AMD launched it’s very first Fusion APU – the Accelerated Processing Unit – late last year with its low power E- and C- series, and it has been used in products such as the E35M-I that we unboxed here. However it’s not until this week that AMD has pulled the wraps from its latest performance-mainstream APUs: the new A-series.
The AMD Fusion APU
Specifically this includes the new A4, A6 and A8 series, which you’ll be finding the in both upcoming desktop PCs and notebooks, and yes, all the following tech is crammed into a single chip!.
Top tech in a single chip!
The increasing A-numbers step up performance as follows:
A4: dual core AMD CPU+ 240 shader Radeon graphics
A6: quad core AMD CPU + 320 shader Radeon graphics
A8: quad core AMD CPU + 400 shader Radeon graphics
There is an additional four number suffix for each A-series to denote things like clock speed and TDP (thermal design – how big your heatsink needs to be) differences as well. The notebook versions also include Turbo Core (borrowed from the previous Phenom II X6 series) to maximize performance within their much more limited power and thermal budget.
How does the ‘performance-mainstream’ segment relate to you?
If your daily PC use amounts to email, web-surfing, any kind of video or multimedia, office work or business software, maybe even a splash of more intensive photo or video editing and gaming – even if you do some of these at once - the AMD A-series has you covered.
In notebooks these APUs should be of particular benefit as it can mean provide thinner profiles and longer lasting performance than ever before, from an AMD notebook.
For PCs, there’s even no need for a separate graphics card if your needs fall into the above usage. Since modern motherboards like the upcoming F1A75 Series provide pretty much all the other PC features required, the new platform is perfect for small form factor or ultra thin builds.
Unique PC sizes aside though, cutting out the graphics card saves you money, power and noise, which is good for everyone.
The APUs do however require a new motherboard, and ASUS’ new F1A75 series are due very soon to match up. We’ll cover these new motherboards and any new Fusion notebooks in more detail soon, but for now check out these reviews of the upcoming performance:
Anandtech AMD Llano Notebook Review
Ars Technica on AMD Fusion technology
Toms Hardware AMD A8-3500M APU Review
Hexus AMD Llano A8-3500M APU notebook review
Finally, please drop us your thoughts in the comments below!
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