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Giuseppe Amato speaks about innovations on AMD's mobile platform in 2007 and 2008

Last week Giuseppe Amato discussed AMD's mobile roadmap for the next two years. Although the mobile platform roadmap in his presentation was identical to the one from the Fall 2006 AMD Analyst Day, he added some interesting details during the session.

Although Amato was very scarce with details about the 65nm versions of current Turion 64 X2 CPUs -- codenamed Hawk. "These [processors] will appear anytime soon to the market," Amato said.

AMD will reveal its K10 based CPU for mobile markets under the family code name Griffin in 2008. Griffin will be largely similiar to K10-derived chips for desktop and server use. Amato emphasizes Griffin will be a design specifically optimized for mobile use. 

In the past, AMD only optimized server and desktop CPUs for mobile use, Griffin will differ in some areas considerably. For example, a mobile CPU doesn't need the full FPU of the K10 architecture, Amato hypothesized. Additionally, Griffin's design allows the possibility to entirely remove power for the second core, leaving one core active.

Some time before Griffin is set to surface, AMD will introduce Hybrid Graphics. According to Amato, we should see this exciting combination of integrated and discrete graphics this fall. The basic concept of this technology is the system can run power-saving integrated graphics when using battery power. When the platform is connected to a wall outlet, a discrete graphics card immediately switches on, delivering higher performance. This switching will work without a restart and its behaviour should be user-configurable – at least to some degree.

Currently AMD delivers native HDMI output on the 690M chipset, mobile IGP chipsets of 2008 will feature DisplayPort. Amato explained DisplayPort can be used to connect to different kinds of displays (HDMI, DVI) using adapters.

Amato also hinted that in 2008, AMD IGP chipsets will receive R600-derived graphics cores featuring native DX10 and Universal Video Decoder (UVD) support. The UVD provides hardware-decoding of H.264 in a more advanced way when compared to current video acceleration technologies from both AMD, in the form of Avivo. While previous methods only accelerated parts of the decoding pipeline, UVD is dedicated logic for all steps so the CPU can more or less rest. Amato noted that when accompanied with an UVD, a Sempron CPU at 1GHz could decode 1080p video content without a hitch.

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Awesome
By Brainonska511 on 4/20/2007 2:56:00 AM , Rating: 2
[Q]The basic concept of this technology is the system can run power-saving integrated graphics when using battery power. When the platform is connected to a wall outlet, a discrete graphics card immediately switches on, delivering higher performance. This switching will work without a restart and its behaviour should be user-configurable[/Q]

That is outstanding. I would love to see this used in upcoming notebooks - get great battery life because of an integrated chip but get the power of a dedicated GPU when plugged in.




RE: Awesome
By PlasmaBomb on 4/20/2007 3:49:16 AM , Rating: 2
Alienware did something like this a while ago, I guess that due to the complexities of implementing it no one else has bothered till now. Being user configurable is always a good thing, I'm sure some people will still want full gpu power on battery some of the time.


RE: Awesome
By AMDJunkie on 4/20/2007 11:41:10 AM , Rating: 2
Actually, I believe there are Sony 13.3" laptops (Sony VGN-SZ2x0 series according to Google) with both Intel integrated graphics and Nvidia discrete Go 7400 graphics. However, there was a switch to change the source of the display output, and it required a reboot. This seems to be the natural evolution of the idea implemented here, with much less user intervention necessary. As for it being a kludge: it is a solution now, while any attempt to make graphic processors' power consumption more like that of these newer, power-frugal CPUs will take much more time to develop (as these CPUs took their sweet time in development as well).


RE: Awesome
By JackPack on 4/20/2007 3:55:35 AM , Rating: 3
This dual-GPU solution seems like a real kludge to me. It's a waste of silicon and space. How about powering down Y number of unified shaders and the memory by X MHz when the notebook is in battery mode?


RE: Awesome
By James Holden on 4/20/2007 4:14:52 AM , Rating: 3
I think you hit the nail right on the head - but GPUs don't have split power planes.


RE: Awesome
By Zurtex on 4/20/2007 4:25:15 AM , Rating: 3
To introduce that many power planes at the manufacturing process would probably be far more complicated and expensive. And from industry point of view waste more silicon due to low yields.

I'm not saying your idea is a bad idea, just that the current growth of GPU power, the cost vs. performance analysis tends far more towards building very very fast GPUs at the expensive of power, heat and efficiency. Eventually when there is a slow down in how powerful a GPU gets year on year, I'm sure things like this will start to be implemented. Just like what has happened to the desktop CPU market.


RE: Awesome
By MonkeyPaw on 4/20/2007 10:35:14 AM , Rating: 2
True, but considering how ATI and nVidia are complaining about losing dedicated graphics card sales to IGPs in notebooks and desktops, now might be the time to innovate and design products for where the market is going. I don't doubt that this will be difficult, but status quo may not work anymore.


RE: Awesome
By SquidianLoveGod on 4/20/2007 9:47:34 AM , Rating: 2
I am actually fascinated by this, Why not have a low Power 2D accelerator while on battery, And then when a 3D application is launched the 3D accelerator awakens.
Sorta like how you used to have a 2D card and a 3dfx voodoo card for 3D, back in the dinosaur age.
The next thing I wouldn't mind is making use of all that space behind the monitor into a solar panel, I take my notebook out and about, and I could leave my laptop in the sun while it recharged.


RE: Awesome
By Sahrin on 4/20/2007 1:36:33 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Why not have a low Power 2D accelerator while on battery, And then when a 3D application is launched the 3D accelerator awakens.


Modern GPU's already do this. (Play a game with a desktop GPU in WinXP - hear the fan spin up? That's the transition from 2D mode to 3D mode).


RE: Awesome
By StevoLincolnite on 4/21/2007 11:18:48 AM , Rating: 2
Yeah but having a very low powered 2D accelerator might use allot less power than a powered down full-blown card, You only need something basic.


RE: Awesome
By Slaimus on 4/20/2007 2:11:51 PM , Rating: 2
Then you cannot run Aero.


RE: Awesome
By StevoLincolnite on 4/21/2007 11:20:56 AM , Rating: 2
Aero while on battery mode? Damn you either:
1) Don't use your computer on battery for very long or
2) Have an extension card that can reach anywhere - Across city's planets etc.

Aero' Consumes allot of power on my Acer laptop, I can usually gain about another 80-90 minuets with it disabled.


Ouch
By phaxmohdem on 4/20/2007 2:39:47 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
a Sempron CPU at 1GHz could decode 1080p video content without a hitch.


Put that in your pipe and smoke it Apple TV :)




RE: Ouch
By Hare on 4/20/2007 3:38:04 AM , Rating: 2
That's bad quote. In this case the actual decoding is done with the GPU!
quote:
AMD IGP chipsets will receive R600-derived graphics cores featuring native DX10 and Universal Video Decoder (UVD) support. The UVD provides hardware-decoding of H.264 in a more advanced way when compared to current video acceleration technologies from both AMD, in the form of Avivo.


Anandtech measured a E6600 peaking at 100% when decoding H.264 X-Men III without hardware decoders (GPU).

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2886...


RE: Ouch
By Marcus Pollice (blog) on 4/20/2007 9:17:21 AM , Rating: 2
Yes, but you need to take into account that dedicated logic can carry out the decoding in a way lower power envelope, as the process is far more efficient than on a general purpose CPU.


RE: Ouch
By goatfajitas on 4/21/2007 10:35:03 AM , Rating: 2
LOL


Peter the pumpkin eater
By 16nm on 4/20/2007 11:38:35 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
Amato also hinted that in 2008, AMD IGP chipsets will receive R600-derived graphics cores featuring native DX10 and Universal Video Decoder (UVD) support. The UVD provides hardware-decoding of H.264 in a more advanced way when compared to current video acceleration technologies from both AMD, in the form of Avivo. While previous methods only accelerated parts of the decoding pipeline, UVD is dedicated logic for all steps so the CPU can more or less rest. Amato noted that when accompanied with an UVD, a Sempron CPU at 1GHz could decode 1080p video content without a hitch.


Aren't most HD-DVD encoded VC-1 and Bluray encoded MPEG2? So this chip will allows us to watch our home DVD movies encoded H.264 without stressing the CPU? Wow, DAMMIT have really come to the rescue with this, haven't they.




By Marcus Pollice (blog) on 4/20/2007 12:25:14 PM , Rating: 2
The UVD might also support VC-1 as slides from CeBIT clearly mention HD-DVD and Blu-ray support at 1080p.

MPEG2 is used on some of these HD video discs as it's part of the specification. However due to it's far worse compression ratio it will die out rather sooner than later when it comes to HD content (you need insane bitrates to achieve the same quality). On top of that MPEG2 is far less compute intensive and MPEG2 acceleration has been around since Radeon 9700 / GeForce FX.


RE: Peter the pumpkin eater
By Slaimus on 4/20/2007 2:14:35 PM , Rating: 2
VC-1 is extremely similar to MPEG4 AVC, with MS's implementation. They use much of the same calculations, so something that accelerates AVC will accelerate VC-1 as well. The same also applies to WMV1 and MPEG4 ASP.


This is what I like to see
By tekzor on 4/20/2007 2:10:35 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
For example, a mobile CPU doesn't need the full FPU of the K10 architecture, Amato hypothesized. Additionally, Griffin's design allows the possibility to entirely remove power for the second core, leaving one core active.


Very excited about this, hopefuly increase battery life. Ingenuity in laptop CPUs




RE: This is what I like to see
By Slaimus on 4/20/2007 2:24:44 PM , Rating: 2
I hope he mean "doesn't need" as in "will power down while just browsing", and not "same as K8."


Better Way ????