Posted 07/10/09 at 08:00:38 AM by Paul Lilly

On the outside, it would be easy to mistake the F88 clamshell netbook with Asus' Eee PC 1002HA, but appearance is about all the two have in common. Unlike the 1002HA, the F88 packs a VIA Nano processor (1.6GHz, 800MHz frontside bus) with S3's Chrome graphics and boasts 1080P playback on its 10.1-inch LED display.

Further distancing itself from the netbook-norm, the F88 comes configurable with up to 4GB of DDR2-667 memory and up to 500GB of hard drive storage. Not bad for a market used to seeing 1GB of memory and 160GB hard drives.

Other specs include WiFi, Bluetooth, a 1.3MP webcam, HD audio, multi-card reader, three USB ports, HDMI output, and a 6-cell battery.

There's a good chance the F88 will appear in rebadged form, though in the meantime, no word on price or availability.

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Posted 05/19/09 at 10:30:00 AM by Paul Lilly

Try to imagine where 3D gaming would be today if not for the graphics processing unit, or GPU. Without it, you wouldn't be tredging through the jungles of Crysis in all its visual splendor, nor would you be fending off endless hordes of fast-moving zombies at high resolutions. For that to happen, it takes a highly specialized chip designed for parallel processing to pull off the kinds of games you see today, the same ones that wouldn't be possible on a CPU alone. Going forward, GPU makers will try to extend the reliance on videocards to also include physics processing, video encoding/decoding, and other tasks that where once handled by the CPU.

It's pretty amazing when you think about how far graphics technology has come. To help you do that, we're going to take a look back at every major GPU release since the infancy of 3D graphics. Join us as we travel back in time and relive releases like 3dfx's Voodoo3 and S3's ViRGE lineup. This is one nostalgiac ride you don't want to miss!

It all starts after the jump!

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Posted 11/21/08 at 01:30:02 PM by Paul Lilly

S3 Graphics, a subsidiary of VIA and a player in the low end graphics market, has launched its next generation Chrome 500 series. S3 claims its new add-in cards offer up to a 30 percent performance increase while supporting Blu-ray playback, streaming HD video, DirectX 10.1 and OpenGL 3.0 on both Windows and Linux operating systems.

"S3 Graphics has built upon the success of the Chrome 400 Series with another GPU line that fulfills user demand of a superior visual experience and product that extends beyond just graphics," said Dr. Ken Weng, GM for S3 Graphics. "Our latest Chrome 500 supports features that surpass those found in higher end products, like high quality HD video support. This truly is a power-efficient multimedia / multi-application processor that delivers."

S3's Chrome 530 GT is the first videocad to market from the new Chrome 500 series. The upgraded GPU makes a strong bid for HTPC enthusiasts with support for PiP Blu-ray playback, HDCP capable DVI-I and HDMI ports, and a low power draw rated at just 25W.

The Chrome 530 GT is available now direct from S3 Graphics for $45 and comes bundled with InterVideo WinDVD 8.

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Posted 09/26/08 at 09:40:35 AM by Paul Lilly

S3 Graphics, now a joint venture with VIA Technologies, will look to capitalize on the mini-notebook frenzy with a triple play of low wattage videocards under its Chrome 400 Ultra Low Power (ULP) mobile GPU series. The Chrome 430 ULP, 435 ULP, and 440 ULP all support DirectX 10.1, potentially making them competitive alternatives to ATI's line of GPUs. The company's ChromotionHD technology also comes as part of the package, allowing for high definition playback without stressing the CPU. S3 also says its new GPUs will process sophisticated algorithms and power control mechanisms to extend battery life.

On the lowest end, the 430 ULP sips less than 7 watts. While specifics weren't given for the two higher models, S3 claims the 435 ULP and 440 ULP will outperform competitor products by over 40 and 60 percent respectively.

S3 says its mobile graphics are available now, but didn't mention any notebook OEM customers other than Fujitsu.

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