brilliant graphics, supercomputer-like performance and all day battery life1

AMD (NYSE: AMD) today announced the next generation in mainstream consumer computing with the availability of the new high-performance AMD Fusion A-Series Accelerated Processing Units (APUs). Enabling truly immersive computing experiences in consumer notebooks and desktops, the AMD A-Series APUs enable brilliant HD graphics, supercomputer-like performance and over 10.5 hours of battery life2.

In an increasingly digital and visually oriented world, consumers are placing ever-higher priorities on multitasking, vivid graphics, lifelike games, lag-free videos, and ultimate multimedia performance. To meet these needs, the AMD A-Series APUs combine up to four x86 CPU cores with powerful DirectX®11-capable discrete-level graphics and up to 400 Radeon™ cores along with dedicated HD video processing on a single chip. AMD A-Series APUs also allow for advanced capabilities such as gestural interfaces, multi-monitor support, 3D entertainment and real-time image stabilization3.

“The AMD A-Series APU represents an inflection point for AMD and is perhaps the industry’s biggest architectural change since the invention of the microprocessor,” said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, AMD Products Group. “It heralds the arrival of brilliant all-new computing experiences, and enables unprecedented graphics and video performance in notebooks and PCs. Beginning today we are bringing discrete-class graphics to the mainstream.”

The AMD A-Series APUs (previously codenamed “Llano”) are currently shipping and scheduled to appear in more than 150 notebooks and desktops4 from leading OEMs throughout the second quarter of 2011 and beyond. Delivering powerful serial and parallel computing capabilities for HD video, 3D rendering and data-intensive workloads in a single-die processor, the AMD A-Series APUs offer software developers unprecedented power and potential in an ever smaller package.

AMD AllDay™ Power: Battery Life that Lasts
The AMD A-Series APU delivers the power to match how consumers actually use their PCs: all day – without sacrificing performance. Delivering more than 10.5 hours of resting battery life – a more than 50 percent increase compared to the 2010 AMD Mainstream Platform – users can get their work done or watch multiple HD movies on a single charge5. Additionally, AMD dynamic switchable graphics optimize battery life on PCs featuring AMD dual-graphics solutions by intelligently managing power states on the APU and separate discrete AMD Radeon™ GPU.

“The battery life of the AMD A-Series APU is a huge leap forward and will surprise many consumers and commercial customers,” said Chris Cloran, Vice President and General Manager, Client Division, AMD. “And the supercomputer-like performance will give people some revolutionary capabilities, like real-time image stabilization –taking out all the shakes and jitters in those hand-held videos on the fly, while you’re watching.”

Brilliant HD: Every Pixel Matters
People are making, sharing and enjoying more digital content than ever on their PCs, and the AMD VISION Engine – cutting-edge hardware and software featured with every AMD A-Series APU that automatically helps digital content like videos, games and photos look their best. HD video is crystal clear through dedicated video playback technology and dynamic post-processing, and websites render faster with accelerated HTML5 and Direct2D performance. Editing, transferring and viewing HD content is fast and easy with support for advanced connection standards, including HDMI 1.4a, DisplayPort 1.1, and USB 3.0, along with native support for multiple monitors.

Also introduced with the AMD A-Series APU is a new feature called AMD Steady Video6 designed to stabilize videos during playback – making unsteady, jumpy content look steady and smooth. The AMD A-Series APU can also enables advanced capabilities like gestural interfaces, 3D gaming and 3D Blu-ray video entertainment – features that are now key to consumer PC experiences and expectations.

Every PC built with an AMD A-Series APU delivers brilliant HD by offering discrete-class DirectX® 11-capable graphics – with models available at virtually every price point. Only AMD Fusion APUs offer true AMD Dual Graphics, with up to 75 percent graphics performance boost, when paired with an AMD Radeon™ discrete graphics card7. This faster, higher-quality, more vivid and lifelike delivery makes consumers feel fully present in their digital world, especially when gaming.

Personal Supercomputing: Ultimate Performance
Consumers are doing more than ever before with their PCs – from work to play – and with the AMD A-Series APU, even their laptops can keep up, delivering next generation parallel processing. With up to 400 gigaflops for notebook, and up to 500 gigaflops for desktops8, AMD A-Series APUs ensure users have the horsepower needed to handle the most demanding applications such as video and image processing, facial recognition, gesture recognition and multitasking scenarios. For the most challenging environments, AMD Fusion A-Series APUs offer AMD Turbo Core Technology, which dynamically optimizes and boosts CPU and GPU performance to power-efficient levels depending on the applications being run.

The Growing AMD Fusion Ecosystem
AMD has seen great momentum in the software developer community since the launch of AMD Fusion APUs in January 2011, with more than 50 leading applications now accelerated by the family of AMD Fusion APUs and advanced browsers like Internet Explorer 9 delivering even more immersive, next generation web experiences when running on an AMD Fusion APU-powered PC. And, the inaugural AMD Fusion Developer Summit, running now through June 16 in Seattle, Washington, is providing a forum for developers, academics and innovators to collaborate around parallel programming and industry standards, like OpenCL™, helping the software ecosystem build on the promise of the latest computing methodologies.

DigiTimes reports that Acer has just placed a big order for AMD Z series APUs for its tablet lineup. The order is reportedly for 80,000 of those processors. The tablet PCs are reportedly going to target the enterprise market. Considering that Android Ice Cream Sandwich is not due to later in the year and the enterprise focus of the tablets Acer is cooking up and Windows 7 rigs with Z series APUs look to be on the horizon. MSI is also said to be developing a tablet using the Z Series processors.

We will likely see more firms look to Windows 7 for tablets that are coming to market while waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich to land with the unresolved issues that are hovering around Honeycomb. DigiTimes reports that the Z series APUs are being eyed by tablet makes because the Oak Trial platform from Intel that competes with it is more expensive and slurps more power making batteries in the typically compact tablets offer less run time. The AMD APU was confirmed as the chip for the Z series tablets earlier this month.

[via DigiTimes]

AMD is still looking to ship about a million notebook focused Llano APUs in June, 1.5M in July, and a total of 8-9 million Llano APUs for 2011 as a whole. The Llano quad-core A8-3550P will sell for $170 and the A8-3550 will sell for $150 with both targeting the Core i5-2300 from Intel. The quad-core Llano A6-3450P will sell for $130 with the A6-3450 selling at $110 with both targeting the Core i3-2120/2010 processor.

The Llano A4-3350P will sell for $80 and is aimed at the Pentium G6960/6950 and Sandy Bridge G800/600 parts from Intel. The AMD Llano E2-3250 is only $70 and targets the Pentium G620 processor. On the higher-end of the range are the Bulldozer offerings with an octo-core FX-8130P going for $320 and the FX-8130 for $290 with both aiming for the Core i7 2600K/2600. The last two Llano parts include the six-core FX-6110 at $240 and the quad-core FX-4110 at $220. Those last two parts target the Core i5 2500K/2500.

[via DigiTimes]

WAIT before we continue, you might want to check out SlashGear 101: What is AMD Fusion? for all the info you may need to put all these numbers in order.

A rather important note at the end of the source material we’ve going off of here states that everything we’re talking about here won’t be out until the last half of 2011 or early 2012 at earliest, so keep your shorts on. That said, let’s continue. This quad-core processor is said to be based on a 32 nanometer chip architecture, and will have the ability to work at 2.6GHz in TurboCore mode. This set also has an integrated Radeon HD 6620G graphics core, getting 400 shaders and supporting DirectX 11 at 444MHz.

This fabulously detail-laden report goes on to say that support will be had for dual-channel RAM up to 1,600MHz DDR3 standard memory as well as with the lower-powered DDR3L. Next the A-Series graphics processors will have 128-bit memory busses while the A-Series processors themselves have dual-GPU support. Support goes so far as to work with an AMD Radeon HD 6600 external GPU – fancy!

All of these setups are compatible with Blu-ray 3D standard too, just incase you want to watch Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

[via Electronista]

$579 gets you 4GB of DDR3 memory and a 500GB hard-drive, while $599 steps up to a 750GB hard-drive. All of the SKUs have WiFi b/g/n along with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, HDMI, USB 2.0 and a multi-format memory card reader; the $599 model throws in Bluetooth 2.1+EDR as well.

There’s also a 1.3-megapixel webcam and optional 3G. Follow the link to our friends over at Logicbuy, meanwhile, and you can save a $70 on the entry-level S205 and get it for just $429 with free shipping.

I’ve heard of a CPU and a GPU, but what’s an APU?

An APU is an “Accelerated Processing Unit”, and at its most basic it’s a mixture of CPU – the core brain of your computer – and GPU – the chip responsible for graphics processing – on a single unit. Although Intel’s new 2011 Core processor range has a basic video chip living on the same core unit as the CPU, AMD has gone one step further and included extra intelligence in how the tasks you ask of your computer are worked on.

So, rather than the CPU being responsible for all general tasks, and the GPU only being called upon to handle what you see on the screen, a system using APUs can assign tasks to both. Some tasks are better handled by the CPU, as is traditional, while other tasks are better handled by the way the GPU can work on multiple problems simultaneously. Although GPUs have been used in this way before, AMD’s Fusion technology is special because it pulls everything together in one place, and so reduces the delay normally found as data shuttles from one part of your computer to another.

AMD calls this “Heterogenius” computing, processing that can take advantage of the best of both CPUs and GPUs, and has branded it AMD Fusion. The first Fusion chips began to show up in netbooks earlier this year, under AMD’s VISION brand.

So is it just for netbooks, then?

Not at all. The first range of Fusion APUs – the C- and E-Series chips – were targeted at netbooks, with relatively low processor speeds and frugal power consumption, but the APU concept ramps up in performance just like a traditional CPU. What AMD has announced today is that its mainstream range of Fusion chips are now in mass production and headed off to notebook and desktop computer manufacturers.

These new Fusion chips are the A-Series, which AMD internally calls “Llano”, and they work in exactly the same way as described before. The difference is, they contain more CPU and GPU power to handle trickier tasks like gaming and video processing, just as the sort of people looking for a mainstream laptop or desktop might be asking for. They also demand more power to run. AMD expects the first computers using these A-Series APUs to go on sale before the end of June 2011.

Why should I care?

AMD argues that, by using the combined brains of the CPU and GPU in everyday computing, users will see their software run quicker without needing a hugely expensive processor. That should mean cheaper netbooks, notebooks and desktop PCs which are still capable of playing games and doing video processing – as well as browsing the internet quickly and doing all the usual Office tasks. If a manufacturer decides to prioritize battery life, then AMD reckons its Fusion chips will be happy sucking just a little juice while still offering the option to play high-definition video.

It’s also important that AMD Fusion is based on open standards for software developers to use. That means more likelihood that your favorite applications will work properly with the Fusion APU’s intelligence, and take advantage of the two kinds of processing on offer.

What’s next?

“Faster” and “frugal” are the two keywords in processors these days, and AMD Fusion is no different. As you’d expect, AMD will be increasing the speed that the CPUs and GPUs in the Fusion chips can run at – that will mean a shorter time to crunch video and other tasks – with lower power consumption so that notebooks and netbooks can run longer on a single charge.

Next in line for release will be AMD’s Fusion chips for performance notebooks and desktops, which the company hopes will take a bite out of Intel’s Core i7 range.

More on Fusion at AMD’s site.

Still, there’s a reasonable incentive to do so. Llano pairs discrete-level graphics with AMD’s dual- or quad-core Accelerated Processor Units, more modular processors that can turn their hand to traditional CPU or GPU duty. Select models will be able to natively pair their graphics with a separate video card in a hybrid CrossFireX setup.

[youtube mdPi4GPEI74]

TDP is 25-100W, obviously significantly higher than the previous E- and C-Series processors already found in shipping products. Still, that extra power consumption will be put to good use in chasing Intel’s 2011 Core processor line-up.

The initial round will include the A8-3550 and A6-3450, while the second round will include the A8-3560 and A4-3360. Full specifications are unknown at this stage. Meanwhile, AMD will also have three new E-series Zacate APUs, the dual-core E-300, E-450 and E2-3250, for Q3. The company has its processors in 24 notebooks already on the market.

Basic specs are as follows: any AMD Fusion-powered computer using 802.11n Wi-Fi, Adobe Flash Player, and ViVu’s prototype software using its MXTP technology. But what’s really cool is the range of devices that AMD is streaming to from just a simple notebook. In the demo video below, we see them streaming to an HDTV flat panel display and a pair of tablets with no additional hardware. The solution also was selected by Digital Trends as one of the best gadgets at CES. Look for AMD and Vivu to have it out later this year.

AMD and ViVu Showcase Wireless HD Content Streaming Solution Powered by AMD Fusion APUs

SUNNYVALE, Calif. —2/16/2011

AMD (NYSE: AMD) and ViVu recently demonstrated for the first time a next-generation, high-definition (HD) content streaming solution powered by AMD technology. The demonstration, which first took place at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), featured 720p HD video streaming wirelessly from an AMD-powered notebook PC to a flat panel display and two tablet devices all at once without any additional hardware. The demonstrated technology is based on standards-compliant 802.11n wireless technology, the Adobe Flash Player and a prototype software solution from ViVu, a leader in desktop videoconferencing solutions.

“Consumers want to stream from their PCs onto their TVs but don’t want to pay a huge premium to do so, nor do they want to choose between a growing number of conflicting ways to do it,” said Rob Enderle, principal analyst for the Enderle Group. “ViVu turns virtually any AMD Fusion powered-PC into a potential low latency streaming device, and most of the current generation of smart TVs into receivers of this content without adding any additional hardware cost. As a result, ViVu successfully addresses both the need to stream a user’s media to their smart TV and the requirement that it also be inexpensive and easy.”

With settings that can be easily adjusted for a number of different devices (TVs, tablets, projectors) and content formats, including videos, presentations and documents, the ViVu solution is ideally suited to harness the power of AMD Fusion Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) and AMD discrete GPUs for a variety of applications from home entertainment and gaming, to enterprise video collaboration and remote presentations.

“Leading-edge video applications, such as those developed by ViVu, are exactly the type of immersive experiences we designed AMD Fusion APUs to enable,” said Manju Hegde, corporate vice president, AMD Fusion Experience Program. “Until now, streaming of HD telepresence-quality video was not possible without additional cables or hardware. We received an overwhelmingly positive response to our collaboration with ViVu at CES, and look forward to seeing this solution in market to the clear benefit of consumers and businesses alike in the near future.”

“At ViVu, we fully realize the future of the computing market is becoming more visual and engaging, and delivering HD quality video to virtually any device from virtually anywhere is an incredibly important part of that,” said Sudha Valluru, chief executive officer and founder, ViVu. “To meet the needs of this booming market, sophisticated hardware and software are required, which makes AMD the ideal technology partner for us. AMD Fusion APUs combine the best of CPU and GPU technology, and working together we are helping to deliver completely new and exciting experiences.”

The ViVu wireless HD video streaming solution is expected to be available later in 2011.
Resources

* Technology Demo Video
* ViVu press release on next-generation interactive video applications
* ViVu blog on showcasing telepresence-like video on laptops at CES
* Digital Trends Best Gadgets at CES
* AMD Fusion blog
* Follow AMD on Twitter @AMD_Unprocessed

About AMD

AMD (NYSE: AMD) is a semiconductor design innovator leading the next era of vivid digital experiences with its ground-breaking AMD Fusion Accelerated Processing Units (APUs). AMD’s graphics and computing technologies power a variety of devices including PCs, game consoles and the powerful computers that drive the Internet and businesses. For more information, visit http://www.amd.com.

AMD, the AMD Arrow logo, and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Other names are for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners

There’s also talk of 4GB of GDDR5 memory, while connectivity includes dual-DVI and three Mini DisplayPort outputs. The double-width card is expected to suck down 30W during idle and 300W under full load.

AMD is expected to officially announce the Radeon HD 6990 in the latter half of February 2011. No word on pricing at this stage, but we’d expect it to be at the top end of the market.

[via Expreview]

Video demo after the cut

The end result is a low power board – Bobcat is available in single- or dual-core versions, with TDPs of 9W and 18W respectively – that’s still capable of hardware HD video decoding, 3D graphics and more. As we’ve seen with Intel’s Atom-based CE4100, that can be a tempting option for streaming STB manufacturers; the CE4100 is at the heart of the Boxee Box by D-Link and Logitech’s Revue.

Several companies have already signed up to use the new G-Series chips, including Fujitsu – who will use it in the D3003-S1 and D3003-S2 Mini-ITX boards – and Kontron – who will put it in three SFF PCs.

Press Release:

AMD Delivers the World’s First and Only APU for Embedded Systems

The low-power AMD Embedded G-Series platform uniquely meets today’s market trends, provides embedded market a brand new x86 core integrated with GPU and DirectX® 11 support

SUNNYVALE, Calif. —1/19/2011
AMD (NYSE: AMD) today announced immediate availability of the new AMD Embedded G-Series processor, the world’s first and only Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) for embedded systems. The AMD Embedded G-Series, based on AMD Fusion technology, delivers a complete, full-featured embedded platform and incorporates the new low-power, x86 CPU based on the “Bobcat” core with a world-class DirectX® 11-capable GPU and parallel processing engine on a single piece of silicon.

This new class of accelerated processor combines more compute capabilities on a single die than any processor in the history of computing and represents opportunity for major advancements in embedded systems.
No solution with this level of advanced computing is available for the embedded market today.
Numerous embedded systems based on the AMD Embedded G-Series are available today or expected to launch in the coming weeks from companies including Advansus, Compulab, Congatec, Fujitsu, Haier, iEi, Kontron, Mitec, Quixant, Sintrones, Starnet, WebDT, Wyse, and many others.
Expected products include graphics-intensive solutions like digital signage, internet-ready set top boxes, mobile and desktop thin clients, casino gaming machines, point-of-sale kiosks, and small form factor PCs, as well as numerous single board computers (SBCs).
Shane Rau, research director of Computing and Storage Semiconductors at IDC, expects shipments of processors for embedded systems to increase at a double digit rate each year for the next five years.
This brand new platform continues AMD’s mission to lower power, shrink physical component area, and reduce the costs of designing and producing x86 embedded systems.
“AMD’s commitment is to ensure the game-changing technologies we develop for consumers and the enterprise are also available for the vast and growing embedded market,” said Patrick Patla, corporate vice president and general manager, Server and Embedded Division, AMD. “Today, we have a record number of embedded launch partners. They are using the unique advancements of the AMD Embedded G-Series APU to develop a brand new generation of highly differentiated, energy-efficient, small form-factor embedded systems that can deliver the vivid visual experience expected in our always-connected world.”

AMD has assessed many of the trends shaping today’s embedded market, including the ever-pressing need for power efficiency and a small footprint, along with high CPU performance, full feature sets, and a strong graphics solution. The embedded market is one where differentiation can be critical to the long-term success of a design. The AMD Embedded G-Series APU provides a small, open and flexible platform where system designers can be creative yet still meet strict requirements around development cost.

Design and Development Support
The open development ecosystem for the AMD Embedded G-Series platform includes multiple BIOS options, support for various Microsoft Windows®, Linux, and real-time operating systems, the integrated OpenCLTM programming environment, and source-level debug tools.
AMD provides a dedicated design support team to help customers create distinctive new products and bring them to market quickly.
Online resources include an embedded developer portal, AMD embedded product selection guide and customer-submitted details on available boards and complete systems.

AMD Embedded G-Series APU Specifications
1 or 2 x86 “Bobcat” CPU cores with 1MB L2 cache, 64-bit Floating Point Unit
Up to 1.6GHz
9W and 18W TDP
Array of SIMD Engines
DirectX® 11 capable graphics
Industry-leading 3D and graphics processing
3rd Generation Unified Video Decoder
Power management features, including C6 and power gating
DDR3 800-1066 memory with support for 64 bit channel and 2 DIMMs
Ball Grid Array (BGA) package
890mm² physical footprint, including the AMD Fusion I/O Controller Hub

Your money gets you AMD’s C-50 1GHz Fusion processor and Radeon HD 6250 256MB graphics. The 10.1-inch display runs at 1280 x 720, but the AO522 also promises 1080p HD video output from an HDMI port.

A 250GB 5,400rpm hard-drive, three USB 2.0 ports, WiFi b/g/n and a battery good for up to 6hrs use round out the main specs. More details here.

[via NetbookNews]

Other connectivity includes a choice of WiFi b/g or WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, three USB 2.0 ports, VGA, gigabit ethernet and a multiformat memory card reader. There’s also a webcam, stereo speakers and a multitouch trackpad.

Acer reckons the 4400 mAh 6-cell battery is good for up to 3hrs 20mins runtime. Both the Acer Aspire 5253 and Aspire 4253 are expected to hit the UK in Q2 2011, pricing tba.

Press Release:

Acer debuts the Aspire 5253 and 4253 notebooks
With the new AMD Fusion processors

CES Las Vegas, January 7th 2011 – Whether you are looking for a notebook with accelerated performance for productivity or with impressive graphics capabilities for your favourite HD entertainment, don’t look further: The new Acer Aspire 5253 and 4253 are the answer to your needs!

Designed for productivity, family entertainment and kids education, the Aspire x253 series enriches every day computing with better high-definition enjoyment, great multitasking and impressive power savings.

At the heart of these laptops is the powerful new AMD E-Series Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) and the VISION Engine from AMD, enabling stutter-free HD movies and HD Internet video streaming, enough processing power to handle even the most demanding applications, DirectX® 11 capable graphics and extended battery life. Advanced multitasking, playing highly detailed games, music and photo editing, creating/editing HD movies the Aspire x253 notebooks are the perfect instruments to let you unleash your creativity.

The Aspire x253 series comes with Clear.fi, Acer’s new media sharing system based on the idea that it’s easier if all multimedia content is simply brought into a single system with a common interface. No matter where they are. Clear.fi is a cross-platform solution that works straight out of the box, automatically detecting the Clear.fi-enabled devices connected to the wireless home network, and then allowing all digital content stored on any of these to be shared seamlessly using the Clear.fi media interface.

The new Aspires comes in two format sizes – 35.5 cm (14”) for the Aspire 4253, and 39.5 cm (15.6”) for the Aspire 5253 – with high-definition Acer CineCrystal™ LED backlit displays presenting more details and clarity for a startling realism. Featuring a 16:9 aspect ratio and high resolution the Aspire x253 series ensure breathtaking visuals in high definition for the ultimate cinematic entertainment experience at home or away.

What’s more, latest version of HDMI® standard not only lets you bring the HD experience the bigger screen, but adds support for extremely high video resolutions that go far beyond today’s 1080p systems and incorporates a dedicated data channel, allowing users to consolidate video, audio and data streams into a single cable and take full advantage of IP enabled devices

Powerful processors speed up your productivity, while DDR3 memory (up to 8GB for the Aspire 5253) ensures an ultra fast system response and a seamless handling of multitasking demands. As for storage, large capacity hard disks provide generous space to easily stow your growing digital archive. Plus, the card reader ensured effortless file transfer and sharing.

Several connectivity solutions simplify Internet access and communication. Acer InviLink™ 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi CERTIFIED®, supporting Acer SignalUp™ wireless technology, ensure reliable wireless connectivity, whereas Gigabit Ethernet provides ultra-fast and stable wired communication. Optional Bluetooth 3.0 is perfect for short-range quick and secure data transfer. In addition, you can take advantage of the built-in Acer Crystal Eye high-definition webcam and microphone to engage in live chats with your friends around the world or set up business video-conferences.

Protected from scratches and fingerprints by a practical textured finish that conveys a home look and feel, the Aspire x253 series flaunts a streamlined profile, for greater mobility. These notebooks are available in three color options – Mesh Black, Mesh Brown, and Mesh Red – with palm rest in matching shade and finish, for a more appealing look. On the Acer FineTip keyboard typing is easy, fast and accurate, on account of the large keys, while the multi-gesture touchpad offers mouse-free, fingertip convenience for zooming, rotating, navigating and browsing.

Environmentally conscious, these laptops adopt technology, materials and processes that comply with prevailing international standards. This is why the displays use LED lamps that reduce power consumption while offering a better performance and the energy efficient processors ensure longer battery life for greater mobility.

The Acer Aspire x253 is expected Q2 in the UK, pricing TBA.

The Wind Top AE2210 and AE2410 each get a choice of Intel’s 2011 Core i7 processor range, freshly announced this week, together with a pair of USB 3.0 ports and integrated Sandy Bridge graphics. There’s also an integrated webcam with motion-sensitive recording, WiFi b/g/n, up to 4GB of RAM and a 1TB HDD. Blu-ray is an option; you get a DVD burner as standard.

As for the MSI Wind Top AE2050, that has AMD’s E-350 dual-core processor and Radeon HD 6310 graphics, along with two USB 3.0 ports – one of which remains powered even when the PC is switched off, for rapid charging of external devices.

The MSI Wind Top AE2210 and AE2410 will drop this quarter, priced from $799 and $899 respectively. No word on pricing or availability for the Wind Top AE2050.

Press Release:

A New Level of Convenient Life
MSI Presents Brand New Wind Top AE Series
Equipped with the 2nd Generation Intel® CoreTM Processor
Type : Product News Lastest Updated : Fri, 07 Jan 2011

LAS VEGAS – January 6, 2011 – MSI, the innovating leader in the All-in-One touch PC market, today unveiled the All-in-One PC with Intel’s latest Sandy Bridge platform, Wind Top AE2210 and AE2410. Both models feature Full HD high resolution display comes fitted with the newest 2nd generation Intel® CoreTM Family processor. Whether it’s CPU or built-in graphic card, the performances get a noticeable boost. They are equipped with 2 USB 3.0 ports, ensuring ultra-fast data transfer speeds which make life even more efficient. One of the two USB 3.0 ports comes with additional MSI Super Charger technology, which offers 40% faster recharging time compared to a normal USB; it also lets users continue to charge devices through the USB port even while the computer is turned off. This makes life more convenient than ever!

Significant Video Performance Boost
Wind Top AE2210 and AE2410 offers a 16:9 theater-grade widescreen display and 1080P Full HD high resolution panel to provide advanced display quality that lets user see the clarity and detail of high resolution images and experience the ultimate allure of video like never before. They feature Intel’s newest high performance Sandy Bridge platform, so online gamers won’t need to spend additional money to upgrade to a discrete graphics card. Quick Sync Video technology allows for easier editing and enjoyment of videos, while Clear Video HD technology provides an all-new experience with a richer and more detailed picture under an effective budget.

A Quick & Convenient Lifestyle
To make life even more efficient, both Wind Top AE2210 and AE2410 come with 2 high speed USB 3.0 ports. USB 3.0 offers transfer speeds of approximately 5GB/s, which is roughly 10 times faster than USB 2.0. It is currently the market’s fastest transfer interface. With the USB 3.0 interface, users can enjoy even faster high quality data transfers like movies, videos, and other types of large capacity file formats, making life even more efficient and transfers even easier. What’s more, they utilize Super Charger technology, which not only lets a USB device recharge while the computer is turned off using a single USB 3.0 port, but also reduces charging time by 40%. Never again will users need to start up their computer just to charge a device—marking an enormous increase in your life’s convenience. An All-New Experience with Multi-Touch Software

The Wind Top AE2210 and AE2410 come with the Windows® 7 operating system with multi-touch support. It’s a whole new way to operate a computer and is smoother and more flexible than ever. The built-in multi-touch software is suitable for the whole family to use, which includes the third generation of Wind Touch. It is easy to use fingertip to check the weather in any city in the world, the date and time, as well as browse photos and video/speech recordings with a clear and user-friendly interface. They also come loaded with ArtRage professional painting software, which uses a watercolor technique and multi-touch functionality that gives everyone the chance to paint like Picasso. YouCam v4.0 utilizes multi-touch and all kinds of interesting visual effects that can not only be integrated with MSN and Skype, but can also directly record and upload video files to YouTube or Facebook, making media sharing with friends easier than ever before. Even more, it can be used for surveillance; the computer can be directed to begin recording when movement is detected, making your life more secure.

Press Release:

MSI Brings Incomparable Visual Experience
Debuts Wind Top AE2050 at CES
Type : Product News Lastest Updated : Fri, 07 Jan 2011

Las Vegas – January 7 2011 – MSI, the global leading brand in All-in-One PCs, will release the AMD’s latest platform solution today. All-in-One PC: Wind Top AE2050 is equipped with the latest AMD® Brazos platform, which innovative AMD APU technology using the latest 32-nanometer microarchitecture and combining CPU and graphics chipset with the same APU, the operation performance has an outstanding improvement. They are equipped with 2 USB 3.0 ports, ensuring ultra-fast data transfer speeds which make life even more efficient. One of the two USB 3.0 ports comes with additional MSI Super Charger technology, which offers 40% faster recharging time compared to a normal USB; it also lets users continue to charge devices through the USB port even while the computer is turned off. This makes life more convenient than ever!

The most vivid visual sense
Wind Top AE2050 offers a 16:9 theater-grade widescreen display and selected Full HD high resolution panel to provide advanced display quality that lets user see the clarity and detail of high resolution images and experience the ultimate allure of video like never before. They feature AMD’s newest high performance Brazos platform, so online gamers and DVD fans won’t need to spend additional money to upgrade to a discrete graphics card. ATI Stream technology allows for easier playing and enjoyment of videos, while AMD AVIVO™ technology provides a brand-new experience with a richer and more detailed picture under an effective budget.

A Quick & Convenient Lifestyle
To make life even more efficient, Wind Top AE2050 come with 2 high speed USB 3.0 ports. USB 3.0 offers transfer speeds of approximately 5GB/s, which is roughly 10 times faster than USB 2.0. It is currently the market’s fastest transfer interface. With the USB 3.0 interface, users can enjoy even faster high quality data transfers making life more efficient and transfers even easier like a 4.8G DVD movie file, it just spend 14 seconds to finish. Moreover they utilize Super Charger technology, which not only lets a USB device recharge while the computer is turned off using a single USB 3.0 port, but also reduces charging time by 40%. Never again will users need to start up their computer just to charge a device—marking an enormous increase in your life’s convenience.

An All-New Experience with Multi-Touch Software
The Wind Top AE2050 install with the Windows® 7 operating system with multi-touch support. It’s a whole new way to operate a computer and is smoother and more flexible than ever. The built-in multi-touch software is suitable for the whole family to use, which includes the third generation of Wind Touch. It is easy to use fingertip to check the weather in any city in the world, the date and time, as well as browse photos and video/speech recordings with a clear and user-friendly interface. They also come loaded with ArtRage professional painting software, which uses a watercolor technique and multi-touch functionality that gives everyone the chance to paint like Picasso. YouCam v4.0 utilizes multi-touch and all kinds of interesting visual effects that can not only be integrated with MSN and Skype, but can also directly record and upload video files to social network such as YouTube or Facebook, making media sharing with friends easier than ever before. Even more, it can be used for surveillance; the computer can be directed to begin recording when movement is detected, making your life more secure.

Press Release:

Evolution in Image, Enjoyment in Efficiency
The All New Wind Top AE Series, a New level of Visual Enjoyment
Type : Product News Lastest Updated : Fri, 07 Jan 2011

Las Vegas – January 5 2011 – MSI (Micro-Star International), the world’s leading All-in-One PC brands, will showcase the all new Wind Top AE series, equipped with the latest Intel® CoreTM Processor and hi-speed USB 3.0 transmission, at the 2011 U.S. Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Also on display at the exhibition will be the business and office oriented Wind Top AP series, along with the Wind Top AC series, which is designed specifically with the general consumer in mind. Following the launch of the world’s first 3D All-in-One PC, MSI will feature more comprehensive 3D applications in All-in-One PCs, bringing the 3D to the next level.

Evolving Efficiency, Vivid Graphics
Featured in the All-in-One PC and CES, the all-new Wind Top AE series comes equipped with Intel® Sandy Bridge and AMD® Brazos, both state-of-the-art platforms developed by two of the largest CPU manufacturers in 2011, which allow for exceptional visual performance in the Wind Top AE2410, AE2210, and AE2050 models

Enhanced by Intel® Clear Video HD technology and armed with the next-gen Intel® CoreTM Processor, MSI’s Wind Top AE2410 and Wind Top Ae2210 offer high quality HD performance, allowing you to view even the smallest image detail while presenting the colors in their most natural hue. This phenomenal image processing technology allows users to watch HD quality videos without the need for a dedicated graphics card.

The Latest Intel® CoreTM Processor Family (codenamed Sandy Bridge) is the industry’s first family of processors featuring a truly integrated CPU and GPU core that provides vastly improved performance and a more compelling visual experience.

- Turbo Boost, built into the new Core processors, allows dynamic adjustment of CPU and GPU clock speeds based on the type of command issued to achieve maximum performance and energy efficiency.
- The new Intel Core processors are built on 32nm HKMG technology with Intel’s 6th generation GPU core. They provide support for HD video, 3D, mainstream games, multitasking and multimedia functionalities as well as for DX11.

The Wind Top AE2050 is equipped with the latest AMD Brazos platform that offers uncompromising video performance. Wind Top AE2050 adopts the AMD E-350 dual core processor and has a built-in AMD RadeonTM HD 6310 Discrete-Class Graphics adaptor that supports DX11. ATI Stream technology allows more fluid and convenient video playback, and AMD AVIVO™ technology renders video images in richer and more vivid detail. An all-new visual experience is possible with a limited budget and enjoying high-quality video no longer costs a small fortune.

Powered with all-new Intel and AMD platforms, the Wind Top AE series boasts outstanding image processing performance, allowing users to experience the smooth and exquisite effects made possible by powerful image processing capabilities; the new series allows users to enjoy the most realistic images that rival natural colors, putting the wonderful and distortion-free world at their fingertips.

Super-charged Transmission Speed and Efficient Living
Convenience in Life Starts with Transmission Speed. Units that will be on display at the 2011 CES include all new models that come equipped with two high-speed USB 3.0 ports. USB 3.0 provides a transfer rate of 5Gbps and is approximately ten times that of USB 2.0. It is the fastest interface available on the market today. The new USB 3.0 interface allows users to enjoy faster data transfer of high-definition data; for example, a 4.8G HD movie can be transferred in just 14 seconds, which is equivalent to saving 2.4 hours in a day, making our daily life more efficient and more convenient. In addition, MSI has employed the Super Charger technology to allow devices not only to recharge with one of the USB 3.0 ports but also be able to do so even when the computer is shut down, not to mention a 40% savings in recharge time. Busy users no longer need to worry about turning on the computer to recharge their devices.

Paint, Play the Piano, The Pleasure of the Touch Screen
The all-new Wind Top AE series comes equipped with the built-in professional graphics software package ArtRage Studio Pro. Used in conjunction with MSI’s sensitive multi-touch capabilities, users can draw directly on the touch screen to simulate watercolor or oil painting. Everyone can be a Picasso! Equipped with the latest Intel CoreTM processor and Intel® Clear Video HD technology, Wind Top AE Series offers colors that are even more realistic; the color quality of red, yellow and blue are as close to that of real paint as possible. In addition, the Wind Top AE Series also comes with the built-in piano software, Music Maker, which provides a simple piano keyboard to let users create music on the screen. Users can use it to play piano, compose and record, easily becoming Beethoven. The built-in YouCam 4.0 can also display a variety of interesting video effects via touch screen operations. Users can also experience diverse video capabilities by integrating it with MSN and Skype as well as uploading videos to social networking community websites such as YouTube and Facebook and easily sharing them with friends at the touch of the screen.

Exciting 3D Effects Gets You in Gear
More comprehensive 3D applications in All-in-One PCs will be introduced at the CES. In addition to viewing 3D movies and playing 3D games, MSI has further extended 3D applications, such as: direct display of 3D photos and 3D Webcam video. One only needs to put on a pair of 3D glasses to be able to see his or her own 3D images. Anyone can become a protagonist in a 3D movie.

For Business and Pleasure
The latest business All-in-One PC models introduced by MSI at the CES: Wind Top AP series. Equipped with various interfaces and devices, Wind Top AP2000 is specifically designed for the office environment and is ideal for business operations and multi-tasking. A model that comes with a 20-inch single touch LCD screen (optional) is suitable for the office or other business environments. Two COM ports are also included for storefront applications so that businesses that require Point of Sale system applications, such as restaurants, five-star hotel front desk, 24-hour convenience stores and gas stations, can connect the computer with barcode readers, credit card readers and bill printers as well as other office operations. The Wind Top AC series possesses the ideal features of an All-in-One PC: high performance, low power consumption, ultra-quiet operation, user-friendly interface and comprehensive I/O interfaces for effortless wireless Internet access, providing the optimal level of convenience and space saving.

There’s also a choice of WiFi b/g, WiFi b/g/n and optional 3G and Bluetooth 3.0, together with either 160GB or 250GB of storage. A webcam, mono speaker, up to 2GB of RAM and multi-function memory card reader round out the key specs, while ports include three USB 2.0, audio in/out, VGA and 10/100 ethernet, along with the HDMI.

Battery life is estimated at up to 3hrs with the 2200mAh 3-cell pack or 6hrs with the 4400mAh 6-cell pack. No word on pricing at this stage, but the Acer Aspire One 522 will launch in the UK come Q2 2011.

Press Release:

Acer Aspire One 522
Discover next generation HD experience

CES Las Vegas, January 7th 2011 – Acer multiplies its offer and enriches its best-selling family of netbooks, debuting the Aspire One 522 netbook designed to deliver a fresh and exciting user experience, by providing smoother HD multimedia enjoyment, creation and sharing, and greater multitasking performance.

The new Aspire One 522 skilfully combines a sleek and stylish look with outstanding performance to help users enjoy an all-round HD experience for enhanced content consumption anywhere. Equipped with an AMD Fusion Accelerated Processing Unit (APU), this netbook is ready for a next generation user experience and amazing HD Internet multimedia performance.

Users are increasingly focused on enjoying multimedia – movies, games, photos, videos – wherever they go. This is why Acer has equipped the Aspire One 522 with the new AMD C-50 APU, engineered to deliver rich, sharp and lifelike HD Internet entertainment and take advantage of today’s visual digital universe anytime, anywhere.

What’s more, the Aspire One 522 makes accomplishing any task, from HD movie playback to Internet HD video streaming to simply chilling out a delightful experience. You can go beyond simple internet browsing to experience full high-definition video over the web. But that’s not all. The new Aspire One 522 integrates AMD Radeon™ HD 6250 graphics to provide sharp HD video with support for the latest graphics standards including Microsoft® DirectX® 11, 1080p video output via HDMI®, real time image processing with auto color and contrast adjustment, and edge sharpening.

Everyday tasks, such as Internet browsing, streaming online HD video, emailing, chatting, photo viewing, document editing are efficiently performed by the Aspire One 522 that delivers multitasking capabilities, even with visually intense, high-definition applications. Support for fast DDR3 memory further helps tackling even more demanding tasks.

Thanks to HD playback capabilities, this netbook easily integrates into the home entertainment environment. And to provide a seamless experience, it is equipped with an HDMI port to easily connect to HDTV or video-projectors and share Hi-Def video content on a big screen at a larger 1080p resolution. Plus, you can take advantage of the 28 cm (10.1”) Acer CrystalBrite™ LED backlit high brightness display, flaunting 1280 x 720 (WXGA) resolution and 16:9 aspect ratio, to make the most of web chatting, browsing and video streaming.

Multiple connection options, including Wi-Fi, LAN and optional 3G or Bluetooth®, maximise your mobile experience and keep you in touch with all you care about. And, to chat live, capture photos or video-conference there are the built-in Acer Crystal Eye webcam and digital microphone.

Just about the size of a magazine, the new Aspire One is available in two colour options – Diamond Black and Green – and offers all the power you need in a thin and light design. The big keyboard for fast-paced comfortable typing is complemented by the multi-gesture touchpad, perfect for scrolling documents, rotating images, zooming and browsing, all with fingertip convenience.

This highly efficient netbook complies with Energy Star® standards and with RoHS and WEEE EU directives, regulating the use and disposal of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment. Plus, it’s also mercury free and ensures 22.2% power savings compared with standard netbook displays, courtesy of the LED backlit panels.

The Acer Aspire One 522 is expected Q2 in the UK, pricing TBA.

Other features of the board include USB 3.0, SATA 6Gbps and an HDMI interface. The board also has 3X powered USB ports that can charge the iPad faster than a normal USB port. The brains for the board is from the AMD E-350 dual-core processor combined with the Radeon 6310 GPU and HD Blu-ray playback. The board has 7.1 surround sound and a lot more.

The USB 3.0 ports are controlled by an onboard Renasas controller from NEC. The board uses Gigabyte Ultra Durable 3 tech that puts twice the amount of copper on the board as traditional designs for improved efficiency. Pricing for the board is unannounced at this time.

There’s also a DVD burner and WiFi b/g/n, together with a full-sized keyboard and separate numeric keypad. A webcam and the usual ports round out the key specs. Toshiba estimate up to six hours runtime from a single charge – less than some of the other Fusion APU machines we’ve seen today, like the HP Pavilion dm1 – but then again it’s a bigger machine with a larger screen.

The Toshiba Satellite C655D will be priced at under $400 when it goes on sale later in 2011.

Connectivity includes six USB 2.0 ports, gigabit ethernet and audio in/out, and there are stereo speakers built in as well. As well as Windows 7, HP will happily sell you a 100B with Red Flag Linux or FreeDOS instead.

Unsurprisingly, processing grunt isn’t the HP 100B’s main focus, with the company instead trying to make it compact and low-power. It’ll land in February 2011, priced from $499.

Other connectivity includes three USB 2.0 ports, VGA, audio in/out and a multi-format memory card reader. There’s also Dolby Advanced Audio with Altec Lansing speakers, a webcam and a 6-cell battery which HP reckon is good for up to 9hrs and 30 minutes of runtime.

Impressive stuff, considering the $449.99 RRP when the Pavilion dm1 lands in the US on January 9 2011. The company will apparently also be offering optional GPS and an optional external Blu-ray drive on certain SKUs.

Four chips will debut initially, with single- and dual-core versions of the E- and C-Series chips. The E-Series – intended for mainstream notebooks, all-in-ones and SFF desktops – will consist of the 1.5GHz single-core E-240 and the 1.6GHz dual-core E-350, both with an 18W TDP. The C-Series – for HD netbooks “and other emerging form factors” – will see the 1.2GHz single-core C-30 and 1.0GHz dual-core C-50, both with a 9W TDP.

Later in 2011, the AMD Fusion mainstream platform – for regular and performance notebooks, and mainstream desktops – will arrive, with the 32nm die A-Series “Llano” APU, which includes up to four x86 cores and a DirectX 11-capable discrete-level GPU. AMD has lined up Acer, Asus, Dell, Fujitsu, HP, Lenovo, MSI, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba to produce notebooks using the new Fusion APUs.

Press Release:

AMD Fusion APU Era Begins

Big Experiences, Sleek Designs, All-Day Battery Life and Notebooks That Stay Cool All Day Now Possible with Revolutionary Single Chip1

Today at the Consumer Electronics Show, AMD (NYSE: AMD) launched a new class of accelerated processor that combines more compute capabilities than any processor in the history of computing. The AMD Fusion Family of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) incorporate – in a single die design – multi-core CPU (x86) technology, a powerful DirectX®11-capable discrete-level graphics and parallel processing engine, a dedicated high-definition video acceleration block, and a high-speed bus that speeds data across the differing types of processor cores within the design. New generations of desktop, notebook and HD netbooks are now available based on AMD Fusion APUs at affordable price points. Tablets and embedded designs based on AMD Fusion APUs are expected be available later in Q1 2011. The new range of products features include stutter-free HD video playback, breakthroughs in computational horsepower to handle the most demanding applications2, DirectX 11-capable graphics and all-day battery life.1

AMD expects leading manufacturers Acer, Asus, Dell, Fujitsu, HP, Lenovo, MSI, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba to announce plans to deliver AMD Fusion APU-based systems at very compelling value and mainstream price points.

“We believe that AMD Fusion processors are, quite simply, the greatest advancement in processing since the introduction of the x86 architecture more than forty years ago,” said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, AMD Products Group. “In one major step, we enable users to experience HD everywhere as well as personal supercomputing capabilities in notebooks that can deliver all-day battery life.1 It’s a new category, a new approach, and opens up exciting new experiences for consumers.”

HD 2.0 Everywhere
High definition (HD) content is ubiquitous today. From YouTube videos to DirectX 11 games to Blu-ray, the world is tapping into various ways to enjoy this content with the computer serving as the hub. And thanks to the VISION Engine from AMD, a set of capabilities unique to all AMD Fusion APU-powered PCs, the visual side of computing never looked more vivid and realistic. The VISION Engine is an unmatched combination of:

DirectX 11-capable graphics
Massive parallel processing to speed application performance3
The UVD3 video acceleration block found in the new AMD Radeon™ HD 6800 Series GPUs
Unique graphics driver capabilities updated on a monthly basis to continuously improve visual performance
Selecting a PC equipped with the VISION Engine and software from AMD partners means Internet browsing is a faster, application-like experience; 1080p HD video playback is gorgeous, smooth and quiet; standard definition video looks high-definition; 2D content can be converted into stereoscopic 3D; even the most graphics-intensive websites load quickly; manipulating HD content is fast and easy; and 3D gaming at HD resolutions is fast and life-like.4

Personal Supercomputing
Much of a computing experience is linked to software and, until now, software developers have been held back by the independent nature in which CPUs and GPUs process information. However, AMD Fusion APUs remove this obstacle and allow developers to take full advantage of the parallel processing power of a GPU – more than 500 GFLOPs for the upcoming A-Series “Llano” APU – thus bringing supercomputer-like performance to every day computing tasks. More applications can run simultaneously and they can do so faster than previous designs in the same class.2

AMD AllDay™ Power
Additionally, AMD Fusion technology enables all-day battery life – 10 hours or more.1 The new power-saving features present in the single-chip design greatly extend the time between plug-ins, even when enjoying HD content.

Out power and Outperform: E-Series, C-Series and A-Series APUs

The 2011 low power platform (formerly codenamed “Brazos”) enhances the everyday computing experience and is available beginning today in two APU variations: E-Series and C-Series. These APUs feature the new x86 CPU core codenamed “Bobcat”. “Bobcat” is AMD’s first new x86 core since 2003 and was designed from the ground up to deliver stellar mobile performance.

Low Power APUs Model TDP Core Count Frequency
E-Series (former codename: “Zacate”)
Designed for mainstream notebooks, All-in-Ones, and small form factor desktops E-350 18 W 2 1.6 GHz
E-240 18 W 1 1.5 GHz
C-Series (former codename: “Ontario”)
Designed for HD netbooks and other emerging form factors C-50 9 W 2 1.0 GHz
C-30 9 W 1 1.2 GHz
The 2011 mainstream platform is primarily intended for performance and mainstream notebooks and mainstream desktops. It will feature the 32nm die A-Series “Llano” APU, which includes up to four x86 cores and a DirectX 11-capable discrete-level GPU, and is scheduled to ship in the first half of 2011 and appear in products mid-year.

Press Release:

Software and Hardware Ecosystem to Unleash the Power of AMD Fusion Technology

Leading software and hardware vendors demonstrate immediate support for AMD Fusion APUs

Jan. 4, 2011 — AMD today announced broad support for the AMD Fusion Family of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) from the software and hardware ecosystem community. Working closely with software vendors, developers and motherboard suppliers, AMD has built a coalition of industry innovators committed to providing devices and applications that leverage the combined x86 computing power and discrete-level graphics performance of AMD Fusion APUs.

“AMD and its partners are leading the way to a new era of computing distinguished by immersive entertainment, outstanding Internet browsing and fast, efficient processing of digital workloads,” said John Taylor, director, AMD Client and Software Product Marketing. “The creation of a robust x86- and GPU computing-based ecosystem to enable these next-generation experiences is the culmination of long-standing collaboration with developers, software and tools vendors, and component suppliers, as well as technology investments made possible by the AMD Fusion Fund.”

“Personal computing is undergoing a significant evolution, fueled by the explosion of digital and multimedia content to enable a truly immersive web experience,” said Tami Reller, corporate vice president of Windows marketing, Microsoft. “We think the work AMD has done with Fusion to combine x86 CPU architecture and discrete-level graphics performance creates opportunities for Windows 7 and Internet Explorer 9 to deliver real-world customer benefits including accelerated browsing, HD video and 3D gaming.”

Next-Generation Applications
To access the uniquely powerful and efficient capabilities of the APU architecture, AMD collaborates with a variety of middleware and tools providers to offer software development kits that facilitate the use of industry-standard application programming interfaces (APIs) such as OpenCL™, OpenGL™, Direct2D and DirectCompute. AMD further supports the optimization of software for AMD Fusion APUs with AMD Accelerated Parallel Processing (APP) technology, which helps developers more easily tap into the combined power of the GPU and CPU to accelerate existing applications and create new possibilities in software.

Dozens of innovative companies will be demonstrating amazing computing experiences enabled by AMD technology including AMD Fusion APUs at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this week in the Wired showcase sponsored by AMD (Grand Lobby), as well as in the AMD Technology Showcase. A variety of applications that span multimedia, gaming, productivity, web browsing, facial recognition, video conferencing and more will be on display from leading software suppliers, including:

Adobe
ArcSoft
Codemasters
Corel
CyberLink
DivX
EA / BioWare
Earthsim
Firaxis
Gazillion
Microsoft Internet Explorer
Microsoft Windows
Nuvixa
Roxio
Sega
Turbine
Viewdle
ViVu
AMD motherboard partners are also innovating around the launch of the first AMD Fusion APUs, as leading original design manufacturers (ODMs), including ASUS, Gigabyte, MSI and Sapphire, have announced integrated APU/motherboard products for the first PC platforms featuring AMD Fusion APUs.

There’s also WiFi b/g/n and Bluetooth, HDMI, USB 2.0 and a multitouch trackpad, along with a choice of DVD burner or Blu-ray drive, up to 8GB of RAM and up to 750GB of HDD storage. A 2-megapixel webcam, VeriFace facial-based login and DirectShare for transferring files straight to another nearby notebook without going via the internet are also fitted.

RapidBoot keeps Windows 7 snappy, speeding up boot and shut-down times. No word from Lenovo on pricing or availability for the new IdeaPad G Series at this stage.

Press Release:

Lenovo’s Newest and Most Stylish Laptops Offer Something for Everyone in the New Year

New IdeaPad Portfolio Features Eye Popping Colors, Sleek Designs, and Impressive Performance at Consumer-Friendly Prices

IdeaPad Y470 and Y570 with Enhanced Experience 2.0 Offer Sub-10 Second Boot Times1

CES 2011, Las Vegas – January 3, 2011: Lenovo (HKSE: 0992) (ADR: LNVGY) today unveiled an exciting new lineup of IdeaPad laptops at the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show, including the world’s fastest booting Windows 7 PCs1 – the IdeaPad Y470 and Y570. The new IdeaPad laptops — including models in the Y Series, Z Series, S Series, V Series and Lenovo G and B Series — appeal to a broad range of consumers with stylish, modern design characteristics, such as brushed metal covers and raised textures, and the latest technology for enhanced performance and entertainment capabilities.
―We’re very excited about our latest lineup of IdeaPad laptops – they are the industry’s newest benchmark for consumer PC design,‖ said Dion Weisler, vice president, business operations, Lenovo. ―We’ve enriched our portfolio with wow features such as sub-10 second boot times and sleek new industrial designs that deliver higher performance and a more compelling experience for consumers.‖
IdeaPad Y570d, Y570, Y470— High Performance Mobile Entertainment –
Lenovo’s new IdeaPad Y560d, Y470 and Y570 laptops sport high-performance processors and are packed with innovative tools and features that make mobile entertainment more realistic, fun and intuitive.
The entire new Y Series all feature the new Lenovo Enhanced Experience 2.0 for Windows 7 standard, which enables users to start their PC on average 20 seconds faster than a typical Windows 7 computer thanks to Lenovo RapidBoot technology1. With optional Lenovo RapidDrive SSD technology, the new Y470 and Y570 laptops can boot in less than 10 seconds2, using an SSD and HDD storage to combine fast boot and application performance with affordable storage capacity.
Powered by the latest 2nd Generation Intel® CoreTM processors (up to i7) with Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 and up to NVIDIA® GT 550M 1GB switchable graphics, these new notebooks are optimized for an on-the-go multimedia experience. They feature OneKey® Theatre II, which automatically maximizes advanced audio-visual settings at a touch of a button and SRS Premium Sound with JBL designed speakers, which provide users with a richer audio experience.
Consumers looking for the ultimate in entertainment, look no further than the Y570d, which boasts Nividia’s 3D vision capabilities. With the flip of a switch, users can bring entertainment to life by putting on the included 3D glasses to enjoy movies, photos and games.
IdeaPad Z570, Z470, Z370— Fashionable Multimedia Laptops
Lenovo’s Z Series laptops are designed for consumers who desire a PC with features that can keep up with their exciting lifestyle. On the outside, the IdeaPad Z470 and Z370 sport a cool futuristic ID design with a transparent cover in a selection of pop colors including fuchsia, sky blue and dark brown. For a more minimalist look, consumers can choose the IdeaPad Z570, which offers a high-end luxury appearance with its Accutype chiclet keyboard encased in a modern hairline and metallic effect panel.
On the inside, the Z Series are powered by the new 2nd Generation Intel® CoreTM i7 processor with Intel l® Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 and feature Lenovo Enhanced Experience 2.0 for Windows 7, so users never have to miss a beat while enjoying multimedia. Movies and internet TV can be enjoyed on the new Z Series with its high-definition (HD), 16:9 format widescreen (available in 13.3, 14 and 15.6-inch models), optional Blu-ray DiscTM drive, and Dolby® Advanced Audio for a stunning audio experience.
Featuring OneKeyTM Theater II – one-touch audio-visual optimization for clearer, brighter images and richer audio and SRS® Premium SoundTM audio enhancement, the new Z Series is the fashionable choice for those seeking entertainment.
IdeaPad S100, S205— Stylish Internet Companion Packed with Surprises
Lenovo presents two new additions to their ultraportable laptop offerings, the IdeaPad S100 and IdeaPad S205. The IdeaPad S205 is an 11.6-inch mini laptop featuring an ultra-slim design for easy portability and a stylish AccuType chiclet keyboard – designed to make typing more comfortable on smaller notebooks. With optional integrated 3G connectivity and long battery life, the S205 is the perfect companion for browsing the web in the home or on the go. It also comes with DirectShare, which lets users sync their files with another computer without connecting to the Internet.
The successor to Lenovo’s popular S10-3 netbook is the new IdeaPad S100, which features a 10.1 inch slim backlit LED display and premium AccuType keyboard. Weighing less than 2.2 pounds, the S100 will be available in a wide range of colorful options such as red, fuchsia, sky blue and black making it a great entry level portable computing option for those on-the-go.
IdeaPad V570, V470 and V370— Work Smarter and Faster
Who said work can’t be fun? Look sharp at the office and relax at home with the IdeaPad V Series notebooks — V370, V470 and V570 – which feature a crisp professional, look with an aluminum casing and cover, and a thin 21mm design. Designed for both consumers or small office and home office (SOHO), the V Series boasts all new 2nd Generation Intel® CoreTM processors, helping users blaze through work tasks with speed and accuracy. To help get the day going quickly, the V Series also offers Lenovo Enhanced Experience 2.0 for Windows® 7 with Lenovo RapidBoot technology, which enables users to start their PC on average 20 seconds faster than a typical Windows 7 computer1.
To help guard what matters most on a laptop, the V Series feature robust integrated security tools to help preserve and protect users’ data. Security features include OneKeyTM Rescue System, for quick data backup and recovery and Lenovo Security Suite, a robust suite of security tools that will encrypt and protect users’ data from prying eyes. The V Series also comes with a Fingerprint Reader for bio- authentication using a finger as a password and a USB Port Locker to prevent unauthorized access to USB ports.
Lenovo G770, G570, G470, G575, G475 — Mainstream Affordable Notebooks
For consumers looking for the best value and essential mobile computing with the latest processor technology, Lenovo has expanded its G Series to include new 17-, 15- and 14-inch options. Sturdy, yet stylish, the G770, G570, G470, G575 and G475 laptops offer well-rounded features such as Lenovo Enhanced Experience 2.0 for Windows 7 with RapidBoot technology, which delivers faster start-up and shutdown and optimized multimedia; Energy Management, which protects the long-term life of the battery; and OneKey Rescue System, which makes it easy for users to backup and recover data.
Lenovo B570 and B470— Essential PCs for Work and Play
Lenovo also announced several new models within its essential brand of affordable home computers, including the B570 and B470 for SOHO. Lenovo’s essential family of laptop and desktop PCs are intended for consumers who want the latest technology, including multimedia and security features, for use at the office or while relaxing at home. The Lenovo B Series are affordable notebooks for business and fun and include features and technologies that will increase user’s personal productivity so they can spend more time doing the activities they love. The B570 and B470 feature up to a 2nd Generation Intel Core i5 processor with Intel Technology 2.0, up to Genuine Windows 7 Professional, and Lenovo Enhanced Experience for Windows 7 with Lenovo RapidBoot technology, which delivers faster start-up and shutdown and optimized multimedia.
Pricing and Availability
The new IdeaPad S Series laptops will be available beginning in March 2011 starting at $329.99. The new IdeaPad Y Series laptops will be available beginning in May 2011 starting at $899.99. The new Lenovo B Series laptops will be available beginning in April 2011 starting at $499.99.
The new Lenovo V Series laptops will be available beginning in April 2011 starting at $599.99.

Of the two it’s the Gigabyte which seems more advanced. It allows for memory overclocking – from 1333MHz to 1800MHz – along with USB 3.0 support, multi-channel audio, VGA and DVI-I ports, and SATA connections for up to four drives; it also has a PCI Express x16 slot. The SOYO lacks the USB 3.0 support, but has six SATA ports, four USB 2.0 and HDMI/DVI/VGA outputs, along with PCI Express x16, PCI Express x1 and PCI slots

As for the E350 Zacate chip itself, that incorporates the dual 1.6GHz Bobcat cores along with a Radeon HD 6310 GPU with 80 stream processors. It also gets a UVD 3.0 engine and has an 18W TDP.

The delay – which AMD is declining to comment on – will affect the Sabine platform for ultra-thin notebooks, mid- to high-range notebooks and desktop PCs, which will use the 32nm Fusion APUs. However AMD’s other Fusion-based line, Brazos, uses 40nm APUs and so is on track for a CES 2011 showcase. AMD demonstrated Llano back in late October, and said it had already begun sampling.

Llano is a hybrid CPU/GPU processor which began sampling recently, and is expected to start showing up in desktops in 2011.  It’s a 32nm part consisting of four Phenom II-type cores and a DX11 graphics-core.  Meanwhile Brazos will be a low-power alternative intended for notebooks and ultraportables.

AMD Llano demo:

AMD Brazos demo:

The higher performing tablet graphics chips are indicative of AMD’s general strategy to differentiate itself, with Meyer promising that the AMD Fusion APUs will begin shipping by the end of this quarter.  Nonetheless, power requirements are also high on the company’s agenda, with Meyer recognizing that, to meet the sort of battery expectations users have formed from the iPad experience, tablet chips will need to suck down around half what a netbook chip could get away with.

“A tablet would optimally have power dissipation of two to three watts, which is a little more than half of what a fanless Netbook would tolerate. I expect customers will take components designed with Netbooks in mind and put them in tablets. And I think you’ll see AMD solutions in tablets in the next couple of years for that reason

It’s [a market] we’ll devote significant R&D energy towards when the market is big enough to justify that investment. Frankly, we’re still so small in the notebook market that it doesn’t make sense for us to turn R&D dollar spending toward the tablet market yet. We’ll start doing that when the market is big enough” Dirk Meyer, CEO, AMD

AMD’s GPU business fell 11-percent sequentially, though rose 33-percent year-on-year, which the company blames both on reduced numbers of sales and cheaper chips.  Operating income for the GPU business fell from $33m in Q2 2010 to just $1m in Q3 2010.

At the heart of Zacate are two AMD Bobcat cores which are capable of the Microsoft DirectCompute GPU computing interface and OpenCL.  More on Bobcat here.  They’re paired with ATI Avivo Unified Video Decoder chips able to process 1080p video.  According to AMD’s John Taylor:

“A notebook or desktop based on the “Zacate” APU, for instance, will give an accelerated Internet experience, play 1080p video, accelerate productivity apps like PowerPoint 2010, play on-line games at HD resolutions.”

Press Release:

AMD to Demonstrate Next Generation PC Experience Powered by AMD Fusion APU Codenamed “Zacate”

– Sneak peek of stunning HD video streaming, immersive online gaming, and accelerated Internet browsing on “Zacate” APU-based platforms slated for next week –

SUNNYVALE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Next week in San Francisco, AMD (NYSE: AMD) will unveil the first North America public demonstrations of its AMD Fusion Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) codenamed “Zacate,” a new dual-core, 18-watt TDP processor containing discrete-level graphics capabilities on die and designed to dramatically improve the user’s PC experience. Targeting value and mainstream notebooks and desktops, “Zacate” APU-based platforms bring many of the vivid digital computing experiences once reserved for high-end PCs into the opening price points of the mainstream segment.

What: Demonstrations of the experience consumers can expect to see early in 2011 from a broad range of mainstream notebook and desktop PCs based on the AMD Fusion APU codenamed “Zacate,” including:

Full HD streaming online video, showcasing the versatility of the “Zacate” APU-based platform to handle the most demanding multimedia tasks
Immersive online gaming with high image-quality settings, demonstrating the DirectX® 11-compliant “Zacate” APU-based platform
Preview of accelerated Internet browsing, showing how “Zacate” APU-based platforms support the future of GPU-enabled web browsing today and how these platforms perform side-by-side against currently available AMD- and Intel processor-based notebooks
When: Monday, September 13 through Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Where: San Francisco, CA

Who: Senior AMD executives and engineers responsible for AMD Fusion APUs

Throughout the week of September 13, 2010, AMD executives will provide frequent blog posts at blogs.amd.com on the company’s demonstrations as well as commentary on new developments in the CPU, GPU and APU markets. The first two updates cover the consumer PC market and the software developer ecosystem.

For those in the community who wish to learn more about the demonstrations, please follow AMD on Twitter at @AMDUnprocessed, or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/AMD.

About AMD

Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD) is an innovative technology company dedicated to collaborating with customers and technology partners to ignite the next generation of computing and graphics solutions at work, home and play. For more information, visit http://www.amd.com.

Video demo and overview after the cut

The benefit is a more flexible chip capable of turning its hand to multiple different processing chores rather than simply offering key strengths in graphics, for example, together with reduced power consumption and cooler running.  There’s a lot more about the technical advantages of Fusion APUs here [pdf link].

The first AMD Fusion APU chips are expected to launch in the first half of 2011. Meanwhile there’s a new AMD Fusion Fund through which it seems the company will be investing in manufacturers that choose to adopt the Fusion APUs.  AMD will be looking at “application software and tool development, unique device designs, PC components and innovative ideas which extend the reach of collaborative computing on the CPU and GPU.”

Press Release:

AMD Demonstrates World’s First Fusion APU at Computex 2010

AMD Fusion technology preview offers glimpse into a sleeker, cooler, more vivid future for the computing experience; CPU and GPU on a single chip

AMD extends leadership with new desktops and notebooks powered by VISION technology

At Computex 2010, AMD (NYSE: AMD) today delivered the first public demonstration of an AMD Fusion processor, initiating the accelerated processing era. The AMD Fusion™ Family of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) represents a significant shift in processor architecture and capabilities, combining high-performance serial computing and parallel graphics processing cores onto a single die to improve visual and data-intensive tasks that are pervasive in today’s computing environments. A video of today’s demonstration can be found here.

Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, AMD Products Group, provided an APU technology demonstration during a press conference today. This demonstration provided a sneak peek into the upcoming seismic shift in the computing industry: power-efficient processors that combine CPU, GPU, video processing and other accelerator capabilities in a single-die design to efficiently power the most popular and demanding consumer experiences, from HD video applications to media-rich Internet experiences to DirectX® 11 games. The AMD Fusion Family of APUs represent a distinctly powerful processing approach to the evolving digital consumer landscape, where more than 28 billion videos are watched each month online and a thousand pictures are uploaded to social networking sites every second.

“Hundreds of millions of us now create, interact with, and share intensely visual digital content,” said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, AMD Product Group. “This explosion in multimedia requires new applications and new ways to manage and manipulate data. Low resolution video needs to be up-scaled for larger screens, HD video must be shrunk for smart phones, and home movies need to be stabilized and cleaned up for more enjoyable viewing. When AMD formally launches the AMD Fusion family of APUs, scheduled for the first half of in 2011, we expect the PC experience to evolve dramatically.”

Software Development
Consumers are hungry for applications that run faster and make digital media easier to enjoy, and a new wave of software innovation is taking place as AMD software partners take advantage of AMD APUs and GPUs to enable better experiences across an ever-widening set of content. Microsoft joined AMD on stage at Computex and discussed how AMD Fusion APUs can enable improvements to applications such as Microsoft® Windows® 7 and DirectX® 11, and how CPU and GPU collaborative computing can enable superior PC experiences.

“While visual computing has made incredible strides in recent years, we believe that the AMD Fusion family of APUs combined with Windows® 7 and DirectX® 11 will fundamentally change how applications are developed and used,” said Steven Guggenheimer, corporate vice president, original equipment manufacturer division, Microsoft. “Applications such as Internet browsing, watching HD video, PowerPoint and more can enable more immersive, visually rich, and intuitive experiences for consumers worldwide.”

In addition to Microsoft DirectX with DirectCompute, software developers can also build enhanced applications using OpenCL via the ATI Stream SDK, which further underscores AMD’s commitment to industry standards.

AMD Fusion Fund
At Computex 2010, AMD also unveiled the “AMD Fusion Fund,” a vehicle to make strategic investments in companies developing innovative solutions that will take advantage of the forthcoming AMD Fusion family of APUs. Additional details were disclosed on the AMD Fusion Fund in a separate announcement.

Extending Consumer and Graphics Leadership at Computex
With the launch of the AMD Fusion Family of APUs planned for the first half of 2011, AMD is positioned to extend the leadership it already has in the consumer PC market with VISION Technology from AMD and in the graphics market with the award winning ATI Radeon™ family of GPUs. At Computex, both product lines were on display for attendees, including many of the brand new VISION-powered SKUs recently launched by OEMs. In May, AMD announced a significant platform refresh for its VISION Technology, with as many as 135 new ultrathin and mainstream notebooks arriving on the market.