Today, AMD announced a new ATI Radeon E4690 embedded GPU with a 128-bit memory interface and 512MB of on chip memory. The E4690 also includes broad hardware support for video codecs and allows multiple HD video streams to be decoded simultaneously. The E4690 is also ATI CrossFireX compatible.

AMD’s ATI Radeon E4690:

• Two-monitor support
• Support for DirectX 10.1 and OpenGL 3.0
• Second-gen Unified Video Decoder (UVD 2.0), with H.264 and VC-1 HD video, as well as MPEG-2
• 512MB of 700MHz GDDR3 memory on-chip
• 320 shader processors
• Picture-in-picture support
• 55nm process technology
• 5-year supply availability plan by AMD
• 35mm package

Said Richard Jaenicke, director of embedded graphics at AMD:

The ATI Radeon E4690 sets a new bar for embedded graphics performance. Blazingly fast graphics and HD video capabilities enhance the appeal of applications − such as arcade, casino, digital signage and more. With the industry’s only embedded graphics chip that offers DirectX 10.1 and UVD 2.0 support, the ATI Radeon E4690 enables competitive advantages for AMD’s embedded customers.



	ATI Radeon E2400	ATI Radeon E4690
Max Frequency	600MHz	600MHz
Process Technology	65nm	55nm
CPU Interface	PCIe 1.1 (x1, x2, x4, x8, x16)	PCIe 2.0 (x1, x2, x4, x8, x16)
Shader Processors	40	320
AVIVO Display Engine	Yes	Yes
Full 30-bit Display Pipeline	Yes	Yes
DirectX	10	10.1
Shader Model	3.0	4.0
OpenGL	2.0	3.x
Motion Video Decode	H.264, VC-1	H.264, VC-1, MPEG-2
Internal Thermal Sensor	Yes	Yes
Memory Frequency	700MHz	700MHz
Memory Type	GDDR3	GDDR3
Memory Size	128MB	512MB
Memory Interface	64-bit	128-bit
Analog RGB Triple 10-bit DAC, 400MHz	2	2
Analog TV YPbPr, Composite, S-Video	1	1
DVI-Single Link	2	2
DVI-Dual Link	1	2
DisplayPort (v1.1a)	–	2
HDMI	1	1
Integrated HD Audio (Azalia)	1	1
HDCP Keys	1	2
LVDS – Single or Dual Link 18 or 24 bpp	1	2
DVO (12-bit DDR or 24-bit SDR/DDR)	1	1
OS Support	Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7 Linux (x86)	Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7 Linux (x86)

See AMD’s press release and the Radeon E4690 Discrete GPU data sheet (PDF, 795KB).

Rick’s Opinion

Last week, there was a similar release from Nvidia relating to their ION platform, though theirs came in a new Lenovo 12-inch IdeaPad S12 notebook. The reports were a 5x improvement over traditional integrated graphics solutions, and the ability to drive external monitors up to 2560×1600 on HDMI.

Nvidia’s ION platform did not show DirectX 10.1 support or OpenGL 3.0, but only DirectX 10. AMD may have the leg up there, though there are no relative performance charts given to put the 3x performance increase over previous generations into a modern, relative context. In addition, Nvidia’s solution only provided support for a single monitor. This new E4690 provides support for two monitors.