RadeonHD Video Driver 1.2.0 Released

RadeonHD video driver version 1.2.0 was announced last night on the X.org Foundation website. RadeonHD is also known as xf86-video-radeonhd and it's an X.org video driver for R500 and newer ATI graphics devices. It is being developed by Novell for AMD.

The RadeonHD video driver supports full modesetting (read: any mode is useable, not only those provided by the BIOS), which is backwards compatible to RandR 1.2. However, it still lacks more advanced features like 2D, 3D and video acceleration as the information for such an implementation hasn't been made available yet.

What's new in this release?

• Added support for RV620, RV635, and R680;
• Added 2D acceleration for R5xx (including RS6xx), both XAA and EXA;
• Added support for DDIA block (second digital output) on RS690;
• Added support for interlaced modes;
• Added additional layers for splitting outputs into encoders and transmitters as needed for new hardware;
• Added support for DragonFly BSD;
• Improved RandR corner cases;
• Improved handling of secondary cards;
• Implemented foundation work for future TV support;
• Huge number of bugfixes and minor updates.

The following hardware is supported by the RadeonHD driver:

• RV505: Radeon X1550, X1550 64bit
• RV515: Radeon X1300, X1550, X1600; FireGL V3300, V3350
• RV516: Radeon X1300, X1550, X1550 64-bit, X1600; FireMV 2250
• R520: Radeon X1800; FireGL V5300, V7200, V7300, V7350
• RV530: Radeon X1300 XT, X1600, X1600 Pro, X1650; FireGL V3400, V5200
• RV535: Radeon X1300, X1650
• RV550: Radeon X2300 HD
• RV560: Radeon X1650
• RV570: Radeon X1950, X1950 GT; FireGL V7400
• R580: Radeon X1900, X1950; AMD Stream Processor
• R600: Radeon HD 2900 GT/Pro/XT; FireGL V7600/V8600/V8650
• RV610: Radeon HD 2350, HD 2400 Pro/XT, HD 2400 Pro AGP; FireGL V4000
• RV620: Radeon HD 3450, HD 3470
• RV630: Radeon HD 2600 LE/Pro/XT, HD 2600 Pro/XT AGP; Gemini RV630; FireGL V3600/V5600
• RV635: Radeon HD 3650, HD 3670
• RV670: Radeon HD 3850, HD 3870, FireGL V7700
• RV680: Radeon HD 3870 X2
• M52: Mobility Radeon X1300
• M54: Mobility Radeon X1400; M54-GL
• M56: Mobility Radeon X1600; Mobility FireGL V5200
• M58: Mobility Radeon X1800, X1800 XT; Mobility FireGL V7100, V7200
• M62: Mobility Radeon X1350
• M64: Mobility Radeon X1450, X2300
• M66: Mobility Radeon X1700, X1700 XT; FireGL V5250
• M68: Mobility Radeon X1900
• M71: Mobility Radeon HD 2300
• M72: Mobility Radeon HD 2400; Radeon E2400
• M74: Mobility Radeon HD 2400 XT
• M76: Mobility Radeon HD 2600; (Gemini ATI) Mobility Radeon HD 2600 XT
• M82: Mobility Radeon HD 3400
• M86: Mobility Radeon HD 3600
• RS690: Radeon X1200, X1250, X1270

You can download and install this freely available video driver for ATI/AMD graphic cards from Softpedia. However, you should be aware of the known bugs and limitations:

• No 3D acceleration so far. 2D acceleration is implemented for R5xx only up to now. No XVideo (needs 3D engine for scaling). Still, fullscreen video is working fluently for many users.
• No TV and Component connector support so far.
• Dual Link DVI support is untested so far.
• Panels only show native resolution.
• No RandR rotation support so far.
• Suspend & Resume is only tested on some hardware. Very often it just works, but your mileage may vary.
• No power management yet. Depending on your hardware, the fan might run at full speed.

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