— Next-generation graphics cards unleash the power of DirectX® 10 for immersive high-definition gaming, and offer exclusive HD multimedia features such as HDMI for high-fidelity audio and video, all at unbelievable prices —
Sunnyvale, Calif. -- May 14, 2007 --AMD (NYSE: AMD) today introduced the ATI Radeon HD™ 2000 series, a top-to-bottom line of ten discrete graphics processors (GPUs) for both desktop and mobile platforms. This family of GPUs delivers The Ultimate Visual Experience™ through best-in-class immersive high-definition gaming and high-definition multimedia playback.
“We set out to create a family of products that would revolutionize the graphics market by introducing leading-edge technology at game-changing price points,” said Rick Bergman, senior vice president, AMD Graphics Products Group. “We’ve delivered on this challenge, broadening the enthusiast gaming market so that more people than ever before have access to the phenomenal gaming and multimedia experiences that the ATI Radeon HD 2000 series introduces.”
Superior Performance at Every Price
The ATI Radeon HD 2000 series of products introduces immersive DirectX® 10 gaming enabling the next generation of visual effects at every price point. The line-up boasts many firsts for the graphics industry, including a powerful second-generation Unified Shader Architecture (USA), a 512 Mbit memory bus designed for full performance high dynamic range (HDR) rendering, and new Unified Video Decoder (UVD) technology for high-fidelity HD multimedia playback.1 The mid-range and entry-level GPUs are the first graphics products in the industry to use an energy-efficient 65 nm process technology to achieve silent, passive cooling, high performance and lower power consumption.2 The ATI Radeon HD 2000 series also builds on AMD’s Windows Vista™ leadership. Having been the first graphics company to introduce a WHQL driver for Windows Vista, ATI Catalyst™ drivers continue to deliver industry-leading game compatibility and an extremely stable user experience in Windows Vista™.
“This new family of GPUs from AMD delivers an immersive gaming experience for the next generation of games and applications for Windows Vista™ and DirectX® 10,” said Kevin Unangst, Global Director Games for Windows, Microsoft Corp. “Cutting-edge DirectX® 10 games combined with the ATI Radeon HD 2000 series of products are ushering in a new era of gaming on Windows.”
Immersive HD Gaming
The ATI Radeon HD 2000 series was designed to deliver compelling gameplay experiences never seen before in DirectX 10 games. The ATI Radeon HD 2000 series brings gamers astounding frame rates at all resolutions, advanced visual effects, and breathtaking realism for what AMD calls immersive HD gaming. The new cards were optimized for dynamic geometry acceleration, complex pixel processing and expanded non-graphical compute capabilities for more advanced characters and animation, more detailed environments, and more realistic real-world physics simulations. For gamers wanting even more horsepower, The ATI Radeon HD 2000 series also features native ATI CrossFire™ technology, opening the door for a wide variety of multi-GPU configurations and eliminating the need for any master cards.
“ATI Radeon HD 2000 graphics cards provide us with more than incremental speed increases,” said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve®. “Through the ATI Radeon HD 2000’s performance and unified shader model we are able to create characters in real time that reach beyond anything seen in any game, and rival the characters seen in animated feature films. Gamers will be able to experience these advances later this year when Half Life® 2: Episode Two, Team Fortress® 2 and Portal™ will be made available through Steam to those who purchase a new ATI Radeon™ HD 2900 XT.”
The Ultimate Visual Experience™ for HD Multimedia
In addition to gaming, the ATI Radeon™ HD 2000 series from AMD delivers the ultimate high-definition multimedia experience on the PC with improved visual fidelity afforded by ATI Avivo™ HD technology. Innovative UVD technology handles HD multimedia with ease, allowing consumers to watch the latest HD DVD and Blu-ray™ discs with incredibly fine image quality and smooth playback, all while consuming less power. With the energy efficiency of UVD technology combined with a 65nm process, the ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 2000 series allows notebook users to view an entire HD DVD or Blu-ray™ disc on a single battery.3
Unique in the industry, the ATI Radeon HD 2000 series are the only discrete graphics products that offer a new simplified video and sound solution through HDMI, making it easy to switch between watching content on a high definition television and working at a monitor as only a single cable is needed for both video and audio.4
“The ATI Radeon HD family of mobile processors satisfies the market’s demand for both desktop-class processing performance and smooth multimedia performance on the go,” said Manuel Linnig, Customer Marketing Division, Toshiba Europe GmbH. “With great stability and performance in Windows Vista™, tremendous power management technology and leading gaming capabilities, these graphics processors will be exciting additions to Toshiba’s next-generation PCs.”
ATI Radeon HD 2000 Series Desktop Line-Up
Available immediately, the ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT is expected to be priced at an incredible USD $399 (SEP) including Team Fortress 2, Portal, and Half-Life 2: Episode Two from Valve.5 This price enables more consumers than ever to enjoy the best in discrete graphics.
Rounding out the family are the ATI Radeon™ HD 2600 and ATI Radeon™ HD 2400 series, bringing feature-rich DirectX 10 gaming and smooth multimedia playback to customers looking for entry-level and mid-range graphics options. The ATI Radeon HD 2600 and ATI Radeon HD 2400 cards is scheduled to ship in late June with pricing to be announced.
Numerous add-in-board partners including Asus, Club3D, Diamond Multimedia, GeCube, Gigabyte, HIS, MSI, Palit, PowerColor, Sapphire and VisionTek will offer ATI Radeon HD 2000 series graphics cards. System integrators worldwide, including Falcon Northwest, Maingear, Vadim, and Velocity Micro, will also be supporting the ATI Radeon HD 2000 series bringing gaming platforms to market.
ATI Mobility™ Radeon HD 2000 Series Mobile Line-Up
For unparalleled graphics performance on the go, the ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 2600 series combines the ultimate DirectX® 10 gaming experiences with the graphics performance gamers demand in a high-end mobile system. Thin and light notebooks featuring ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2400 series can multitask with ease using the new Windows Aero™ interface, run the hottest upcoming DirectX® 10 games or play exciting new HD DVD and Blu-Ray™ discs. Those in the market for a value notebook will enjoy great performance in Windows Vista™ and astonishing multimedia using the ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 2300. ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2000 products feature ATI Avivo™ HD technology and UVD to deliver outstanding HD DVD™ and Blu-ray™ disc playback, and ATI PowerPlay™ 7.0 power management for long battery life and optimized performance-per-watt operation.6
Notebooks from OEM partners including Acer, ASUS, Fujitsu, Fujitsu-Siemens Computers, Gateway, HP, LG, Packard Bell, Samsung, and Toshiba, and ODM whitebook partners including Arima, ASUS, ECS, First International Computer Inc., and MSI, will be available beginning in May.
ATI Radeon™ HD 2000 Series Partner Quotes
ASUS
“The ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series family brings performance leading DirectX® 10 graphics to both the enthusiast and casual gamer,” said Ken Chien, AVP, ASUS. “The new family of AMD graphics cards along with unique features added by ASUS, we are delivering quality, speed and value to our customers.”
ABS
With industry advancing image quality that gamers have been anticipating from the launch of the ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series, said Albert Wang, business unit manager, ABS. “AMD continues to deliver on the reputation of providing today’s consumers with an incredible and dynamic entertainment experience.”
Ajump
“At Ajump we remain committed to introducing innovative systems that our enthusiasts demand,” said Patrick Barry, E-Commerce Director, Ajump. “The ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series provides leading edge technology that will enable new game play experiences and stunning realism never seen before—it’s what every gamer has been waiting for.”
ECS
“At ECS we look to pack all our notebooks with the most power and features to deliver a desktop-like experience for the mobile market,” said David Chen, GM of Mobile Product Business Unit, ECS. “The ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 2000 series makes it easy to deliver on this goal with the best in DirectX® 10 gaming, energy efficient 65 nm processing for longer battery life and incredible multimedia playback through ATI Avivo™ HD and UVD technology.”
Falcon
“The ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series is what gamers have been waiting for,” said Kelt Reeves, president, Falcon Northwest. “With fast, stable drivers in both single card and CrossFire™ modes, enthusiasts will get every ounce of speed out of them in both Windows XP and Windows Vista on day one.”
First International Computers (FIC)
“With more professionals moving to notebook computers, the FIC PTT40 Notebook system with the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2000 series features all the essentials needed to finish important projects on the go including incredibly stable performance on Windows Vista and fluid multitasking with the Windows Aero™ interface,” said John C. Villejo, senior vice president, sales division, FIC.
Fujitsu Siemens Computers
“The new ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 2000 series offers efficient use of power and speed for multitasking and multimedia our innovative AMILO Pi 2530 notebook”, said Herbert Schönebeck, SVP Business Unit Consumers, Fujitsu Siemens Computers. “With ATI Avivo™ HD technology and the introduction of UVD, our notebook users can take the HDTV experience from the living room to the road.”
Info-Tek (GeCube)
“The ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series of graphics processors is bringing the ultimate in HD entertainment to the PC,” said Larry Yeo, vice president, GeCube. “With near silent cooling, our customers can enjoy amazing HD video and audio on the PC with the amazing visual quality AMD is known for.”
MSI
“Together, the ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series and MSI are bringing the ultimate HD experience for multimedia and gaming PCs,” said Larry Wu, vice president, MSI. “This combined with industry-leading game compatibility and image quality make the RX2900XT-VT2D512E a must have card for any tech enthusiast.”
Maingear
“Through a joint effort, AMD and Maingear are delivering a truly immersive DirectX® 10 gaming experience for a wide cross section of gamers,” said Wallace Santos, president, Maingear. “The family of cards as well as the additions by Maingear, bring out the ultimate experience in HD entertainment to the PC.”
Packard Bell
“Design is the pillar of our notebook range and performance is a key element of our overall design. The new ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 2000 series features ATI PowerPlay™ 7 technology and 65 nm manufacturing process to keep our customers powered when travelling, whether for pleasure or when using productivity applications.” said Louis Perrin, Mobile Products Marketing Director, Packard Bell. “In addition, the ATI Radeon graphics core features ATI Avivo™ HD technology providing crystal-clear graphics with enhanced video definition that will satisfy any multimedia aficionado.”
Palit
“The ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series delivers an immersive DirectX® 10 gaming experience for both the enthusiast gamer and an unmatched visual experience for the casual gamer,” said Michael Kao, marketing director, Palit. “Combined with support for ATI UVD for the mainstream multimedia enthusiast, the new AMD graphics family ensures our customers experience the smoothest video playback and vivid HD content.”
Sapphire
“Targeting the enthusiast with near-silent cooling and second generation unified shader architecture, Sapphire and AMD are delivering new levels of visual quality for breathtaking HD content and the ultimate PC gaming experience,” said Adrian Thompson, vice president, marketing, SAPPHIRE Technology.
TUL (PowerColor)
“With robust hardware offerings including DirectX® 10 and OpenGL acceleration and CrossFire™ support, the new ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series is an exciting and welcome addition to our roster of graphics cards powered by AMD,” said Ted Chen, CEO, TUL.
Vadim
“Finally it’s here and brimming with more untapped power than anyone had dared to hope. Full of potential,’ said Vadim Chobanu, managing director, Vadim, “We can't wait to get this powerhouse water-cooled and performance tuned! Definitely worth the wait!”
Velocity Micro
“Velocity Micro is excited to partner with AMD to offer the ATI RadeonTM HD 2000 series of DirectX® 10 cards, opening a new world of immersive HD gaming to customers at all price points,” said Randy Copeland, president & CEO of Velocity Micro. “This family of graphics cards delivers superior performance and incredible value for an unmatched gaming experience.”
About AMD
Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD) is a leading global provider of innovative processing solutions in the computing, graphics and consumer electronics markets. AMD is dedicated to driving open innovation, choice and industry growth by delivering superior customer-centric solutions that empower consumers and businesses worldwide. For more information, visit
www.amd.com.
