14 DAY TRIAL // If you’ve been keeping a close eye on this year's edition of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, you might have noticed that there was a considerable focus on 3D solutions, from almost every company on show. In the computer industry, NVIDIA is the one with the bragging rights, as it can enable users to take advantage of a 3D experience with the help of one of their GeForce graphics cards. However, that could soon change as its Sunnyvale, California-based competitor, AMD is rumored to be planning 3D support with the release of its new Catalyst drivers.
According to a number of articles on the Internet, the chip maker is getting ready to unveil a new version of its Catalyst suite of drivers, which will reportedly be released in the near future. As a matter of fact, a beta of the Catalyst Suite 10.1 has already made its way on the Internet, adding support for the 32-bit and 64-bit version of Microsoft's Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7. One of the main features of the new release, according to the available release notes, is the addition of 3D support for the outfit's Radeon GPUs.
Although the drivers are not officially available, you can download them from a couple of websites that have managed to grab a hold of them. For those of you that are feeling adventurous enough to go out and test a beta version of the upcoming drivers, follow this link and choose your operating system.
The release notes of the new drivers read the following changes, according to guru3d.com
CrossFire X profiles per application will now be in a separate XML file that it will be possible to update independently of the driver itself ATI CrossFire X with PowerPlay for the Radeon 5×00s: reduced energy consumption of additional cards AMD Dual Graphics: Possibility of combining performances of the IGP of the RS880 with the forthcoming entry level GPUs from the Cedar and Park ranges. 3D Stereoscopics: Update of the D3D driver so as to allow third party firms such as IZ3D to use their 3D solution with 120 Hz screens. Support for Bit Cauldron glasses. Eyefinity: Bezel Management Better GPU acceleration in Windows 7 Video Converter Support for DisplayPort Audio (already in the 9.12 hotfix) If laptop manufacturers allow it, possibility of installing the Catalysts on a laptop in Vista and 7 Improvement of 2D performance in Linux Support for Ubuntu 9.10 and OpenSuSE 11.2
One of the main features that should be noted in the new release is the update of the D3D driver, which will enable third party companies to mix AMD's Radeon GPUs with their own 3D solution, such as 120Hz screens or active-shutter glasses. However, at this time, we are dealing with unofficial drivers, but we will keep you up to speed, as soon as the new Catalyst Software Suite becomes available.