ATI's R580+ revealed

Zarolho

Zarolho

Power Member
ATI high end goes 80 nanometre
By Fuad Abazovic: Wednesday 29 March 2006, 09:58
http://ads1.itadnetwork.co.uk/adview.php?zoneid=23&n=af2d6ba1

NVIDIA put some extra pressure on ATI with its G71 generation. The X1900 XTX can put up a fight but ATI's cost is still quite a bit higher. Nvidia's chip is cheaper and cooler but this is about to change in the next few months.

G71 should be Nvidia's last Geforce 7 generation card, and after than it will move to G80, the eight generation powered with Unified Shaders. ATI, on the other hand, is preparing to move to 80 nanometres first.


It informed its partners that it has a R580+ card up at its corporate sleeves. It is nothing more than 80 nanometre R580 core, but this shrink will make the chip cooler, smaller and cheaper to produce. ATI will probably be able to get some higher clocks out of it as well.


Samples are scheduled for May, while production should start in Q3 between June and August. Such timing clearly indicates that ATI is not in a rush to release the R600 and we know that R600 is actually doing just fine. The R600 needs Vista to glow.


We heard about the R580+ before, but it was called R581. Obviously ATI changed its mind about the name. The card naturally supports all that R580 can bear, including Avivo, Crossfire and it is a native PCIe component. µ

http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=30623
 
Com isto a ATI daqui a uns meses vai mover toda a linha para os 80nm e continuar com a arquitectura anterior.
Permite baixar custos, aumentar os clocks e manter os chips com temperaturas mais baixas.
DX_10 so la para o fim do ano com o R600.

Havia users que acreditavam na G80 em junho/julho (coisa que nunca acreditei e me pareceu completamente irrealista), mas parece que meteram os pes pelas maos e o tape-out do G80 falhou.
 
Até ver é apenas um rumor. Não mandes foguetes antes da festa. Se tentaram um tape out era porque achavam possivel ter sucesso. Não é apenas por achares irrealista que essa assumpção passa a fazer sentido com o eventual "missed tape out".

Por outro lado até pode ser interessante ambas as empresas lançarem a nova geração ao mesmo tempo, se se confirmar o rumor e respectivo atraso no lançamento.
 
ATI R580+ supports GDDR 4

Fast memory for the fast chip
WE FOUND out one key thing about the new R580+ chip. We gave you most of the details here already, but we can now confirm that ATI's new chip can and will support GDDR4.

All cards after the R520 could support GDDR 4, but obviously the next generation GDDR 4 memory will simply work better with the new chips. The new Radeon X1000 generation memory controller has the support but obviously R580+ will have even better and more polished support.

Companies such as Samsung and Hynix have been sampling GDDR 4 from late 2005, so I guess by the time the 580+ is ready in late summer, there are unlikely to be many problems with memory shortage. GDDR 4 is a progression from GDDR 3 memory with some tweaks, squeaks and extra whistles.

Chiefly, it can work at very high frequencies. GDDR 4 should be in mass production this year. We don’t know when Nvidia plans to embrace this marchitecture but it could be with its G80 technology. µ
Clicar para expandir...
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=30649
 
Inicie sessão ou registe-se para poder participar.
Back
Topo