3DLabs have announced that they will soon be releasing a PCI-Express version of their top end, WildCat range of cards. The new PCI-Express standard is expected to replace current AGP and PCI interfaces and will provide the graphics board with as much as 16 Gb's/second of bandwidth. Although these numbers may seem astounding they are not figures which can be practically be utilized by todays PC. Professionals however, may be extremely interested in the announcement. Even with that in mind, 3DLabs have still managed to come up with a first and it is almost certain that nVidia and ATI are already preparing their own versions of cards which carry PCI-Express.
3Dlabs, a company that deals mainly in professional visual processing, announced plans to provide Wildcat graphics accelerators that leverage the enhanced capabilities of PCI Express, an emerging industry interconnect standard. By working closely with Intel, 3Dlabs is designing a new generation of Visual Processor Units (VPUs) to complement the improved CPU processing power and interconnect bandwidth that PCI Express delivers, allowing professional users to increase productivity.
Professional graphics performance is enhanced by balanced pipeline design, and PCI Express is enabling us to design VPUs that complement the enhanced system capabilities to raise the bar for workstation productivity, said Neil Trevett, senior vice president of market development for 3Dlabs. We welcome the opportunity to work closely with Intel to ensure that PCI Express graphics and system availability is coordinated to facilitate a smooth industry transition to this exciting new interconnect standard.
The graphics industry is expected to make a rapid transition to PCI Express taking advantage of the technology's increased performance characteristics, said Jim Pappas, director of initiative marketing for Intel's Enterprise Platform Group. We're happy to see 3Dlabs announce their plans for PCI Express enabled adapters and look forward to working with them on delivery of time to market PCI Express graphics solutions.
About PCI Express
PCI Express is a low-cost, highly scalable, I/O interconnect technology that can be used to replace existing PCI, AGP and other bus systems. This third generation technology currently runs at 250MBps per lane in either direction, providing 16GBps bandwidth in a 32-lane configuration. The PCI Express architecture provides I/O connectivity for graphics solutions while leveraging the recent increases in memory and processor subsystems. PCI-SIG is the Special Interest Group that owns and manages the PCI Express specification as an open industry standard.
3Dlabs
3Dlabs, a leading innovator in professional visual processing, supplies a broad range of graphics accelerators to Computer Aided Design (CAD), Digital Content Creation (DCC), and visual simulation professionals. Its award-winning Wildcat graphics solutions are available in industry-leading OEM workstations, in the channel through an international distributor/reseller network, and directly to end-users at 3Dlabs' online store. For more information on 3Dlabs products, visit www.3Dlabs.com . 3Dlabs is a wholly owned subsidiary of Creative Technology Ltd.
