X-bit labs

Contemporary Platforms with Integrated Graphics (page 4)

Category: Chipsets

by Ilya Gavrichenkov

[ 12/08/2006 | 10:38 AM ]

Nvidia GeForce 6150

If Intel uses their own integrated chipsets for platforms with Intel processors, then AMD cannot yet offer us anything of their own design (at least until ATI RS690 comes out). Therefore, all integrated chipsets for Socket AM2 platform are currently supplied by Nvidia that has proven a great developer of graphics processors and discrete chipset solutions for AMD platforms. The integrated chipsets introduced a year ago are still very popular today, and the top model in the market is Nvidia GeForce 6150. In fact, this core logic set can be described as nForce 5 with the built-in GPU from a relatively old NV44 family. Nevertheless, Nvidia GeForce 6150 remains a very decent solution even today mostly thanks to the support of DirectX 9 with Shader Model 3.0.

GeForce 6150 for Socket AM2 mainboards consists of the North Bridge with the same name and in most cases also of the nForce 430 South Bridge. This microchip provides the support for 8 USB 2.0 ports, 4 Serial ATA ports, Gigabit Ethernet and HD Audio.

As for the graphics core, it yields to Intel’s solutions from the features standpoint. Nvidia GeForce 6150 has only two pixel pipelines, but boasts a fully-fledged hardware vertex pipeline compatible with Shader Model 3.0. The graphics core works at 475MHz frequency that translates into 950Mpixels/s fillrate. GeForce 6150 graphics core can engage 256MB of graphics memory, which is provided from the system RAM, just like by all other integrated chipsets. Note that despite relatively modest specifications, GeForce 6150 should be powerful enough to formally work just fine in Aero interface of the new Windows Vista.

GeForce 6150 also boasts special hardware video acceleration features: high-quality scaling and HD video decoding.

RAMDAC of GeForce 6150 works at 300MHz therefore the maximum supported resolution is 1920x1440 at 75Hz vertical refresh rate. This chipset also supports DVI interface and a lot of mainboard manufacturers equip their solutions with DVI right away.