AMD enhances Vista with integrated 690 chipset

AMD has introduced the 690 series chipset, integrating an ATI Radeon X1250 graphics chip with more than enough grunt to attain certification for the Windows Vista Premium ‘Aero’ experience – but is it enough to challenge Intel?

Struggling to regain the ascendancy AMD once enjoyed in the performance stakes pre-Intel’s Core 2 Duo revolution, which once again thrust Intel firmly into the lead both in performance and sales figures, AMD purchased graphics card maker ATI last year. Why?

To be able to tap into ATI’s vast graphics knowledge and experience to create better AMD products to take the fight back to Intel, especially in the area of integrated chipsets. They are important because they allow AMD to sell a solution, rather than having to cobble together their processors with other companies’ graphics chips.

That’s where the AMD 690 chipset comes in. Using the ATI Radeon X1250 graphic chip, it works with Vista Premium (for great Aero, Flip 3D and Vista eye-candy), has a DVI output (as well as regular VGA) letting you connect it digitally (and easily) to flat panel widescreen TVs, supports HDMI if you want to use that instead, and offers HDCP (high definition content protection) output so you can play protected content on your screen at the high resolution it was intended to display in.