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RADEON HD3450 & HYBRID GRAPHICS
To test the Hybrid Graphics feature, we used a low-profile Radeon HD3450 256MB — something you'd see in a multimedia center. It's an ideal candidate as it
is a low-end part so any increase in performance provided by the IGP would be
more dramatic.
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A low profile Radeon HD3450.
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Comparison: HD3200 IGP (256MB) vs. Radeon HD3450
256MB
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Load
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HD3200 IGP
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HD3450
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Mean CPU Use
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Peak CPU Use
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System Power
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Mean CPU Use
|
Peak CPU Use
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System Power
|
|
Idle
|
1%
|
2%
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41W
|
1%
|
2%
|
53W
|
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H.264
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2%
|
8%
|
~54W
|
6%
|
11%
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~57W
|
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WMV3
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24%
|
39%
|
~68W
|
31%
|
41%
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~69W
|
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WVC1
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43%
|
61%
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~72W
|
47%
|
64%
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~77W
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Blu Ray
|
17%
|
21%
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~73W
|
31%
|
47%
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~76W
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CPUBurn
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100%
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101W
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100%
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116W
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CPUBurn + ATITool
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100%
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109W
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100%
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129W
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2GB of system RAM was used during testing
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We never could have predicted these results... the HD3200 IGP was actually
superior to the HD3450 for video playback. Higher CPU usage, higher power consumption,
and more heat (the card's heatsink reached 67°C according to our infrared
thermometer) — unless you require more than two displays or want to play video
games, adding a discrete card seems folly.
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Catalyst Control Center
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We used a set of beta drivers (Catalyst 8.47) provided by AMD to test the Hybrid
Graphics. Once installed, it was fairly simple to get started — we
had to enable the SurroundView option in the BIOS and enable CrossFire mode in
the Catalyst Control Center. Note, Hybrid Graphics is a Vista-only feature.
XP users lament.
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Comparison: HD3200 IGP vs. Radeon HD3450 vs. Hybrid
Graphics (HD3200+HD3450)
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Test State
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HD3200 IGP
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HD3450
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Hybrid Gfx.
|
|
Mean CPU
|
Peak CPU
|
System Power
|
Mean CPU
|
Peak CPU
|
System Power
|
Mean CPU
|
Peak CPU
|
System Power
|
|
Idle
|
1%
|
2%
|
41W
|
1%
|
2%
|
53W
|
1%
|
2%
|
53W
|
|
H.264
|
2%
|
8%
|
~54W
|
6%
|
11%
|
~57W
|
5%
|
13%
|
~56W
|
|
WMV3
|
24%
|
39%
|
~68W
|
31%
|
41%
|
~69W
|
33%
|
46%
|
~68W
|
|
WVC1
|
43%
|
61%
|
~72W
|
47%
|
64%
|
~77W
|
51%
|
65%
|
~77W
|
|
Blu Ray
|
17%
|
21%
|
~73W
|
31%
|
47%
|
~76W
|
48%
|
63%
|
~75W
|
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CPUBurn
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100%
|
101W
|
100%
|
116W
|
100%
|
116W
|
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CPUBurn + ATITool
|
100%
|
109W
|
100%
|
129W
|
100%
|
130W
|
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2GB of system RAM and 256MB of VRAM were used during
testing
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Using Hybrid Graphics mode, it appears playback actually became even worse.
We'll chalk this up to drivers that aren't quite ready.
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