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AMD demos next-gen Llano Fusion APU, promises consumer availability in 2011
2011 can't come soon enough, particularly if you're AMD. The company has been attempting to maintain hype behind its CPU / GPU hybrid since last century, but the newest demonstration of its Llano Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) is getting us back in the mood. For those who haven't followed the play-by-play, this here all-in-one chip is expected to hit laptops and desktops at some point in 2011, and the company's most recent demo featured a single chip simultaneously processing three separate compute-and graphics-intensive workloads. Llano was able to calculate the value of Pi to 32 million decimal places, decode HD video from a Blu-ray film and handle some other mysterious task that we may or may not ever truly find out about. Head on past the break for a promotional / informational video, and be sure to re-circle next year on your calendar. That'll be the one... just like your high school football team always thought.
Visualized: inside the National Ignition Facility
The $3.5 billion National Ignition Facility may not have yet reached its "ignition" goal -- essentially, fusing the nuclei of hydrogen atoms and generating more energy than was required to start the initial reaction -- but it did recently complete its first integrated ignition experiment on September 29th, in which a capsule containing hydrogen fuel was briefly bombarded with 1 megajoule of energy from the 192 lasers in the test chamber. Impressive, to be sure, and a prime opportunity to take a look at just how impressive the facility itself is. Check out a few more jaw-dropping shots in the gallery below, and hit up the link below for The Big Picture's own retrospective. %Gallery-104648%
Intel to show off Sandy Bridge at IDF next week, AMD counters with Zacate demo nearby
Now this is what you call a juicy standoff. Intel has announced that Paul Otellini will grace the stage at IDF next week with a demo of his company's next-gen CPU/GPU chip, codenamed Sandy Bridge, and not to be outdone, AMD has immediately retorted with plans to put its own Zacate competitor up on display -- at the same time, in the same city, but at a slightly different location. Both Zacate and Sandy Bridge meld general-purpose and graphical processing duties into one slice of silicon, consolidating the traditionally discrete CPU and GPU into a power-efficient do-it-all chip. You'll find details of where AMD's impromptu demo will be taking place after the break, whereas the Intel Developer Forum will probably be discoverable by the masses of bespectacled engineers trudging in its general direction. Boy, San Fran's gonna be one happening place next week!
AMD names second Bobcat APU Zacate, shows off Ontario die size
AMD might still have no actual Fusion product to sell us, but it's added a fresh new codename to the stable of future CPU/GPU hybrids. The Zacate Accelerated Processing Unit is a Bobcat derivative, much like the Ontario, but it operates at a higher TDP of 18W and is intended for ultrathin and mainstream laptops along with power-sipping desktops and all-in-ones. Both it and the Ontario APU will offer two Bobcat cores allied to Radeon graphics capable of performing DirectX 11 instructions, though the Ontario dips all the way down to 9W with the stated aim of punching up netbook and small form factor pc performance. Just for reference, that'll have to compete against Intel's own dual-core solution, the 1.5GHz Atom N550, which scrapes by on just an 8.5W TDP... though, of course, it doesn't integrate the same graphics processing prowess that Ontario promises. The two chips, Ontario and Zacate, will ride AMD's Brazos platform when they finally debut early next year. Until then, enjoy the technicolor die shot after the break.
JooJoo software update adds local video playback and password storage, still a few months too late
It's baaaack. Okay, it never really went anywhere, but thanks to a very nice tipster we learned that Fusion Garage released a new software update for the JooJoo last night. The new 0.2.4 firmware, as you can see from the shot above, adds a few previously-lacking features such as the ability to store passwords, calibrate the screen, and basic USB support. Obviously, we couldn't help but whip out our JooJoo review unit and try it all out. The download didn't take more than three minutes and, lo' and behold, we were able to log into Twitter, close the browser, and then launch it again without having to log back in! However, more impressive is that its sole USB port is now functioning. We put a 1080p trailer of Scott Pilgrim on a flash drive, plugged it into the side of the tablet, and miraculously the NVIDIA Ion chip was finally put to work -- it handled the clip with ease and with absolutely zero stuttering. Don't believe us? Video after the break, so there. %Gallery-100522% [Thanks, Mark]
AMD's Bobcat and Bulldozer, 2011 flagship CPU cores, detailed today
One of these days AMD is gonna have to stop talking about its Atom-killing Bobcat and Xeon-ending Bulldozer cores and finally release them. But, until that happy moment arrives in 2011 (fingers crossed), we'll have to content ourselves with more presentation slides. First up, the Bobcat core is AMD's long overdue play for the netbook/ultrathin market. Pitched as having 90 percent of the performance of current-gen, K8-based mainstream chips, AMD's new mobility core will require "less than half the area and a fraction of the power" of its predecessors. That sounds like just the recipe to make the company relevant in laptop purchasing decisions again, while a touted ability for the core to run on less than one watt of power (by lowering operating frequencies and voltages, and therefore performance) could see it appear in even smaller form factors, such as MIDs. The Bobcat's now all set to become the centerpiece of the Ontario APU -- AMD's first Fusion chip, ahead of Llano -- which will be ramping up production late this year, in time for an early 2011 arrival. The Bulldozer also has a future in the Fusion line, but it's earliest role will be as a standalone CPU product for servers and high-end consumer markets. The crafty thing about its architecture is that every one Bulldozer module will be counted as two cores. This is because AMD has split its internal processing pipelines into two (while sharing as many internal components as possible), resulting in a sort of multicore-within-the-core arrangement. The way the company puts it, it's multithreading done right. Interlagos is the codename of the first Opteron chips to sport this new core, showing up at some point next year in a 16-core arrangement (that's 8 Bulldozers, if you're keeping score at home) and promising 50 percent better performance than the current Magny-Cours flagship. Big words, AMD. Now let's see you stick to a schedule for once.%Gallery-100088%
AMD Fusion APU gets its first public demo at Computex (video)
Hey, what do you know -- the Fusion lives! AMD's CPU / GPU hybrid, which sounded so revolutionary back when it was first thought up, has finally shown off its Accelerated Processing grunt by chewing through a section of Aliens vs Predator live on stage at Computex. We can't say we were exactly bowled over by the performance -- the demo was just a leisurely walk through some leafy terrain, yet still seemed to dip below 30 frames a second at a few points, showing that the APU wasn't all that comfortable handling the DirectX 11 tasks that were put upon it. This chip is targeted at ultraportables, however, and that's a crowd with distinctly lower standards than your usual desktop gamer, so maybe there's a future for this 2011-bound slice of silicon after all. We've got video of the full AMD presentation after the break -- you'll want to skip ahead 59 minutes to see the AVP runthrough. %Gallery-94148%
Tales of Fantasy introduces the Fusion system
Equipment has been a central part of the MMO experience for years now, so it's no surprise that Tales of Fantasy has a system built around the idea of saving equipment on your character. It's called the Fusion system and works in a fairly straightforward manner that almost sounds like a combination of crafting and character advancement. Basically, if you've got a piece of equipment it can be fused onto your character, permanently adding its stats to your character and opening up that equip slot for a new equipment item. It's a simple idea, but one that effectively doubles the amount of gear you can wear. Higher level fusions require more Soul Containers, which are the sole item used for a fusion and can be acquired through story quests or instances. We're curious to hear what other design ideas are floating around in Tales of Fantasy, because if they're all this interesting it's going to be a game we spend some time with.
VMWare Fusion 3.1 beta available
On Monday VMWare released the Fusion 3.1 beta with some nice changes, including support for OpenGL 2.1 and 2TB virtual disks. There are more than 10 changes or improvements in this beta, including improved graphics performance for games and 3D apps (via OpenGL 2.1), improved USB and Boot Camp support and lots of UI improvements. You can get the full run-down here. The increase in virtual disk size is significant. Prior to this release, the max was 950GB. The update also bumps up parallel processing performance with support for 8-way SMP. Anyone testing the beta is encouraged to share their experiences in the beta forums. Earlier this week, MacTech posted a video of Parallels out-performing VMWare Fusion in a graphics-intensive, side-by-side comparison. Perhaps the changes in this beta will address those shortcomings (though I'd just boot into Windows via Boot Camp if running a 3D game). Fusion costs US$79.99 as a download or $99.99 for the app plus upgrades for the next 12 months. It requires an Intel Mac, at least 1GB of RAM (2GB RAM recommended), 700MB free disk space for VMware Fusion and at least 5GB for each virtual machine; it runs on Mac OS X 10.5.8 or later; Mac OS X 10.6 or later. If you want to try out the beta, you will get an expiring serial number; you can also use your existing Fusion 3 serial if you already own the product. [Via MacNN]
Found Footage: VMware gets schooled by Parallels in MacTech benchmarks
Many Mac owners who install Windows do so for gaming. Those uninterested in Boot Camp can try out virtualization software, which lets you run Windows in a virtual environment on a Mac. The two most popular are VMWare Fusion and Parallels. Before making a purchase decision, wouldn't it be great to see how they handle graphics side-by-side? You drive a car before you buy it, right? The folks at MacTech thought so, and set up identical machines for testing purposes. In the video above you'll see two MacBook Pros running Windows XP over Mac OS 10.6.2 via VMWare Fusion 3 (on the left) and Parallels Desktop 5 (on the right). They were put through several graphics-intensive tests simultaneously with dramatic results. We don't want to spoil the surprise, but suffice to say that Fusion got spanked. You can get all of the details on the test, setups and results here.
AMD to finally take on netbook space with new Fusion chip... next year
We've always said AMD should go after the gaping hole between netbooks and thin-and-lights by releasing a low-power platform with solid graphics abilities, and it looks like the company's finally coming around -- AMD's John Taylor just told us that the chipmaker will be releasing a netbook-class Fusion CPU / GPU hybrid codenamed "Ontario" with integrated DX11 graphics sometime next year. If Ontario sounds familiar, it's because we've seen it leaked in the past -- it's a part of the "Brazos" platform built around the low-power Bobcat core. Of course, AMD has been promising Fusion chips of all stripes for years now without a single shipping part, so saying that a Fusion chip will get it into the netbook game in 2011 is mildly amusing -- while AMD's definitely turned things around, it's still incredibly late to the low-end party, and Intel's solidly beaten it to the hybrid CPU / GPU punch with the Core 2010 and Pine Trail Atom chips. Add in the fact that NVIDIA's Optimus-based Ion 2 chipset seemingly offers the extended battery life of Atom with the performance of a discrete GPU, and we'd say the market niche Ontario is designed to fill may not actually be so niche when it finally arrives. We'll see what happens -- a year is a long, long time. [Image via OCWorkbench]
AMD Fusion sampling soon, arriving in 2011 with Llano APU
To say that we've been waiting for AMD's Fusion CPU / GPU combo for a long time would be an understatement. In fact, while AMD was busy talking about it, Intel swept in with its own Arrandale and Clarkdale chips that pack graphical and computing processing into the same chip. Lest we were discouraged, then, AMD is making a return to form with news that its first Fusion APU (Accelerated Processing Unit) is about to start sampling to manufacturers, with a now definite 2011 launch window. Codenamed Llano, this will be a quad-core beastie with intended operating speeds of more than 3Ghz and graphics parts borrowed from ATI's successful line of Evergreen GPUs. That means DirectX 11, a feature Intel is unlikely to match, whereas AMD will have everything Intel currently does and more, with a 32nm production process, on-die integration (rather than just the same chip packaging), and power gating allowing for dynamic per-core overclocking a la Turbo Boost. It's been lonely without you AMD, now just fulfill this promise and all that absenteeism will be forgiven.
One megajoule laser brings nuclear fusion power closer to reality
When you think of the laser these days, you're most likely imagining a giant beam that can scorch a few buildings within seconds. Putting your evil thoughts aside, why not think smaller yet more powerful, and something that may change the future of mankind for good? We're talking about the National Ignition Facility that has recently produced the world's first megajoule laser, which only lasted for a few nanoseconds but is still a milestone for nuclear fusion development (read: clean energy on a massive scale). In a nutshell, this laser should be able to produce sufficient X-rays in order to fuse hydrogen nuclei, and it also has financial and efficiency advantage over other systems by having an exposed reactor core instead of one shielded by a huge magnet. That said, until the NIF tries the laser on fuel capsules this summer, we can only be hopeful. [Original photo from 2funnycats]
Next-gen AMD Scorpius and Lynx desktop platforms leak out, Fusion still coming in 2011
AMD had a little show and tell with Asian press to go along with those new Phenom II and Athlon II chips it just launched, and it revealed some of its next-gen plans along the way. In the short term, it looks like the plan is to launch the 45nm Leo platform we've heard about later this year to better compete with Intel's 32nm Clarkdale parts, and then to push forward to 32nm in 2011 with the Scorpius platform, which will feature a Bulldozer CPU called Zambezi with up to 8 cores and a "next-generation discrete graphics solution." Midrange desktops will get some "next-generation integrated graphics" of their own this year on the Dorado platform, while 2011 will see the Lynx platform launch with the long-delayed Fusion chip. (We were first supposed to see Fusion chips in late 2008, remember?) Fusion is also still on vapor-y track for laptops with scheduled 2011 launch of the previously-leaked Sabine platform, but AMD also tipped the new Brazos Fusion-based platform powered by the Ontario APU, which is "optimized for new form factors" -- potentially MID-sized, but we don't know for sure. Phew, that's a lot of codenames -- we'd say we can't wait, but we're clearly going to have to learn how.
AMD spells out the future: heterogeneous computing, Bulldozer and Bobcats galore
Believe it or not, it's just about time for AMD to start thinking about its future. We know -- you're still doing your best to wrap that noodle around Congos and Thubans, but now it's time to wonder how exactly Leo, Llano and Zambezi (to name a few) can fit into your already hectic schedule. At an Analyst Day event this week, the chipmaker removed the wraps on its goals for 2010 and 2011, and while it's still focusing intently on Fusion (better described as heterogeneous computing, where "workloads are divided between the CPU and GPU"), it's the forthcoming platforms that really have us worked up. For starters, AMD is looking into Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) configurations, which "represent the combined capabilities of [practically any] two separate processors." We're also told that the firm may actually introduce its Bulldozer (architecture for mainstream machines) and Bobcat (architecture for low-power, ultrathin PCs) platforms more hastily than similar ones have been rolled out in the past, which demonstrates an effort to really target the consumer market where Intel currently reigns. Frankly, we're jazzed about the possibilities, so hit the links below for a deep dive into what just might be powering your next (or next-next) PC. [Via Digitimes]
Ask TUAW: Arranging icons on the iPhone, installing Windows on a Mac, Airport networks and more
Welcome back to Ask TUAW, our weekly troubleshooting Q&A column. This week we have questions about arranging icons on the iPhone, installing Windows via Boot Camp, AirPort networks, iMac rotation support, replacing the video card in an iMac, and more. As always, your suggestions and questions are welcome. Leave your questions for next week in the comments section at the end of this post. When asking a question, please include which machine you're using and what version of Mac OS X is installed on it (we'll assume you're running Snow Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify). And now, on to the questions. Leah asks: Is there a better way to arrange icons on my iPhone than by trying to drag them around on the phone itself. I can't seem to get it to work very well and usually mess it up. Apple provided a better way of organizing iPhone icons in iTunes 9. In the past, I always tried to arrange my icons on the iPhone the same way you do, by dragging them around on the device itself. This isn't as easy as it sounds, especially if you have larger hands. Now, with iTunes 9 or higher installed and your iPhone connected to your Mac or PC, launch iTunes, click on the Applications tab, and you will not only see the apps you have installed on your iPhone, but the iPhone screens and the placement of the icons as well. Simply drag the icons around in iTunes and put them in the desired order. The next time you sync, the icons are arranged identically on your iPhone as well. It's so much easier.
VMware ships Fusion 3.0
Today is release day for VMware Fusion 3.0. The app has more than 50 new enhancements including: Support for both 32-bit and 64-bit Snow Leopard kernels. Integrated Migration Assistant guides you through migrating from the PC to a virtual machine. First virtualization product to support for Windows Aero, including Flip 3D and Aero Peek. Support for DirectX 9.0EX with OpenGL 1.4 with new WDDM graphics driver. Greatly reduced memory usage when using Windows Vista and Windows 7 virtual machines and newly created Windows XP virtual machines Faster disk and graphics performance on Snow Leopard. Banish the Start Menu with Always-on Applications Menu on the Mac menu bar. Access to Windows taskbar tray items in Unity view in the Mac menu bar. Run 3D games and play 1080p video in Unity view. I started trying to upgrade my copy to 3.0 late last night and into the early morning hours, but the VMware servers insisted I wasn't in the database. I noticed an increasing number of similar complaints on the VMware forums, so I can't tell you about my installation experience, or how it all works with Windows 7. Stay tuned for more info as we get that sorted out, and hopefully your upgrade experience will be better.
VMWare Fusion 2.06 hits the streets
VMWare has pushed out another update to Fusion, the popular virtualization app.Version 2.06 was released yesterday. The 289 MB download includes multiple fixes for running Fusion in a 32-bit Snow Leopard environment. The release includes enhancements for better 3D performance on Macs with Nvidia cards under Snow Leopard. There are also the usual assortment of other bug fixes.You can download the update here for free if you're a registered Fusion user. You can get detailed release notes from VMWare at this page. Users who upgrade should note that VMWare Tools does not automatically update when you do the upgrade. You'll have to install the tools from the Fusion menu bar. When I opened my older version of Fusion this morning I was not alerted to the update, which was a bit of a surprise. Your mileage may vary, so I and am passing the info along to you in case you don't get flagged on it.Happy downloading.
Troubleshooting Roundup: Mac OS X 10.5.7 Update
While Jason D. O'Grady considers anything more than ordinatrix inflagrante to be success when he's installing a new operating system, he and others are still reporting on the various and sundry issues that have cropped up since Tuesday's 10.5.7 update: I can't find my brain: Some users are reporting that their Buffalo (among other) external disks aren't mounting after installing the update. Solution: Nothing concrete, though many people are suggesting installing the combo update you can download from Apple's site, rather than using Software Update. You can participate in Apple's Support Discussion on the topic if you share this problem. [via MacNN.] Blue screen of death: No joke: since the update restarts your computer up to three times, some users are getting hung up on the first blue screen that appears after the gray Apple logo screen. Solution: Wait until disk activity stops, then shut down the computer hard by holding down the power button. [via PowerPage.] I was blind, but now I see: The update is causing some video cards to output non-native display resolutions. Instead of outputting 1920 x 1200, instead Mac OS X will try and output 1920 x 1080 (which works fine for HDMI, but not many widescreen displays). Solution: An oldie-but-goodie: Zap the PRAM by holding down command + option + P + R at startup until the computer restarts a few times, then letting go. [also via PowerPage.] Cold fusion: VMWare is suggesting people hold off on updating if their configuration includes an ATI graphics card and they use Fusion to run 3D Windows apps. (2D apps are just fine.) Slow and poor rendering and general crashiness are symptoms of the problem. Solution: None yet. Apple and ATI are working on an update. [via MacNN.] Got problems of your own? Let us know by leaving a comment.
AMD releases another notebook roadmap, does not release Fusion chips
Well, well, a new AMD roadmap promising a superior hybrid CPU/GPU chip sometime in the distant future. That doesn't sound like the same old vaporware refrain we've been hearing about Fusion since 2006 at all, does it? Yep, everyone's favorite underdog is back in the paperwork game, and this time we've got a sheaf of pointy-eared details on the company's upcoming notebook plans, all culminating in the "Sabine" platform, which is wholly dependent on Sunnyvale actually shipping a mobile variant of the delayed Fusion APU in 2011 once it finds the Leprechaun City. In the meantime, look forward to a slew of forgettable laptops getting bumped to the "Danube" platform, which supports 45nm quad-core chips, DDR3-1066 memory, and an absolutely shocking 14 USB 2.0 ports. Ugh, seriously -- does anyone else think AMD should suck it up, put out a cheap Atom-class processor paired with a low-end Radeon that can do reasonable HD video output, and actually take it to Intel in booming low-end market instead of goofing around with the expensive, underperforming Neo platform and a fantasy chip it's been promising for three years now? Call us crazy.[Via PC Authority; thanks Geller]
