APU comes out on top
AMD has posted a rather interesting Youtube clip comparing its upcoming Llano APU to an Intel Sandy Bridge processor.
The test pitted a Llano-based laptop against an Intel Core i7-2630QM rig in a couple of real life tests and, obviously, AMD came out on top. AMD ran some 3D and office apps side by side, proving that Llano could easily outperform Sandy Bridge in Final Fantasy, with not stuttering or dropped frames.
AMD’s power consumption figures were also better, staying under 48W, while Intel jumped back and forth between 45W and 55W. In a spreadsheet test, and the game running in the background, both processor were equally matched, but when the testers piled on some video and post processing, Llano pulled ahead. In addition, power consumption was still under 48W for the AMD, while Sandy went over 70W. AMD then launched a 3D modeling application, only to see Sandy Bridge struggle to cope, while Llano managed to deal with all four workloads.
The test rigs were closely matched in terms of hardware. The AMD testbed was based on an A8-3510MX APU with HD 6620M graphics and the A70M Fusion Controller Hub (FCH). Intel sported a 2GHz Core i7-2630QM, HD 3000 graphics and H67 chipset. Both machines had 4GB of DDR3 and the exact same 128GB SSD.
AMD’s Llano clearly has a lot to offer, although it probably won’t need to deal with such heavy workloads in real life and Intel will still dominate the high-end. However, Llano could easily hit the sweet spot and score plenty of design wins in the much broader mainstream market. In addition, Llano is expected to end up somewhat cheaper than comparable Intel Sandy Bridge processors and AMD might have a pretty good chance of unsettling Intel in the mid range mobile market.
Bring on the competition i say 
