Advanced Micro Devices has unveiled a lineup of AMD M690 core-logic sets which derive from the company’s recently announced AMD 690-series chipsets. The world’s second largest manufacturer of x86 central processing units (CPUs) promises that notebooks based on the M690 will feature longer battery life amid improved graphics performance at an affordable price-point.

“AMD CPU and GPU technologies work in tandem to deliver increased battery life for mobile workers and consumers who demand a superior graphics and multimedia experience wherever the road takes them,” said Phil Eisler, corporate vice president and general manager, AMD chipset division.

Technically, AMD M690 chipsets are similar to the desktop AMD 690 core-logic family that combines that combines AMD 690 north bridge with SB600 input/output controller. Currently AMD offers three versions of the core-logic: AMD M690, AMD M690T and AMD M690V. The AMD M690 features integrated DVI/HDMI output, the M690T features DVI/HDMI and additional memory buffer (that AMD calls Display Cache). while the M690V lacks both aforementioned capabilities as well as external PCI Express x16 port. The M690-series also feature a series of power-saving mechanisms.

The AMD M690 north bridges, which are compatible with AMD Turion 64 X2 processors that use HyperTransport bus, feature built-in Radeon X1250 graphics core (Radeon X700 graphics engine with 4 pixel processors, 400MHz clock-speed, DirectX 9 shader model 2.0 support with 3Dc technology); two independent display controllers allowing to plug-in a DVI/HDMI device, a TV and a D-Sub device (e.g., CRT monitor); as well as a PCI Express x4 controller. The SB600 south bridge, which has been available on the market for nearly a year from now, supports four Serial ATA-300 ports with RAID capability, Parallel ATA, ten USB 2.0 ports, PCI interface, high definition 7.1 “Azalia” audio, and so on.

According to AMD, the Display Cache technology incorporated into AMD M690T chipset can extend battery life by up to 30 minutes over previous AMD mobile technologies since it allows the CPU to operate in low-power mode without accessing system memory.

Notebooks based upon the AMD M690 and AMD Turion 64 X2 dual-core mobile technology will be available in designs from leading computer manufacturers including Asustek Computer, HP and Fujitsu Siemens Computing.