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Nvidia Ion

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Nvidia Ion
ManufacturerNvidia

Nvidia Ion is a system/motherboard platform that includes Nvidia's GeForce 9400M (MCP79) chipset, DDR3-1066 or DDR2-800 SDRAM, and the Intel Atom processor. The original reference platform was based on a Pico-ITXe motherboard designed for netbook and nettop devices. In February 2009, Microsoft certified the Ion-based platform as Vista-capable.[1] The small form factor Ion-based computers were released in the early summer of 2009, with the recommended retail price starting at $299.99. Ion systems are DirectX 10.0 and OpenGL 3.2 capable. This allows playback of full 1080p high-definition video with true-fidelity 7.1 surround sound audio output with VDPAU or the Third Generation PureVideo HD feature.[2] Ion systems can also use CUDA (Nvidia's General-Purpose Computing on Graphics Processing Units technology),[3] as well as OpenCL.

It was originally believed to be unlikely that Ion systems would ever enter into mass production and were thus unlikely to pose a serious rival to Intel's own chipsets for the Atom platform, due to Intel's unwillingness to supply Atom processors separate from the 945GSE and 945GC chipsets with which the CPUs are usually supplied.[4] While manufacturers could still buy an Atom-plus-chipset package and remove the CPU for use on a Ion board, it hardly seems likely given the costs involved, especially given the low-cost leanings of the nettop and netbook market.[5] However, Intel later denied those claims, and a spokesperson for Intel said Intel sells Atom as a stand-alone processor.[6]

NVIDIA has announced that it will also release the Ion platform for the VIA Nano processor some time in Q4 2009.[7]

For full-sized laptops, the Ion platform promises 5x faster graphics and video transcoding with an 80% lower CPU cost when compared to the Intel GM45 graphics. For netbooks and nettops 10x faster graphics and video transcoding when compared to the Intel 945GSE graphics. For all-in-ones, the Ion platform is capable of displaying resolutions up to 2560 × 1600.[8]

Acer have announced the release of their Aspire Revo which is the first[citation needed] model available for retail purchase to be built on the Ion platform.

ZOTAC International has launched four NVIDIA Ion based motherboards in Mini-ITX form factor. An Ion system based on their IONITX A-U dual-core Atom 330 motherboard draws 30 watts total from the AC line cord, including hard disk and DVD drives, while playing and upscaling a DVD.[9]

Specifications

Zotac ION
Rear conn of Zotac ION
  • Memory Interface: DDR3-1066 or DDR2-800
  • Graphics Cores: 16
  • Core/Shader Clocks: 450/1100 MHz
  • Texture Fill Rate: 3.6 Billion/second
  • Maximum Anti-Aliasing (AA) Sample Rate: 16x
  • RAMDACs: 300 MHz
  • Maximum High-Dynamic Range (HDR) Precision: 128-bit
  • Maximum Analog Resolution: 2048 x 1536
  • Maximum Digital Resolution: 2560 x 1600
  • Graphics APIs: DirectX 10.0, OpenGL 3.2
  • Full HD decode (1080i/p): Yes, with NVIDIA PureVideo or VDPAU
  • Display Options: HDMI, Dual-link DVI, DP, or VGA (any 2)
  • PCI-Express 2.0: 20 lanes (1×16 and 4×1)
  • SATA Drives: 6
  • SATA Speed: 3 Gb/s
  • RAID: 0, 1
  • Networking: BASE-10/100/1000
  • USB Ports: 12/2C
  • PCI Slots: 5
  • Audio: HDA (Azalia)

Existing products

This list is incomplete.

Motherboards

  • ASUS AT3N7A-I motherboard (Intel Atom 330 CPU)
  • Point of View POV/ION230 motherboard (Intel Atom 230 CPU)
  • Point of View POV/ION330 motherboard (Intel Atom 330 CPU)
  • Jetway NC63-230 ITX board (Intel Atom 230 CPU, 20-pin ATX power connector)
  • Jetway NC63-330 ITX board (Intel Atom 330 CPU, 20-pin ATX power connector)
  • Jetway NC63P-230 ITX board (Intel Atom 230 CPU, 12V DC Power Onboard)
  • Jetway NC63P-330 ITX board (Intel Atom 330 CPU, 12V DC Power Onboard)
  • ZOTAC IONITX A-U motherboard (Intel Atom 330 CPU, DC power connector, Wireless PCIe module installed)
  • ZOTAC IONITX B-E motherboard (Intel Atom 230 CPU, 20-pin power connector)
  • ZOTAC IONITX C-U motherboard (Intel Atom 230 CPU, DC power connector)
  • ZOTAC IONITX D-E motherboard (Intel Atom 330 CPU, 20-pin power connector, Wireless PCIe module installed)
  • ZOTAC IONITX F-E motherboard (Intel Atom 330 CPU, 20-pin power connector, Wireless PCIe module installed, PCI Express x16 slot)
  • ZOTAC IONITX G-E motherboard (Intel Atom 330 CPU, 20-pin power connector, PCI Express x1 slot, mini-PCIe x1 slot)

Desktop systems

  • Aleutia H1 Hotel PC (with the above ZOTAC IONITX A-U), fanless in the single core version.[10]
  • Acer AspireRevo Nettop Media Server w/Remote
  • ASUS Eee Box EB1012
  • ASUS Eee Box EB1501
  • Asrock Ion 330 series[11]
  • Asrock Ion 330HT series w/Remote[12]
  • Asrock Ion 330Pro
  • Orbit Micro Helix A5W Fanless IP water-proof dust-proof Nvidia ION system[13]
  • Orbit Micro Helix A58 Sleek NVIDIA ION/N330 desktop system[14]
  • ZaReason Ion Breeze[15]
  • Viewsonic VOT132 [16]

Netbook systems

References

  1. ^ http://www.osnews.com/comments/20968
  2. ^ Computerbase.de: Test: Zotac IONITX-A (Nvidia Ion), page 2: "Im Videobereich verlässt sich Nvidia beim Ion auf PureVideo HD der dritten Generation [...]"
  3. ^ http://www.nvidia.com/object/sff_ion.html
  4. ^ http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20081223PD216.html
  5. ^ http://www.bit-tech.net/news/2008/12/26/intel-says-no-to-nvidia-s-ion/1
  6. ^ http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3793391/Intel%20Denies%20Squeezing%20nVidia%20Out%20From%20Atom.htm
  7. ^ http://www.engadget.com/2009/02/20/nivida-ion-platform-to-support-via-nano-processors-this-year/
  8. ^ http://www.nvidia.com/object/sff_ion.html
  9. ^ http://www.flickr.com/photos/11292615@N02/3714919608/in/set-72157621353465380/
  10. ^ http://www.aleutia.com/products/h1
  11. ^ http://www.asrock.com/nettop/overview.asp?Model=ION%20330
  12. ^ http://www.asrock.com/nettop/overview.asp?Model=ION%20330HT-BD
  13. ^ http://www.orbitmicro.com/global/build.php?products_id=11433
  14. ^ http://www.orbitmicro.com/global/build.php?products_id=11431
  15. ^ http://www.zareason.com/shop/product.php?productid=16205&cat=0&page=1
  16. ^ http://www.viewsonic.com/products/vot132.htm
  17. ^ http://www.pointofview-online.com/showroom.php?shop_mode=product_detail&product_id=114&site_id=2
  18. ^ http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/24/hps-ion-infused-mini-311-netbook-now-on-sale-starts-at-400/
  19. ^ http://www.netbookchoice.com/2009/10/22/lenovo-ideapad-s12-ion-now-on-sale-in-us/
  20. ^ http://www.notebookcheck.net/Newsentry.153+M54ad54f1b63.0.html
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