New ATI Mobile Graphics Chip

[robbieduncan]

Radeon Mobility X1600

Not sure this is the correct place for this: Mods feel free to move it!

Given that Apple seem to favour ATI chips for their high-end laptops I think that this is quite an interesting announcement. We may well see this chip in future PowerBooks. What is really interesting about this chip is that is supports Avivo.

What is so interesting about Avivo? Avivo supports hardware H.264 decode acceleration. This could mean that next-generation PowerBooks can decode full 1080p HD content. Probably at under 50% CPU usage.

 

[eXan]

I dont think Apple will slap it into Powerbook, it just seems 2 big for it (phisical size). Remember, PBs are 1 inch think and are getting 20-40 % smaller with Intel!

 

[robbieduncan]

Whilst it's hardly the prettiest machine in the world (or maybe the thinest) this laptop as this new chip. It'd imagine that Apple could better this in terms of thinness and still use this GPU.

 

[nutmac]

I dont think Apple will slap it into Powerbook, it just seems 2 big for it (phisical size). Remember, PBs are 1 inch think and are getting 20-40 % smaller with Intel!

Is it really that big? It measures about 1.8" by 1.8", and the package includes both GPU and 128 MB RAM. I forget how big 9700 was, but X1600 should be smaller.

 

[crazzyeddie]

Is it really that big? It measures about 1.8" by 1.8", and the package includes both GPU and 128 MB RAM. I forget how big 9700 was, but X1600 should be smaller.

If it is only 1.8" x 1.8" then Apple will probably try to use it. Many people are angry with Apple for not using the Radeon 9800 in the Powerbooks, but those chips are huge (almost PCI card sized!) and hot. We'll have to see how cool running this chip is, since NVIDIA already has some pretty aggressive mobile offerings (NOT the 5200).

Edit: I just noticed AnandTech has a preview of the chip, I'll check it out and let you guys know what the possibilities of this finding its way into a Powerbook are...

 

[BornAgainMac]

Perhaps it can be used in the Mac Mini Media and iMac lines. Future generations will be smaller for notebooks.

 

[generik]

If it is only 1.8" x 1.8" then Apple will probably try to use it. Many people are angry with Apple for not using the Radeon 9800 in the Powerbooks, but those chips are huge (almost PCI card sized!) and hot. We'll have to see how cool running this chip is, since NVIDIA already has some pretty aggressive mobile offerings (NOT the 5200).

Edit: I just noticed AnandTech has a preview of the chip, I'll check it out and let you guys know what the possibilities of this finding its way into a Powerbook are...

How can a chip be the size of a PCI card?

The biggest chip I ever saw was an IBM Power processor, which is about the size of a palm (less fingers).

 

[crazzyeddie]

After reading the review, they have some benchmarks in there that are favorable (around 30fps at 1440x900 on Quake 4). This is their final conclusion:

Our release-concerns aside, hopefully the Radeon X1600 will be a good quality part when it shows up. As for the MRX1600, medium to high quality graphics settings are playable on the ASUS A7V's native 1440x900 panel, and that's about all we can say right now. The mid-range mobile market has generally been very strong for ATI, and this part looks to have a good balance of power and efficient performance.

Looks promising, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Nvidia or the current 9700 in the next-gen Powerbooks.

 

[crazzyeddie]

How can a chip be the size of a PCI card?

The biggest chip I ever saw was an IBM Power processor, which is about the size of a palm (less fingers).

Not the actual chip, but the entire package (GPU, board, VRAM, etc) is quite large and quite hot, possibly the size of what you are describing, which is way too big for Apple's current and future portable offerings.

 

[bousozoku]

While the 17 inch has enough room for such a beast, unless Apple have come up with new ways to cool their machines, and with their G5 experiments, they should have plenty ready, they won't be able to use something more interesting.

It would be nice to see a really amazing, slick machine with really high end portable graphics hardware but Apple will be conservative.