NVIDIA GeForce GT 500M Series GPUs Get Official

NVIDIA has outed its GeForce 500M series GPUs, the latest graphics chips to be found in high-end notebooks. Supporting NVIDIA's Optimus switching technology, the GT 540M GT 540M, GT 550M and GT 555M are targeted at performance users, with over four times the performance of integrated graphics and twice the DirectX 11 performance of rival GPUS, while mainstream users get the GeForce GT 520M and GT 525M.

All the chips support PhysX, 3DTV Play, and 3D Vision, together with DirectX 11. Acer, Alienware, ASUS, Clevo, Dell, Fujitsu, Lenovo, Medion, MSI, Samsung and Toshiba have announced systems using the 500M series, and NVIDIA reckons there are over 200 in all already this year.

Press Release:

NVIDIA GeForce 500M Series GPUs Power Top Notebooks of 2011

Designed for the 2nd-Generation Intel Core Processor Family, New GPU Series Offers Category-Leading Performance and Features NVIDIA Optimus Technology

The GeForce GT 540M GPU brings DirectX 11 done right to the Asus N53SV notebook, with up to twice the DirectX 11 performance of competing GPUs.

The Fujitsu LifeBook S761 notebook delivers 2X the performance of integrated graphics and long battery with GeForce GT 520M GPUs and NVIDIA Optimus technology.

GeForce 500M Series of GPUs have the differentiated features that only GeForce GPUs offer, such as support for Optimus, CUDA, PhysX, 3D Vision, and 3D TV Play.

NVIDIA Optimus Technology featured in the Acer Aspire 4741G notebook has quickly established itself as a must have feature.

LAS VEGAS, NV — (Marketwire) — 01/05/2011 — CES 2011 — NVIDIA today announced the GeForce® 500M series of notebook graphics processing units (GPUs), designed to power laptops featuring next-generation Intel Core CPUs (Sandy Bridge).

GeForce 500M GPUs are expected to power some of the industry's best notebooks in 2011. The GPUs feature category-leading performance in media-rich HD, 3D, Web, and Gaming applications, as well as enhanced battery life, courtesy of NVIDIA Optimus™ technology. NVIDIA Optimus technology enables extra long battery life by switching on and off the GPU so that it runs only when needed.

The new GPUs being introduced today include:

For performance users: GeForce GT 540M, GeForce GT 550M, and GeForce GT 555M with over four times the performance of integrated graphics and twice the DirectX 11 performance of the competition.

For mainstream users: GeForce GT 520M and GeForce GT 525M offering over twice the performance of integrated graphics.

Only NVIDIA GPUs support NVIDIA Optimus technology, which enables extra-long battery life by automatically switching on and off the GPU so that it runs only when needed. Introduced less than a year ago, NVIDIA Optimus is now designed into over 80% of 500M Series notebooks across leading OEMs.

"GeForce GT 500M GPUs combined with Optimus technology enable the most versatile laptops ever created," said Rene Haas, general manager of notebook business at NVIDIA. "Pairing a great GPU with a strong CPU delivers Optimized notebook performance for consumers."

Only NVIDIA GeForce 500M GPUs offer:

NVIDIA 3D Vision™ technology support for eye-popping immersive 3D environments

DirectX 11 support for the most visually stunning gaming experiences

PhysX™ physics engine support for experiencing games with realistic physics effects

CUDA™ architecture support for general purpose GPU computing applications

NVIDIA Verde™ notebook drivers for system stability and optimal performance

Support for NVIDIA 3DTV Play™ software for delivering 3D content from your PC to a 3D TV

Acer, Alienware, ASUS, Clevo, Dell, Fujitsu, Lenovo, Medion, MSI, Samsung, Toshiba and others announced GeForce 500M-based systems at CES this year, and represent a fraction of the over 200 design wins from leading notebook manufacturers for GeForce 500M GPUs. For more information on GeForce 500M Series GPUs, please visit www.nvidia.com.