Put a GPU and CPU on the same dye? Isn't that pretty much the way things used to be? The original Macs, for example, just used the Motorolla 68000 as both the CPU and GPU. (And then the Amiga, a few years later, showed the world why having a separate dedicated graphics processor was the way of the 'future'.)

Now it is time for 'back to the future' in that we may be trying to combine everything back into a single processor again (with additional cores for the GPU)?

Then again, maybe AMD just had 5.4b burning a hole in their pocket and just had to buy something. I get that way a lot, just on a slightly smaller scale.

Hasn't it always been that when you try and make one device do lots of things, it just does them all poorly? Not to mention, graphics cards change like the weather in the world of people who actually care about graphics cards, so why tie it to your processor? Just seems like you'd have a processor for a much longer time that you would a graphics card.

I've read more about them optimizing the ATI chips to work with the AMD ones better. That makes more sense to me than to combine chips.

Here's a quick vote for a microATX based AMD board/graphics combo that would rival the double slot express PCI things you can't get in small form factor. Please?

Shouldn't AMD purchase nVidia since AMD is the underdog (sorta) against the "monopoly" of Intel and nVidia is the underdog against AMD?

I think AMD has it's crosshairs squarely between the eyes of OEM Vista-Capable PC's. It's a logical step after onboard video- and I think the answer to the question, just how are they going to get $399 Dell's running vista premium, when the required graphics hardware would cost more than the PC itself?

And for goodness sake, would someone tell Intel to either make decent gfx silicon or spare us the onboard crap. They don't even release driver details or source for hacker types to push the chips to the limits.

"See, with all this healthy competition, we'll just end up with one, ultra-powerful corporation."

Jonathan, Jonathan, Jonathan...!

I like the AMD Nvidia combination and have had that in my last 4 PC's. I just hope that this partnership doesnt push nvidia away from AMD - but how can it not?

Also, does this mean the future of the SLI is in jepardy? - unless it becomes Intels baby...

Seems like normal diversification to me. If I was to prognosticate, I'd imagine that AMD simply wants to offer a larger product range in order to stabilize profits. Instead of just relying on CPU profits now they can make video cards, onborad video cards and processor chipset.

Intel has made it's own chipsets for its processors for years and other vendors still make their own for Intel. This isn't that much different from when AMD made "reference" chipsets for its processors and sold them early on before other chipset makers had ones available. So now when AMD releases a new chip they can have a chipset ready to take advantage of it. This doesn't stop NVidia/SiS from making a chipset that's better and selling it as well. I expect that AMD will keep a friendly relationship with Nvidia and actually encourage competition because they know that it'll sell more of their chips.

As for a CPU/GPU combo, that doesn't make a lot of sense unless you are going after some embedded market where space is at a premium.

Oh, I'm curious when did Mac use a 68000 as the GPU? I don't remember that model. ;^)

Nyle, space is always at a premium. Computers are ugly, and I'm not model expert to go and casemod my life away. I want small, sexy, highly powerful, and quiet. Hence why I like the microATX board set-up in a Acer QPACK or similar case. Now, if only I can have that with top of the line, dual card graphics and I'm in heaven.

Might step up cross-platform support in ATI chips, by which I of course mean Linux, especially since ATI's Linux support sucks and AMD is really, really popular with the Linux crowd.

i think that aTi needs to go to h*** and AMD and nVidia need to squash intel. ALL GLORY TO THE HYPNO TOAD!

Hmm, Apple MBPs have intel CPUs and ATI graphics.. WHICH WAY WILL JOBS TURN??