14 DAY TRIAL // The first AMD Radeon HD 7000M series of mobile graphics may be just a rebrand of the 6000 series, but stronger, desktop boards are in the pipeline, ones that definitely still have everything it takes to go down to business, even serious business if a certain photo is to be taken into account.
It was on the Beyond3D forums that a photograph emerged of what is most likely the Radeon HD 7970, based on a 28nm GPU.
Then again, it would be more accurate to say that it isn't a photo of one, but of two such boards arranged in a Crossfire configuration.
Given that, as something along the lines of the Radeon HD 6970 but stronger, even just one would be overkill in anything save high-end systems, that suggests a high level of performance.
The first Southern Islands 28nm GPUs will be launched in January, 2012 (next month) and should be given attention during CES (Consumer Electronics Show).
It isn't certain that this pictured Tahiti / HD 7900 card is the one that will be selected for such a public demo though.
The Pitcaim (a Radeon HD 7800) board is a just as likely candidate for that.
Moving back to the device in the photo, it has 12 memory chips, which implies a memory interface of 384 bits, something that AMD or ATI GPUs never showed before.
Also, the SIG approved 6-pin + 8-pin configuration of cables powers each of the two adapters, which implies that any one of those things can consume up to 300 W.
Interestingly enough, the PCB has all it needs for two 8-pin connectors too (up to 375W of power).
Either way, this is one of those products that will need a lot of energy to run and, sure enough, the system in the photo uses an 850W PSU (power supply).