Just like your mom keeps telling you, AMD thinks netbooks are a bit of a fad, and is laying down a roadmap for thin-and-lights while keeping its distance from any sort of "Atom killer." The existing Yukon platform -- featured in
HP's dv2 -- just got an upgrade in the form of a
dual-core AMD Neo chip, but things will really start to get exciting later this year with the introduction of Congo, which will pair a dual-core Neo with much better graphics and a more modern chipset. Perks in Congo, which is based on the M780G chipset and sports ATI Radeon HD 3200 IGP graphics, include hardware decoding for HD formats, DirectX 10 gaming, love for DisplayPort, HDMI and eSATA, and Hybrid Graphics potential for pairing the integrated chipset with discrete graphics. The hope is to compete well against Intel's CULV and NVIDIA's 9400M in the low-cost thin-and-light space, and if the price stays down and performance pans out, Congo just might.
posted June 11th 2009 6:49PM
3200 sucks. They need to improve the IGP to something on the level of the 3450
like the article says, that's on the chipset, but it can be paired with a discrete chip for hybrid graphics, with AMD controlling CPU chipset and GPU, it will probably take off easier than nVIDIA trying to push Ion against intel's pricing scheme
sucks?
seriously...
the hd3200 is one of the best chipsets ever!
Whats faster, ATI 3200 or Nvidia 9400/ION ??
Also, Anyone seen a benchmark of the dual-core Neo versus an dual-core CULV or Celeron ULV ?
When are they gonna release their new mainstream platform? Now that is what I've been waiting for.
I got no idea, they seem to be having lots of future plans but nothing that helps them to make money to survive until the future plans materialize.
So when's Congo Bongo 2 coming out and will it be a First Person Shooter?
Of course AMD isn't going to take on the netbook market. Slimmer margin territory in a field where intel can easily outdeliver them. Not to mention with the integrated Graphics card they risk irking Microsoft into cutting them off an innovation path.
And the world still continues to laugh at amd...
and i continue to laugh at Intel fanboys like you. how is competition a bad thing?
I don't think the comparison should be made between AMD/ATI integrated graphics and Nvidia 9400M graphics. The 9400M graphics will come at a much greater premium because it is discrete graphics. Yeah sure, 9400M "might" outperform the AMD/ATI integrated graphics, but it costs extra too, so I sure hope it does...
The comparison should be made between AMD/ATI integrated vs Intel integrated graphics such as GMA 4500MHD. These are closer price backets and I think AMD/ATI will win out here.
the nvidia 9400m is also an integrated graphics chipset, which has been in the mac pros since last fall. the 9400m has also been basically repackaged as the nvidia ion chipset, so it is a valid comparison between the nvidia 9400m and ati hd 3200. from the internet comparisons that i have seen the 9400m performs better then the 3200 but i'm not quite sure if there is a great trade off in power usage.
mac pros have the dedicated version so scratch that
Why does AMD think I can only use my 9" netbook for web and email.
Am I doing something wrong using it for office, movies, music and photos?
You're denying laptop manufacturers the ability to profit from their higher-end machines.
you bastard
This is one thing that frustrates me, especially being an Investor in AMD.
They need to get their heads out of their asses, and either make something to compete with the Atom, or price the Athlon Neo to compete with the Atom and also stick them in netbooks.
Netbooks are not just a fad AMD... I bought your shares earlier this year because I liked what you were doing, and I have more than doubled my return, but while you are going to be a big player in budget desktop CPUs and video cards, you really need to put more brainstorming into the mobile computing word, with this economy netbooks are where it's at, and smartphones are needing more powerful cpu's and gpu's as they evolve. GET TO IT AMD!
"with this economy netbooks are where it's at"
It's not as an easy call as you might think.We can't possibly expect to build a long term+sound R&D coupled with favorable ROI on....>this outlook< for say the next 5 years?Are you out of your mind???There's a good reason why if you notice that OEMs like Dell and HP are inching "up" not down at their minis and netbooks' range.It's not just Intel's voodoo of churning out nice performance+power friendly CPUs,look even they're beginning to accept that they won't be able to place all their bets on PCs either which is what netbooks essentially is.Netbooks are being crammed with more and more features to a point where you seriously have to analyze your purchasing decisions in comparison to its just slightly heftier 12" siblings, that yes the term IS in fact a fad and this is where that Congo flowchart above has nailed it accurately.If you ask me both Intel and AMD needs li-ion batt makers to step up the science too,it's not 1 way traffic.Though I concur that AMD are being complete laggards in addressing the the CPU+power usage design initiatives.God forbid if they ran out of ideas....
"smartphones are needing more powerful cpu's and gpu's as they evolve. GET TO IT AMD!"
This is more like it and sensible.Intel's cocking up big time for Moorestown,nVIDIA with their Tegra and for real reasons.When the line gets a bit too grey between netbooks and smartphones,common sense dictates that people wouldn't want to pack a 10 incher when they can get things done on any Nokia,SE,Samsung or iPhone in the near future on the go.Especially if the 10" thing lacks usable communication aspects and I sure as hell won't wanna take calls even wirelessly from a thing that I'd have to fumble for in my tote or backpack?
I don't see what the problem is; the netbook market is currently pretty much owned by Intel, with only a few examples of VIA's Nano chip popping up here and there. Although AMD may have more financial muscle than VIA, trying to compete in a market already dominated by Intel doesn't make as much sense as proving to manufacturers that they can provide a cost effective and efficient CPU solution for the new thin and light (and cheap) laptop market.
Until the last 12 months or so, thin and light laptops (nee ultraportables) have been expensive, underpowered compared to their chunkier cousins and therefore not as appealing to the mass market. It's fair to say that with the introduction of netbooks, people have shown with their wallets that they're willing to sacrifice power for a more mobile computing experience and with Intel's Atom chip, it's been possible to provide smaller solutions without amping up the cost. Now that netbooks are creeping up in size it makes sense for *someone* to get in there and provide more power than an Atom CPU.
I agree netbooks aren't just a fad - for many people they replace the need for a larger laptop - and I also don't think this is anything to do with the recession. Netbooks will remain popular afterward - even in better economic times, not everyone is rich, and why pay $1000 for a laptop when a $400 one would do the job perfectly well *and* be a nice compact size, and probably have longer battery life too?
So I agree that AMD ought to be in the netbook chip business, but the fact is they aren't, and it's not just a case of 'go do it'.
Netbook processors are about low power consumption. Historically, Intel have been crap at making low-power CPUs... but AMD have been even worse. I don't see how they're going to get to something from nothing - so they have to stand on the sidelines shouting insults to keep their investors happy rather than admit, 'yeah, this is an important area of the market but we simply can't compete in it'.
Unfortunately that means we can't look at AMD for competition - so Intel remain out on their own (well, um, Via? Yeah, probably not) until ARM-based systems are competitive. Outside the 'cheap-as-dirt-and-performs-like-it' category, is probably not until next year sometime at earliest.
eSATA is garbage because it doesn't carry power. What an asinine design, especially for one so recent.
With Microsoft Policies about Windows 7 Starter edition and its "What a Netbook is to me..." policy, thing will change a lot in the months to come. No netbook should have more than 10" or more than 1GB RAM? That's bullshit, But IMO with the release of Windows 7 just months from now, the "Ultrathin" or "Ultraportable" laptops (12" kinda) will be greatly boosted, because of course CPU's like Dual Core Neo or Congo for that matter will outperform Atom's and netbooks, and of course AMD offers great performance/cost on this (or all) kind of things. It wouldn't be surprising to see a drop in small laptop prices with more than 2GB of RAM and Dual core CPU's for Windows 7 (even if u use them only for web and office).
Let's just hope that AMD can make it to the 45nm Mobile area soon enough or it will just be left behind (again), history has shown us that AMD Power Efficient designs are actually competitive while working even one generation behind 130->90->65->45nm. But this time it seems Congo will have to shrink itself if he wants to make it to the beauty contest finals. AMD Phenom II is already in 45nm so why don't they start planning on going there with mobile while they still can catch up.