When AMD merged with ATI in 2006, they immediately began working on combining discrete level graphics onto the die with an x86 CPU, thus forming an Accelerated Processing Unit (APU). In 2009, AMD expanded on that effort by launching VISION with the intent of shaping the performance of a PC to fit the needs of the user. Five years after the merger, AMD's design has come to fruition in desktop form. In this article, Benchmark Reviews is taking a look at the AMD A-Series A8-3850 APU.

AMD's idea for the need of an APU with discrete level GPU capabilities comes from the high level of demand for media computing. According to YouTube, in April 2011, over 35 hours of video were uploaded every minute with a total of more than 13 million hours of video uploaded during 2010. Those videos don't just get uploaded, of course. They get watched, millions of times. Other media hosting sites have seen similar growth and online TV watching has blossomed as well. Netflix and Hulu are staples in my house, and I know I'm not alone.

AMD isn't the only CPU manufacturer with this idea. Six months ago, we all remember the Intel Sandy Bridge launch. The Sandy Bridge platform also integrated a GPU and a CPU onto the same die. While this had outstanding performance value where media is concerned, other types of PC usage, such as gaming, provided a little more than the Intel HD Graphics could handle. Sure, on low settings, many mainstream games were playable, but even upgrading to a very low-end discrete graphics card increased the playability substantially. With the A-Series platform, combined with the A75 or A55 Fusion Controller Hub (FCH) to make Lynx, AMD purportedly offers discrete level graphics in their on-die GPU. In the A8-3850 we are looking at today, that amounts to a Radeon HD 6550D.

Click here to view the AMD A8-Series AD3850WNGXBOX A8-3850 Quad Core Processor (APU) currently on sale in our Online Store

Click here for the full review of this product on BenchmarkReviews.com

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