



AMD Launches Low-Voltage Processors 248
mgoulding writes "CoolTechZone reports that AMD has released its low-power Athlon processors, which are designed to target the ultra-lightweight notebook market. The low-voltage chips will use smaller batteries and produce less heat. Acer plans to ship systems using the processors by the end of May." Acer plans to use them in their Ferrari line of thin laptops.
transmeta (Score:5, Interesting)
I do want a laptop for class and just having around, so I was strongly considering getting the Sharp, but constructive suggestions welcomed..
Re:transmeta (Score:4, Insightful)
I don't think there's any comparison on performance...the 2800+ AMD part should completely smoke the Transmeta. Battery life...well I'm not sure but how long are you really planning on running unplugged at a time? I'd guess the AMD parts are intended to run for ~5 hours with moderate use.
Anyone have any benchmarks on the Efficeon?
Re:transmeta (Score:4, Interesting)
hanging around (Score:5, Interesting)
For $1500 I can have, like, 6 or 7 T600 stinkpads. Or maybe just one or two and a sack of batteries to keep it running 12 hours or more. Gets the job done, and if I drop it I don't care so much. "No one will ever need more than 500MHz and 512MB of memory."
I've had a lot of laptops and they all sucked compared to my (relatively) light, compact little thinkpad. They work great with linux and they feel so soft and squishy - if batman carried a laptop, he'd carry a classic thinkpad.
Re:hanging around (Score:3, Informative)
compactness (Score:2)
The thinkpad also has full size keys but the layout isn't "full size" and having everything cramped together makes typing on any laptop, for me, feel claustrophobic.
lol (Score:2)
Re:hanging around (Score:2)
Re:transmeta (Score:2, Informative)
Re:transmeta (Score:3, Interesting)
I have a generic 5+ year old Kapok notebook that is still going strong. It turned out to be a much, much, MUCH better value than any IBM, Toshiba, or Dell.
I don't think that laptop manufacturers differ so much that you should evaluate them based on brand. Evaluate them based on model and features, not brand.
Oh, except for Sony. STAY AWAY FROM SONY!
Re:transmeta (Score:4, Insightful)
Not true at all... That is probably the single most important issue with notebooks.
Notebooks are not desktops. If a part is crap, you can't grab another and replace it... You have to go through the company. You better be buying from a company you REALLY trust, because notebooks are 100% lock-in.
Incidentally, I'm in the process of suing Sotec/Averatec...
Re:transmeta (Score:2)
Watt? (Score:2, Funny)
the final frontier (Score:2, Interesting)
If AMD has truly learned how to make a cool, low-voltage/low-wattage processor, well...all I can say is you might want to sell your Intel stock.
Go AMD!!!
Re:the final frontier (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:the final frontier (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:the final frontier (Score:4, Insightful)
These days, being a geek doesn't mean liking the best designed products, but you also have to like the underdog as well.
Re:the final frontier (Score:4, Insightful)
There's a reason why AMD has slowly been gaining on Intel for market share, and that reason is why they accounted for 52% of desktop CPUs that shipped in a recent week. The "Intel Inside" campaign is wearing off, especially when Intel is trying to compete with AMD by releasing their own 64 bit CPUs that are based off of AMD's pioneering X86-64 chips. Who's doing the reverse engineering now?
Re:the final frontier (Score:4, Insightful)
These days, being a geek doesn't mean liking the best designed products, but you also have to like the underdog as well.
Do you have a specific list to share (where popular is unfairly ragged on while obscure has an undeserved geek/wannabe-geek following)? Maybe I misunderstand.
For the record: I have bought an even split of AMD and Intel over the years. I don't see that changing, though it entirely depends on what goes around the processor. It's tough to pick a good sweet spot in laptops/notebooks mostly because of the extras (wanted and unwanted).
There are many gems out there that aren't popular so personally I get excited when I find them. Usually, they follow standards properly (in hardware and/or software). I also like booring and cheap generic basics too; mice, keyboards, hard drives, 100 or 100/1000 bit ethernet, USB 2 (not the dumbed down one), ... .
Re:the final frontier (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:the final frontier (Score:3, Insightful)
Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:3, Interesting)
But isn't the reality that they have a lower wattage?
Wattage being what really matters when it comes to power consumption and heat displacemnet.
-Grump
Re:Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:3, Informative)
ok, it runs on a lower voltage.
That much is said in the article.
But isn't the reality that they have a lower wattage?
"wattage", also called power, only has to do with voltage for a fixed resistance. I suppose AMD lowered the voltage to lower the power consumption too, though, so what you said is obvious.
Wattage being what really matters when it comes to power consumption and heat displacemnet.
Yes, power is indeed what matters when it comes to
Re:Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:2)
What the parent was doing is asking if that was what they ment in the article. If this was meaning the overal power consumption was lowered or if it was just shuffled around.
--the only stupid question is the one not asked
Re:Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:3, Informative)
You forget Ohm's law: I=U/R, and so P = IU = U^2/R. So assuming you have a fixed R, wattage only depends on voltage.
Unless you have the ability to change R, that is impossible. In itself less voltage = less powe
Re:Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:2, Informative)
Not ohm's law (Score:2)
Q=CV^2
Re:Not ohm's law (Score:5, Informative)
So, it's really pretty simple. Lower voltages mean that the capacitors don't take in as much charge, and therefore don't require as much current to charge up. Less current == less I^2*R loss == less power consumed.
You can get similar improvements by reducing the size of the capacitances, which can be done by reducing the size of the FET gates... which means a smaller feature size.
You are correct that the transistors look mostly like capacitors, but you are incorrect in stating that power is stored in the junction and that creates heat. Power is dissipated in the interconnects, sources and drains, and in the vias between layers. This is also one big reason why we went to copper - lower resistance interconnects == less power lost to resistance.
Re:incorrect (Score:2)
No, you certainly didn't make it clear that you said just the opposite. Power isn't stored in a capacitor. Nor is power stored in a junction. Nor is power dissipated in a (perfect) capacitor. Power is, however, dissipated in a junction.
Frankly, what you said didn't make much sense at all. Moreover, you titled your comment "Not Ohm's law" when in fact it exactly IS Ohm's law which is involved. "Q=CV^2". True. Not
Re:Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:2)
Now, you could theoretically make a high-voltage chip that is still low power. But thats not what they did. They lowered the voltage that the chip needs to be supplied. If anything, calling it a low-power chip makes less sense.
Re:Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:3, Informative)
http://www.nmsea.org/Curriculum/Primer/How_is_e
It's a very nice, plain english, tutorial about the relationship between Volts, Amps, Watts and Joules (the electric pantheon so to speak).
Re:Why is it called low-voltage? (Score:2, Funny)
And it beat out the marketing department's entry "Less shocky stuff".
tech info (Score:5, Informative)
The other models - 2800+, 3000+, and 3200+ are rated to operate at 65W while the 2700+ is rated to operate at 35W. The Pentium M processor models - 1.5Ghz, 1.6Ghz, and 1.7Ghz are set to operate at 24.5W. The AMD 2700+ budget Mobile processor still consumes more power than the Centrino platform, which uses Intel's Pentium M chips. Another big difference between the rest of Athlon64 Mobile processors from AMD and the 2700+ budget level Mobile processor is the amount of L2 cache. The 2700+ processor has 512KB cache while the rest of the models house 1MB cache. The 2700+ is clocked at 1.6Ghz; the same clock speed as the 2800+, which has 1MB L2 cache.
Re:tech info (Score:3, Interesting)
That said, the one thing that Intel really did right was that Pentium-M processor. I desperatly tried to convince my friend to get one, but instead he bought an Alienware with a 3.06Ghz desktop chip. (No speed throttling ability whatsoever) The result? 55 minutes of battery life on a single batter, just shy of two hours with the
Re:tech info (Score:3, Informative)
Re:tech info (Score:2)
The only general data I've found has been fairly out of date and anecdotal.
Cheers,
- Sawbones
Re:tech info (Score:5, Informative)
If you're serious about quiet (or preferably, silent) computing, the most valuable site I know of is Silent PC Review [silentpcreview.com].
Re:tech info (Score:3, Interesting)
The
Re:tech info (Score:2)
I'd like to see AMD to be a credible force in mobile computing, but in the past, inefficient chips and IMO substandard mobile chipsets have hampered them, I don't see that improving just yet.
Re:tech info (Score:3, Insightful)
And a nice thing about mobile amd cpu is that they are compatible with desktop boards, where intel are not in practice (400$ boards don't count).
Big Mistake, AMD... (Score:5, Funny)
No, I don't iron my clothes either, but it's the thought that counts, right?
Re:Big Mistake, AMD... (Score:2, Insightful)
Less heat? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Less heat? (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Less heat? (Score:2)
Re:Less heat? (Score:2)
I bet these OC nicely (Score:2, Informative)
Re:I bet these OC nicely (Score:2, Insightful)
What does over-clocking gain you? CPU Errors(instability), extra-heat, voided warranty, and possibly a dead CPU. Yes, you can come up with ingenious ways to keep that chip cool, but is the result really worth it especially when the extra speed you gain will be available in a non-overclocked model next month?
Re:I bet these OC nicely (Score:5, Insightful)
1) Serious savings. A low-speed CPU in a group can usually be overclocked to match the speed of the top CPU in that group without any special measures
2) Extra speed. You can almost always clock a CPU 5%-10% beyond the top speed for a processor group. If you're lucky, or using extreme cooling, you can get 20% or more.
And sometimes the extra speed isn't available for a while. When I purchased my current computer, the XP2100+ (266FSB) was the fastest CPU around. I got an XP2000+ (266FSB) and overclocked it to be an XP2200+ (333FSB), a chip that didn't show up until nine months later.
Re:I bet these OC nicely (Score:4, Informative)
Re:I bet these OC nicely (Score:2)
They had to go and ruin it didn't they (Score:2, Funny)
Re:They had to go and ruin it didn't they (Score:2)
Might I suggest this [legitreviews.com]?
Low Voltage Battery + Smaller battery = ? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Low Voltage Battery + Smaller battery = ? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Low Voltage Battery + Smaller battery = ? (Score:4, Interesting)
1998 == fat 3 hour battery
2001 == medium 3 hour battery
2004 == thin 3 hour battery
Have we become so sedentary that the weight of last year's laptop is going to cause heart attacks and strokes?
Cool Processor (Score:2)
Great news for people like myself... (Score:5, Interesting)
I'd like to have either a 2.5-3lb subnotebook with a nice 12" screen (and preferably below $1k, like the Servelinux), or a ~4lb notebook that gets a much longer battery life than anything else on the market (besides maybe a Mac), but also is below $1k. No CDROM or large screen needed in my case, cause I'm not looking for a desktop replacement.
For now, though, the Servelinux enote is too obscure for me to look at it seriously, and I'll stick with my used 7020 (?) Toshiba Portege (at a little over 4 lbs I think, with a nearly useless battery).
I've personally seen and played with the enote, anyone have comments on other laptops in the same category (maybe from Transmeta instead?). Cheap, light, and fast, pick three; I like cheap and light.
Re:Great news for people like myself... (Score:5, Funny)
Whoops, I meant pick two of course.
Re:Great news for people like myself... (Score:3, Informative)
OK, then.
Go on eBay. You can get a Compaq Armada M300 (PIII 600, up to 384M of memory) for around $350. It's got a 11.5" XGA screen, it's 3.1lbs (including battery), and very thin and light (magnesium alloy case). It runs Windows XP and Linux fine, has a Cardbus slot for a wifi card, built in 56K and 10/100 ethernet, ATI Rage graphics with 4MB (horrible 3D, but fine for 2D), and a nice keyboard. Not to mention the fact that the power adaptor is
Re:Great news for people like myself... (Score:2)
Re:Great news for people like myself... (Score:2)
I'm looking for a light notebook with long battery life. I thought about going without a CD-ROM drive, and the ThinkPad X40 looks good in this category. However, I'd like to watch movies and play the occasional copy-protected game, so I'm waffling between an iBook and the ThinkPad
hmm (Score:5, Funny)
But I'm on a Ford Tempo budget.. guess it's back to leg burns for me
Re:hmm (Score:2)
When they come out with hydrogen fuel cell laptops, please be sure not to get the Ford Pinto version.
What, for CMOS? (Score:4, Funny)
So these processors have built in batteries, eh?
A non-overheating Italian car (Score:5, Funny)
Is this the same laptop that was reviewed here a while ago? The one that makes revving sounds when booted up? Anyway, there's something wrong with putting a cool-running processor in a product named after an Italian car. Italian cars are supposed to overheat - when I had my FIAT/Pininfarina Spyder, part of the fun was sitting in traffic on a hot, humid summer day with the heater fully on to avoid cooking the engine.
b0s0z0ku
Re:A non-overheating Italian car (Score:3, Funny)
Ferarri Line (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Ferarri Line (Score:2)
Why... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Why... (Score:2)
Home builders clamored for the K6-2+ and K6-III+ processors for the same reason, but they were difficult to obtain. I happily ran a Celeron 850 (~20 W, IIRC) without a CPU fan.
Interestingly, Motorola markets the G4 (7457 and 7447A) used in the iBook, Powerbook, and iMac as an embedded processor. Now, if only Apple would market a headless iMac, like the old cube ...
Re:Why... (Score:2)
But there's always a trade-off.
Re:Why... (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Why... (Score:2)
Low Volt AMDs? (Score:3, Funny)
Breaking News (Score:2)
Re:Low Volt AMDs? (Score:2)
Side by Side? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Transmeta, also Side by Side? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Side by Side? (Score:3, Informative)
these are the benchmarks [vanshardware.com] that you are looking for.
How long before Enderle (Score:2)
quits seizing, wipes the drool off of his face and writes us up another gem about this one?
Vroom Vroom....
Source Bias? (Score:2, Insightful)
"AMD is currently leading the desktop processor market without a doubt with it's 64-bit processors."
Without a doubt? That sounds a little bit like "Ferrari is currently leading the automobile market without a doubt with it's Enzo model."
Yay, even hotter slow laptops! (Score:3, Funny)
Awesome!
Low-voltage + PowerNow == PentiumM Competition (Score:5, Interesting)
Now the Athlon64 mobiles, which already run at a cool 800Mhz when not taxed, combined with a voltage decrease, should create something that is at the same time powerful, yet battery-preserving.
Kicker: it's AMD64, so if you have 64bit OS and apps, it will really dominate.
Re:Low-voltage + PowerNow == PentiumM Competition (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Low-voltage + PowerNow == PentiumM Competition (Score:4, Interesting)
Why do people keep doing this? Sure VIA processors are lower power than current Intel/AMD processors, but that's because VIA processors have terrible performance. If you compare a 1GHz VIA processor to a 500MHz Pentium, you'll see that both the performance and power usage are very similar.
I'm quite psyched about AMD's new processors though. AMD's XP procs have been beating Intel at maximum power consumption even with better performance, and AMD have finally started kicking their chipset manufacturers into line. I think the effect AMD64 had on AMD's whole company has been far more significant than the processor itself.
We Want Low Power CPU on the *DESKTOP* too (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:We Want Low Power CPU on the *DESKTOP* too (Score:5, Informative)
1) Buy an Athlon 64 PC
2) Enable PowerNow! power management
3) Buy a power supply with a variable-speed fan (I recommend this one [siliconacoustics.com]) and enable CPU fan speed control on the motherboard (Q-Fan in ASUS's BIOS, IIRC).
When you're just reading Slashdot, the CPU runs at 800MHz and power consumption drops waaay down. When you're playing UT2004, the CPU runs flat out and the fans speed up. It works extremely well.
Re:We Want Low Power CPU on the *DESKTOP* too (Score:4, Informative)
Here we go again...
It always has been, and still is, entirely possible to have a system without any fans.
Just about any processor can be run with nothing but a large heatsink provide that you underclock it significantly. Drop a 2GHz processor down to 800MHz and you probably won't need a fan.
Oh, so you want a your system without a fan to be fast, eh? Well there's always water-cooling. But of course, you don't want to spend that much... Well, you can't have it all. If you choose silence, you have to spend a lot of money, or get poor performance.
Personally, I think the best way to just to replace the crappy fans and heatsinks with a tempurature controlled themaltake... Then when your processor is cool the fans will be slow and silent, but when your processor are running hot, the fans can cool everything down. I happen to like that tradeoff the best.
Choosing between AMD and Intel is difficult. Intel processor have a higher maximum tempurature, but they run cooler under typical load. AMD has recently been trying to fix this. This just happens to be a subject I detailed in my latest Journal entry [slashdot.org].
COOLER AMD PROCESSORS?! (Score:2)
hey, they need those hot amd processos to heat the place you know...
Article and summary are wrong (Score:5, Informative)
low-voltage low-power? (Score:2)
Perhaps though on the chemical side, its tougher to generate higher voltages with batteries?
voltage means nothing (Score:2)
Electrical theory tutorial... (Score:3, Informative)
Everything electric needs a certain number of watts to operate. Your Computer is about the same as a 100watt lightbulb. Wattage is voltage times current (amps), which means, less votage requires more current to do the same ammount of work.
Since voltage is not consumed, but current is, it only makes sense to use higher voltages, in order to preserve current. This can be seen very clearly on the specs of your computer's power supply. Your computer may need 100watts to operate, but you can choose between two different voltages. If you are running at 110v, you are drawing nearly 1 amp. However, if you throw the switch and plug in to 220v, you can operate the same equipment at under 1/2 amp.
I know this is a bit difficult to understand, so let's go with the shower analogy... Voltage is like water pressure, and current is like the volume of water. When you screw-on a "water conserving" shower nossle, what it does is increase the pressure. That makes the water spray just as far, while using less water to do it.
So, if you get the idea, you'll understand that decreasing a device's voltage does NOT mean you'll have better battery life. In fact, if all else remains equal, it guarantees worse battery life.
Now, I'd bet that AMD is decreasing the current used, while also decreasing the voltage, but that's just an asumption. The story only says it's decreasing voltage, which doesn't improve your battery life at all.
Re:Electrical theory tutorial... (Score:3, Insightful)
The dominant term in the CPU power consumption function is proportional to the square of the supply voltage, relating to the power consumed when charging a capacitor (or transistor). Using higher voltage can enable a CPU to achieve a greater c
Re:Uber laptop (Score:2)
Hrm, if I was going to spend $4000(!) on a laptop, I think I'd get a 17" Powerbook (Radeon 9700, yum!) along with some accessories and RAM expansion.
YMMV. :-)
Re:Uber laptop (Score:2)
Junk (Score:3, Insightful)
Not to mention they came with the slowest hard drives of any preassembled computer I ever bought. I didn't pay for either of'em, and I'm glad. No way would I spend my pennies on ANYTHING labelled Sony.
Re:Laptops... (Score:4, Informative)
Frankly, whoever gives me a 5GHz 64-bit processor for $100 first wins in my mind