Kabini based ultrathins and small form factor machines are expected in the first half of 2013. As far as we know from multiple sources who would like to remain anonymous the launch date is set around Computex (June 4 to 8th 2013).
In PCMark Vantage, measured by AMD labs, a Kabini based A6-5200 system scored 5271, while a Brazos APU-based system scored 2807. This is a dramatic performance increase that will bring smiles on many faces.
The Kabini configuration used in the tests is based on AMD’s Larne reference design. It is powered by an A6 5200 APU with Radeon HD 8400 graphics, 4GB DDR3 1600 memory as well as Windows 8 64-bit. The Brazos system was based on the reference Renmore platform, powered by an E2 1800 APU, Radeon HD 7340 graphics, 4GB DDR3 1333 memory and Windows 7 Ultimate.
Despite this significant performance increase, battery life won’t suffer as AMD promises 10 hours battery life at least in idle mode. It is not clear what kind of battery, display, brightness was AMD using but in its real life measurement, but the performance should get much closer to Intel’s current generation Core I 17W mobile processors used in Ultrabooks.
With a few nice design wins and a lot of marketing, AMD has a chance to remind the market that it is still a company that can offer competitive products including ultrathins and small form factor machines. Jaguar is a tiny core, so the chips shouldn’t end up pricey, which is not the case with Intel’s 17W parts.