AMD has highlighted its next generation of updates – upcoming high-performance compute and graphics solutions.

AMD president and chief executive officer Dr Lisa Su said, “We entered 2016 with a great product line-up and growing momentum for AMD’s technologies. Today’s launch of our 7th Generation A-Series mobile APUs, to be followed closely by new Radeon RX Series GPUs and then our next-generation 'Summit Ridge' desktop processor powered by our 'Zen' core represent key proof points of our strategy to firmly re-establish AMD as a high-performance design leader.”

Key disclosures include:

• Unveiling of the strategy for the upcoming Polaris architecture-based Radeon RX Series graphics cards, which will provide an exciting selection of future-proof gaming technologies and impressively smooth VR entertainment starting at only US$199 set to launch formally on June 29.
• Launch of the new 7th Generation AMD A-Series mobile Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) which show major improvements in performance compared to the previous generation, including double-digit gains in gaming, video rendering, and file compression performance.
• First public demonstration of AMD’s high-performance x86 processor core (codenamed “Zen”), powering a “Summit Ridge” desktop processor that features eight cores and sixteen threads.

AMD Radeon Polaris Architecture

Set to launch formally on 29 June, the Radeon RX Series will deliver the world’s most affordable solution for premium PC VR experiences, including a model that is both HTC Vive-Ready and Oculus Rift compatible. This significant technical achievement will provide VR experiences common to $500 GPUs in graphics cards that are less than half the cost.

The Radeon RX Series will be a disruptive technology that will add rocket fuel to the growth of the VR ecosystem, bringing a relevant and transformational technology to consumers. AMD expects that its aggressive pricing of select models starting at just $199 USD SEP can effectively grow the addressable market for PC VR and accelerate economies of scale in the VR ecosystem.

7th Generation AMD A-Series APUs (iTWire article here)

Notebooks powered by 7th Generation AMD A-Series Processors allow users to work faster and play longer, as up to four cores deliver powerful performance and superior energy efficiency for all-day battery life4. Shipping in volume to OEM customers, the full line of 7th Gen AMD A-Series processors features mobile-optimised “Excavator” x86 CPU cores for high-speed computing plus built-in Radeon™ graphics — with some models offering up to Radeon™ R7 graphics — for smooth eSports gaming and enhanced HD streaming capabilities. The “Bristol Ridge” line-up consists of 35- and 15-watt versions of AMD FX, A12, and A10 processors, while “Stoney Ridge” processors include 15-watt A9, A6 and E2 configurations.

• AMD delivers graphics and compute superiority versus the competition, with up to 53% higher graphics performance and up to 51% higher compute performance when the 7th Generation AMD FX processor is compared to the Intel Core i76.
• “Stoney Ridge” APUs deliver up to 50% faster CPU core performance over the previous generation7 “Carrizo” APUs.
• The new AMD A9 APU, designed to bring the “wow” to entry-level systems, provides up to 27% faster graphics performance than the Intel Pentium-4405U8 and even rivals the Intel i3-6100U with competitive graphics9 and system performance10, with a rated 1.2 GHz faster CPU speed.

'Zen' High-performance x86 Core

AMD debuted the world’s first live public demonstration of its revolutionary x86 “Zen” processor core architecture in the next-generation AM4 desktop processor (codenamed “Summit Ridge”) which features eight cores and sixteen threads. AMD’s “Zen” core is designed to scale across multiple markets including high-performance desktops, servers, notebooks and embedded solutions with first availability planned in our high-performance desktop “Summit Ridge” processor.