AMD puts out embedded Fusion processor for OLPC-class PCs
updated 08:35 am EST, Wed January 19, 2011
AMD Fusion G-series chips may succeed Geode
AMD today expanded its just-started Fusion chips to include its first chip for embedded systems and other low-power environments. The G-series is a spiritual successor to the Geode used in the OLPC XO-1 and is meant for very tight spaces in game consoles, mini PCs, TV media hubs and other areas. The much faster graphics gives a level of visual performance that isn't normally found in a processor that can still run a desktop OS like Linux or Windows.
The chip is similar on the surface to the E-series and clocks up to the same dual-core 1.6GHz peak with 18W of power, although it can scale down to a single-core chip with 9W of power. Either has the same Radeon HD 6250 graphics core with full DirectX 11 (OpenGL 3.2 and up) video and HD video decoding in hardware. At 890mm square (1.38 square inches) even with the hub, it should be much smaller even than current Intel Atom processors.
AMD already has a number of companies lined up to use the G-series from the start, including a tower design from HP as well as systems from Fujitsu, Haier and others. OLPC has already switched to ARM for its future XO-3 tablet, but other mini PCs could adopt the new Fusion chipset.
