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S3 Graphics Enters Embedded Market |
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Written by Stew
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Wednesday, 16 April 2008 |
 S3 Graphics today announced a GPU designed specifically for the embedded market. Believing that the latest Chrome 400 Series GPU architecture has what it takes to take the embedded market by storm, S3 Graphics came up with the 4300E, a chip that takes the graphics and video performance of the Chrome 400 Series to even lower power and heat points, making it perfect for media-intensive embedded systems.
Most of todays embedded computer systems, devices like ATMs, ticket machines, electronic advertising boards, and a million other machines that fill our everyday lives, require extreme power-efficiency, not least because they are to required to function 24/7, but because it also guarantees system stability. But what about systems that play video or need cool looking graphics? Can we have 1080p on an embedded system?
Today's media has improved a great deal and as we enter the HD age (are there HD toasters ovens yet?) more and more computing power is needed to simply play a video, which in turn implies better graphics hardware and more sophisticated video engines. This is where the GPU is king.
 The embedded industry as a whole is beginning to realize that certain applications, for example casino gaming and digital signage, are starting to need a dedicated GPU that can handle such tasks. There was only one problem. Dedicated graphics chips typically use upwards from 14 watts and usually require active cooling systems. This is simply unacceptable. Some embedded systems use 10-15 watts total. No way are you going to double the power consumption of your system to accommodate 1080p visuals.
This is where S3 has seen an opportunity to shine. The 4300E uses up to 30% less power than competitor systems to deliver DirectX 10.1 graphics and real Hi-Def video making it well within the limitations of embedded system design.
Here's to 1080p on shopping mall billboards.
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