VIA Launches VIA eH1, Embedded Industry's First Dedicated Graphics Card

[btarunr]

VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the world's first graphics card designed specifically for the embedded market with the VIA eH1, a DX10.1 compliant, multi-display card that thrusts any system with a PCI Express slot into a new realm of graphics and video capability.

The VIA eH1 comes with a three year product longevity guarantee and is the most power-efficient discrete graphics and video solution on the market today. The VIA eH1 AIB features an advanced DirectX 10.1, OpenGL 3.1, OpenGL ES 2.0 compatible 64-bit architecture and offers multi-stream 1080p HD video decoding and Stereoscopic 3D rendering capability. This makes it the ideal solution for a range of embedded applications that require advanced graphics and video on multiple displays.



"The VIA eH1 hits a real sweet spot for the embedded industry as a whole," said Daniel Wu, Vice President, VIA Embedded Platform Division, VIA Technologies, Inc. "Offering technologies like DX10.1, OpenGL/CL, plus multi-channel HD video playback on an extremely low power AIB will excite system integrators who want to bring the latest features to existing platforms."

VIA eH1: Embedded Graphics and Video
The VIA eH1 is a low profile PCI Express add-in-board designed for next generation embedded applications in a range of segments including digital signage and advertising, POS, POI, gaming or any embedded application where sophisticated graphics and HD video is streamed on two displays.

The VIA eH1 features the S3 Chrome 5400E GPU, the industry's most power-efficient a 64-bit discrete graphics solution and is complimented with 512MB of DDR3 memory.

VIA eH1 Product Highlights

• PCIe 2.0 Bus Interface
• 512MB DDR3
• Low profile form factor
• Dual-Link DVI and HDMI (with HDCP)
• Fully programmable DirectX 10.1 Unified Shader Core
• OpenGL 3.1 + OpenGL ES 2.0
• GPGPU on OpenCL 1.0
• H.264 and VC-1 support for Blu-Ray
• Support for resolutions up to 2560x1600
• 1080p/1080i/720p HD-decode
• Steroscopic 3D capable
• Dual display support

The VIA eH1 can be used in conjunction with a number of VIA EPIA board products and can supplement any existing system that uses a x1, x4, x8 or x16 PCIe slot. Samples of the VIA eH1 are available now to project customers upon request.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[Ferrum Master]

Looks like S3 Trio to me... in terms of 2D speed I may not be that wrong at all

 

[micropage7]

wow its a breakthru from VIA, its been a while we dont hear from via where most board hang on intel or nvidia or ati as their onboard graphic
and from the spec it looks enough for daily usage, and one more it supports stereoscopic.. its like over from expectation

 

[leonard_222003]

The big question here is not will it run crysis , will it run first half-life ? or some old decent 3d game ?

 

[Reisigwurzler]

As long as it's faster or equal to the Intel onboard (on-cpu ) GPUs the little word "embedded", full driver support and low price alone will boost it.
3 years for the start is the bottom line, but time can change that.

Not for the standard consumer, but I know a long list of companies that are tired of using those Intel and Matrox solutions and via wouldn't have made that solution if there weren't sufficient requests.

Yes if hell freezes they would think about using those "embedded" solutions from Nvidia or ATI. (The ATI 9000er Generation embedded solution, wasn't that bad, I found one in the unopened original box during the Christmas/new-year cleaning)

Hopefully the none existing embedded market with usable GPGPUs get a kick in the ***.
I'm tired of those snobs only opening ears and eyes if they hear two digits of millions and then delivering crap. Hoppefully a good start into 2011

 

[TheLostSwede]

Uhm, an industrial graphics card with a fan? That's a big no-no

 

[Over_Lord]

VIA need to chuck power efficient tag and goo all-out gonzo with their cards already

 

[LittleLizard]

IMO VIA should focus on getting their CPU right for the tablet/netbook market. They just dont have the funds nor the R&D power to waste time on this.

 

[robn]

Uhm, an industrial graphic card with a fan? That's a big no-no

I'm in agreement with this.

Apart from that though, it looks impressive. Rivalling Intel's integrated, surely. OpenCL, H264 full 1080p, full DX10.1 hardware (hey, my GTX260 doesn't meet that standard - only 10.0). Didn't VIA release the Chrome 540 GTX with similar specs a fair while ago tho? I remember it performing reasonably, like NV 6800 speeds or something. Edit: Tweaktown says the older 540 GTX 256MB beats AMD HD4350 in 3dMark2006 on Vista, and decodes video with less CPU than an NV 8600. http://www.tweaktown.com/news/11345/s3_chrome_540_gtx_the_perfect_htpc_card/index.html

 

[alexsubri]

 

[OneCool]

Poor VIA...


Now if they can find a way to connect 14 of them together in SLIFire....

 

[Ferrum Master]

Poor VIA...


Now if they can find a way to connect 14 of them together in SLIFire....

Actually for VIA this "feature" is called MultiChrome™

 

[Completely Bonkers]

Embedded? PCIx16 slot? Fan?

 

[Assimilator]

Not to mention that Sandy Bridge launched today and its integrated graphics will probably blow this card out of the water.

 

[HillBeast]

I just don't see the point in it. If you want a dedicated card, then obviously you want more performance, but if you want low power then why would you want a dedicated card? Get ION or something, not this silly contraption. It's not that great of an achievement. Think about it: NVIDIA could just take the GPU from say the GTX430 and clock it down to like 50MHz and it will be 'low-power'. Derp.

 

[blu3flannel]

Not to mention that Sandy Bridge launched today and its integrated graphics will probably blow this card out of the water.

Ah well, at least they tried.

 

[HalfAHertz]

I just want to know one thing: Who the hell do they sell these things to? I rarely see any VIA products at online retailers nevermind chrome videocards...

 

[alucasa]

Uhm, an industrial graphics card with a fan? That's a big no-no

Yeah, a fan is a common point of failure. They should have really made it fanless.

I just want to know one thing: Who the hell do they sell these things to? I rarely see any VIA products at online retailers nevermind chrome videocards...

To the industry? Who else? Embedded systems are everywhere in machines, ships, and other industrial equipments and vehicles.

 

[bear jesus]

I don't understand why with such a tiny heatsink and fan they could not have made it passive, as far as i knew passive cooling was a major selling point in the embedded systems market as they are supposed to be maintenance free, hell an aluminum heatsink could surly keep this chip cooler never mind something like a single heat pipe added into a passive heat sink.

Even if this was a consumer product (yes i know it is not for us) i would have thought passive would have made more sense

Apart form that one complaint (maybe the fact it's an x16 slot instead of x1 or x4) it's nice to see VIA getting in to more advanced graphics for embedded systems.

*edit*
I just noticed that the card has 4 holes for the cooler but the heatsink only uses two, could it be possible that there will be multiple versions available, possibly even a passive heat sink that uses all four mounting holes due to the extra size/weight?

 

[Bjorn_Of_Iceland]

Wizard should get a review copy

 

[Completely Bonkers]

*edit*
I just noticed that the card has 4 holes for the cooler but the heatsink only uses two, could it be possible that there will be multiple versions available, possibly even a passive heat sink that uses all four mounting holes due to the extra size/weight?

I dont think so. The positioning of those tall cylindrical capacitors spoils any hope for a bigger but passive heatsink. The 4 holes is "standard" design. They just mounted a cheaper 2 clip fansink. At least you could replace it with an alternative, active but quieter, aftermarket.

 

[Reisigwurzler]

erm to the "fan is not compatible to embedded fraction".

embedded means in my world that there is some engineering to do and not: go to the dealer buy your pc pieces and put them together with your screwdriver.


Those little fan's are the common reminder for all the 'competent' engineer's that the card needs somewhere an air flow. Active or not, or are you all of the fraction thermal system design is based on 15-25°C, or everything has to be military grade and fanless? If that's the case ignore me cause we don't live in the same reality and it would be useless to disscuss this further.