ATi RADEON XPRESS 200 Series: AMD Platform Chipsets
IGP Capabilities
The RADEON XPRESS 200 has one of the most powerful on-board graphics processors released to date. The integrated graphics core is basically the same as ATi's Radeon X300 series of PCI Express GPUs, minus a couple of pixel pipelines. The Radeon X300 isn't exactly a high-end GPU, like ATi's flagship X800 for example, but it is a fully capable DirectX 9.0 class GPU with two parallel rendering pipelines and PS 2.0 compatibility...
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| Graphics Capabilities: •_Two parallel 3D rendering pixel pipelines •_PCI Express x16 lane native support •_64-bit or 128-bit memory interface •_Full DirectX 9 support SMARTSHADER 2.0 •_SMARTSHADER defines the level of realism in latest 2D/3D games and applications •_Complete hardware-accelerated Microsoft DirectX 9.0 programmable pixel shader support •_Full hardware support for OpenGL SMOOTHVISION 2.1 •_SMOOTHVISION improves image quality by smoothing jagged edges, improving blurriness and refining background details during on-screen motion and at lower resolutions. •_SMOOTHVISION settings are user configurable in ATI CATALYST Control Panel: 2x/4x/6x Anti-Aliasing modes Sparse multi-sample algorithm with gamma correction, programmable sample patterns, and centroid sampling Lossless Color Compression (up to6:1)at all resolutions Temporal Anti-Aliasing •_2x/4x/8x/16x Anisotropic Filtering modes Up to 128-tap texture filtering Adaptive algorithm with bilinear (performance) and trilinear (quality) options |
HYPER Z III •_HYPER Z ensures optimal hardware performance by discarding irrelevant object data that is not visible to end-user on their display. •_Leverages key features from ATI's third generation HYPER Z III technology that conserves video memory bandwidth for improved performance in demanding 2D/3D games and applications. •_Lossless Z-Buffer Compression (up to 48:1) •_Fast Z-Buffer Clear •_Z Cache optimized for real-time shadow rendering VIDEOSHADER •_Seamless integration of pixel shaders with video in real time •_FULLSTREAM video de-blocking technology for Real, DivX, and WMV9 formats •_VIDEOSOAP noise removal filtering for captured video •_MPEG1/2/4 decode and encode acceleration •_DXVA Support •_Hardware Motion Compensation, iDCT, DCT and color space conversion •_All-format DTV/HDTV decoding •_Adaptive Per-Pixel De-Interlacing and Frame Rate Conversion (temporal filtering) Additional Features •_Dual integrated display controllers •_Dual integrated 10 bit per channel 400 MHz DACs •_Integrated 165 MHz TMDS transmitter (DVI 1.0 / HDMI compliant and HDCP ready) Integrated TV Output support up to 1024x768 resolution Windows Logo Program compliant ATI CATALYST Software Suite |
ATi RADEON XPRESS 200 Competing DirectX 9.0 IGP
The RADEON XPRESS 200's fully DX9 compliant integrated graphics processor allows it to properly render all DirectX 9.0 content, unlike competing integrated solutions. The screenshots above (provided by ATi) were taken with Futuremark's recently released 3DMark05. The image on the left was rendered with the ATi RADEON XPRESS 200, the one on the right with a "competing product". The difference in image quality is obvious, with the RADEON XPRESS 200 rendering the image as it was meant to be rendered. The RADEON XPRESS 200 won't be breaking any benchmark records, but what it does do is allow anyone with a motherboard powered by this chipset to run just about any DX9 class game without sacrificing image quality. The resolution and effect may have to be toned down, but users won't have to settle for DX7 or DX8 rendering.
Another plus for the RADEON XPRESS 200 IGP is that it uses the very same Catalyst drivers as ATi's discreet add-in video cards. Over the past few years, the Catalyst driver suite has matured nicely and proven to be quite stable and feature-rich, something that can't be said for competing IGP drivers.
