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AMD to push Puma with eXternal Graphics Platform

by Parm Mann on 10 June 2008, 14:34

Tags: AMD (NYSE:AMD)

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NVIDIA might have rolled-out 13 new mobile GPUs, but its closest competitor in the graphics sector isn't resting on its laurels. At last week's COMPUTEX, AMD announced its ATI XGP (External Graphics Platform) technology, an external PCI-E 2.0 platform designed to deliver enthusiast-class graphics performance to notebook users.

AMD's reference design, pictured below, takes the form of a slimline box featuring an ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3800 GPU. It can be connected to your laptop via a 4.0Gbps PCIe 2.0 connector and will allow users to power up to four displays.

The XGP supports CrossFireX and will work in tandem with a notebook's existing internal GPU. It offers hardware acceleration for smooth playback of 1080p material, via HDMI or DVI outputs, and there's even a handful of extra USB 2.0 ports.

It all sounds very straight-forward but pretty useful, too. There is, however, a catch. AMD states that the XGP uses a "specially designed self-latching, easy-connecting PCIe 2.0 cable from Japan Aviation Electronics Industry".

Yep, that means there's a whole new connector and your laptop will need an XGP slot to take advantage of the technology. We're assuming there'll be plenty of Puma notebooks with the required connectivity, but it might not extend much further beyond that.

Matt Skynner, vice president of AMD's Marketing, Graphics Products Group, said:

"With ATI XGP Technology, notebooks can switch between everyday computing and hard-core gaming with a simple plug-in that’s also portable enough to bring powerful 3D performance on-the-go. This technology allows users to choose notebooks with slim, lightweight and elegant designs, yet enjoy the full performance of a traditional desktop gaming rig wherever it’s convenient."

For further details, visit the official product page: ati.amd.com



HEXUS Forums :: 7 Comments

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More evidence to suggest NVIDIA are just doing more of the same, only bigger and hungrier, while AMD are being much more diverse and pushing out the proverbial boat.

Can't see it being a popular market, but that's an excellent looking device.
excellent! - I'll definately be in the market for something like this is it becomes a standardised format.

Its the only downside of laptops - lack of decent gfx performance without paying a fortune

/consider ditching desktop pc

I'm sure some other company did something similar - oh yeah Asus XG station and something similar from MSI but unfortuantely they were limited to only certain graphics cards and not the top of the range ones :(
I am definately interested. Most of the time you don't need the graphics power but you could get some nice graphics card when stationary.
zoomee
I'm sure some other company did something similar - oh yeah Asus XG station and something similar from MSI but unfortuantely they were limited to only certain graphics cards and not the top of the range ones :(

lol, just asus. but yes. much talked about idea that almost happened



we have certainly been here before. i remember looking at this as a boost for my radeon 9700m lappy. obviously the time for that to be useful has passed and its old and tired all round now, but it would be great if they actually managed to get a real useful product going this time… and not just for laptops.. for SFF's :D
Am I the only one who remembers the days of laptops with docking stations? Not port replicators, but proper docking stations that could take hard drives, optical drives & of course, PCI cards.