14 DAY TRIAL // It may have completely slipped people's minds by now, and stayed out of the notice of those only now gaining an interest in processors, but AMD has a certain desktop socket besides AM2/3(+) and FM1/FM2. Said socket is about to evolve.
Well, that's not totally accurate, since the FS1b socket for entry-level desktops/HTPCs (anything based on mini-ITX motherboards basically) won't really go through any physical changes, exactly.
If it were, it would become a different socket altogether. No, what is happening is that AMD is renaming it despite no major changes coming.
Soon, probably before this quarter is out (Q1, January-March 2014), the socket will be called AM1. That's what Chinese VR-Zone claims at least.
The same source mentioned that three new accelerated processing units (APU) compatible with the FS1b, or AM1 now, socket would come out. They will be based on Jaguar cores, meaning that they will be 10% faster than Bobcat. Also, 64-bit DDR3 memory will be supported.
GCN architecture graphics cores will be included on the APUs, as well as DirectX 11.1 (not 11.2).
Of the three APUs, the A405350 will be the strongest, a quad-core processor with 2 MB cache memory (L2) and 1.6 GHz clock. Its TDP (thermal design power) is of 25W.
The second best chip is called A4-3850 and, like the one above, has 2 MB cache memory and a TDP of 25W, but its four cores work at 1.3 GHz.
Finally, the E1-2650, a dual-core unit with 1 MB cache memory, a clock of 1.45 GHz and, oddly enough, the same TDP of 25W.
Intel's Bay Trail-D processors, sold under the Atom brand, will be the main competition for Advanced Micro Devices AM1 APUs. We'll probably be seeing quite a few OEM-made mini-ITX motherboards being launched one after another, or in groups, throughout the year.