The new series introduces the ATI CrossFireX, the multi-GPU technology designed to support up to four graphics processors in CrossFire configurations. At launch, the ATI Radeon HD 3800 series will support dual-GPU CrossFire with tri and quad-GPU support scheduled for January 2008.
According to AMD, with the introduction of PCI Express 2.0, over 16GBps of bi-directional bandwidth is available for multi-GPU PC gaming. AMD also claims that HD 3800 is the first graphics processor to use 55nanometer process technology, which allows a 12X increase in performance-per-watt. The ATI PowerPlay technology increases control over the graphics processor in different power states and offers automatic adjustment of clocks and voltages based on usage scenario.
AMDs partners building boards based on the HD 3800 series include Asus, Gigabyte and Visiontek, while the system integrators launching the series include ABS, AMAX, CyberPower, Ultra Gaming and Velocity Micro.
The series will be available in two variants, $179 manufacturer suggested retail price (MSRP) for the ATI Radeon HD 3850 with 256MB of GDDR3 memory and $219 MSRP for the ATI Radeon HD 3870 with 512MB GDDR4 memory.
In August 2007, AMD launched five new ATI FireGL workstation graphics accelerators for CAD, DCC and medical imaging professionals. The ATI FireGL V8650, FireGL V8600, FireGL V7600, FireGL V5600, and FireGL V3600 graphics boards are based on the next-generation ATI GPU, which supports DirectX10 and OpenGL 2.1based professional applications.
This new series of graphics products is part of AMD’s strategy to launch an enthusiast platform codenamed ‘Spider’. Its specific details are kept confidential until the release date; however according to authoring tool developer, Jules Urbach, the Spider platform can be used for games and a near-studio-quality graphics and videos.
Source: ComputerWire daily updates
