AMD A8-3850 APU review

[deejayy_214]

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a, mao ba? coz i got confused when you said "combination sa processor built-in graphics ug igp sa mobo"...

[Sempron Guy]

From Anandtech.com

Ever since the arrival of Conroe back in 2006, we've only really recommended AMD for its (sometimes incredible) value. Recommending AMD for those looking for absolute performance pretty much ended when the Pentium 4 retired.

AMD is looking to change that with the arrival of its first Fusion APUs. These APUs marry one or more AMD x86 cores with dozens if not hundreds of Radeon "cores" on a single die. While today the APU is little more than a cohabitation of these two computing architectures, the end goal is something far more integrated.



[QUOTE]Llano is AMD's second Fusion APU, the first being Zacate which we met earlier this year. Llano shouldn't be all that unfamiliar to you either, the notebook version of the APU launched just two weeks ago. Our conclusions were as you'd expect: sub-par x86 performance but competitive battery life and great gaming performance for a value notebook. If gaming is going to be the most intensive thing you do on your notebook, you may find yourself wanting one based on a Llano APU.

Now it's time to look at Llano on the desktop. We previewed the desktop Llano alongside the mobile version but today we're back with much more detail. This article will focus on the basics: CPU performance, GPU performance and the associated details. Ian has a final review of one of the first desktop Llano motherboards - the ASRock A75 Extreme6 as well as a look at overclocking the new desktop APU. Finally Ganesh's article takes an in-depth look at how Llano works as an HTPC platform.

The Direct Competitor: Intel's Core i3-2105

When Intel launched Sandy Bridge the only way you could get the faster integrated graphics option (Intel HD 3000) on the desktop was to buy one of the more expensive K-series chips. The logic didn't make a ton of sense given that lower priced systems are usually the ones that depend on integrated graphics. In the weeks before Llano's arrival however, we met a new member of the Sandy Bridge family - the Core i3-2105.

CPU Performance

For the full breakdown of x86 CPU performance head over to Bench and compare away. As I mentioned in our preview of the A8-3850 a couple of weeks ago, general purpose performance isn't that great. Although AMD has tweaked the A8's cores, the 2.9GHz 3850 performs a lot like a 3.1GHz Athlon II X4. You are getting more performance at a lower clock frequency, but not a lot more.

Compared to the Core i3-2100/2105 the A8-3850 really doesn't change the current state of AMD vs. Intel. If you're running lightly threaded apps, the Core i3 just has much better performance. Look at our single-threaded Cinebench scores below and you'll see a 50% performance advantage.















Llano GPU Performance vs. DDR3 Speed



GPU Performance















Asymmetric CrossFire embedded GPU + selected dedicated graphics

Asymmetric CrossFire is supported by desktop Llano APUs. You can combine your A6 or A8 with a Radeon HD 6450, 6570 or 6670 and have both GPUs work in tandem. There are some limitations as we found - mainly asymmetric CF only works in DX10 or DX11 games. While DirectX 9 titles will still function, performance will be suboptimal as you'll soon see.













Power Consumption

Both the A8-3850 and Intel's Core i3-2105 are built on a 32nm process and both feature extensive power and clock gating. By virtue of having lower power cores the A8 manages to beat the Core i3 in idle power consumption. Under CPU load however the A8-3850 does consume more power as it simply has more cores that can be loaded up. We also see higher power consumption in 3D gaming, but we do get much higher performance and as a result much better performance per watt.

Final Words

If you're building an entry level gaming PC and have to rely solely on integrated graphics, it's clear that Llano is the only solution on the market today. You easily get 2x the frame rates of Intel's Core i3-2105 and can use that extra headroom to increase resolution, quality or sometimes both. The performance advantage is just one aspect of what Llano offers in this department. You do also get better overall game compatibility, DX11 and GPU compute support although the latter is still missing that killer app. AMD's dual-graphics (asymmetric CrossFire) is an interesting solution to the argument that you could just buy a cheaper AMD CPU and a low end discrete GPU and get better performance. For example, you could get better performance if you bought a Radeon HD 6570 and an Athlon II X4 640 for $175 vs. a A8-3850 for $135. With dual-graphics in play you could add a discrete GPU to the A8-3850 and have better overall performance (in theory) than the discrete card by itself. In practice, limiting dual-graphics to only DX10/11 titles does hurt some of its potential. In my opinion the better solution here would be more aggressive pricing on the Llano APUs. The Athlon II X4 + Radeon HD 6570 is a better buy (unless you want the power savings of the A, the only way to truly combat that is for the A8-3850 to drop in price.

If gaming isn't something you're going to be doing then you're better off with Sandy Bridge. And at that point there's no need to spring for the Core i3-2105, the standard 2100 will do just fine.

further details AnandTech - The AMD A8-3850 Review: Llano on the Desktop

[gaspar_73]

Another great mainstream alternative from AMD.

[libido]

this is a good option sa mga mid range enthusiast diri...kay paresan nimo ug good gpu..aw payts na kaau..pwde na mo compete sa mga mid range pc's nga dako2 sila ug gasto..hehehehe

[Sempron Guy]

Pwede pero what's the point of getting an apu if magpalit ra man diay ug dedicated vc. Its like your paying for the feature which comprises almost 50% of the APU and di man diay nimo gamiton. If li nimo kailangan ang graphic capability sa Llano then you'll get more value and performance, going for an entry level AM3 motherboard, an athlon II X4 and a mainstream HD6670 or GTS 450.

[gaspar_73]

this is a good option sa mga mid range enthusiast diri...kay paresan nimo ug good gpu..aw payts na kaau..pwde na mo compete sa mga mid range pc's nga dako2 sila ug gasto..hehehehe

this is aimed for those who doesn't need too much gpu power.Online gamers and HTPC systems are a good example.

[libido]

that is what i mean..mid range ra...kay of course obyos ra kaau kung into gaming ka..natural palit nalang ko adtong mas kayahon sa mga high settings nga set-up kay sa mag mantinir ka sa medium settings ra...hehehehe...

[cYbOrG]

very sorry for the OT, but please can someone share where to buy this stuff in Cebu? order basis or on shelf..? or worst, when to expect it? and probably how much? **my quadcore + radeon is failing, and i realized i'm not into so much gaming anymore**

thanks!

[Sempron Guy]

Pang mainstream man ang APU dili pang midrange. Midrange performance capability naa na sa GTS 450-HD5770 nga range.

[deejayy_214]

very sorry for the OT, but please can someone share where to buy this stuff in Cebu? order basis or on shelf..? or worst, when to expect it? and probably how much? **my quadcore + radeon is failing, and i realized i'm not into so much gaming anymore**

thanks!

wala pa namaligya ani boss... ETA prolly be 2nd week of July to 2nd week of August, not sure though...