Future AMD chip boasts 'human eye' reality

On Thursday, AMD demonstrated graphics chip technology that the company says approaches the arc and clarity seen by the human eye.

Eyefinity is a multi-display technology that will be part of future Radeon graphics chips designed to use up to six connected high-definition displays that can achieve "up to 12 times 1080p high-definition resolution, which approaches eye-definition optical clarity," the company said in a statement.

The goal is to create virtual environments so detailed that they seem optically real to the human eye. In a single PC, this yields a resolution of 268 megapixels, roughly equivalent to the resolution of a 90-degree arc of what the human eye sees, AMD said. By comparison, an average 19-inch LCD display today delivers a resolution of about 1 megapixel.

Here, ATI Eyefinity multi-monitor technology drives an immersive, panoramic gaming experience: Tom Clancy's Hawks at 5760x2400 resolution spanning six monitors employing the Display Port 1.1 interface.

(Credit: AMD)

In a blog, Simon Solotko, a senior advanced marketing manager at AMD, described three "new use models availed or expanded by" Eyefinity.

"The first I call immersive, panoramic computing. Many displays for one person," Solotko wrote. The user is surrounded with many displays creating an immersive reality or information environment--only possible previously on high-end workstations or simulators, according to Solotko.

The second model is many users using a single computer with multiple displays. "For example, one user enjoying dual monitor productivity, and a second user or group of users enjoying a movie or game on a third or fourth screen," he wrote. The basic premise is that it is a single session. One person is controlling the visual environment--one keyboard, one mouse. "Kind of like a...DJ who can launch applications for many to see," Solotko wrote.

When each screen has its own I/0 (mouse, keyboard, or motion controller) and supports a separate user session, this defines the third mode, according to Solotko. "A computer of the future with panoramic 3D gaming, multiple video playback, and access to 'cloud-based' resources on the internet on multiple displays," he wrote.

"Dad can be in the den playing Tom Clancy's Hawks (against his son) while his daughter is doing homework in her room and mom is managing finances in the office, all on the same, centrally managed PC."

[uhpl508]

That 6 monitor array comes out to 14 megapixels so I'm not sure where this 268 megapixel number is coming from. I think maybe its supposed to be 26.8

[viper396]

They said the *goal was 268 megapixel*. Read the article again and don't waste your time trying to correct details for topics you really know nothing about.

[GaMEChld]

I calculated these 6 displays to a potential 24.9 MegaPixels using 6 1920x1080 monitors. The game shown was 14 Megapixel as you say, based on the resolution the game was running at. These cards supposedly have the horsepower to maintain a 60Hz refresh rate at up to 90+ Megapixels. At >95 Megapixel, refresh rates need to come down. To get the higher 268 number, you would need a second card for powering 12 displays. I gleaned this info from a number of different articles, not just here. Fun stuff!

[ikramerica--2008]

You can not only put 6 monitors on one card, but 4 cards in one machine, for a total of 24 displays. They demoed this, too, but cnet failed to mention it.

So that's 11 megapixels per display, which is still a bit over "4k" widescreen formats (and a little under 4k full frame). 4k is the current best standard for feature film scanning and production. It is unlikely that any display will produced in our lifetime greater than 4k, due to lack of need.

[Police_States_of_America]

@ikramerica--2008
4k is not the highest standard for digital scanning, its up to 10k now i believe, some also being scanned in 8k

[esterud]

With your family example of gaming, homework, and financing on the same computer (which I like) the question is what will the cost difference be between A) multiple computers with their own cheap peripherals and par hardware resources and B) one computer with more hardware resources and surely some expensive software for the hefty OS version and multi-monitor 3rd party software? When the cost between these are roughly the same, only then can I see something like this as a feasible option for the more technically-inclined families. After this concept incubates for 10 years it might be a cool thing though.

[willdryden]

Accounting and anything on the internet should never be on the same computer. I run my accounting on a 486 under DOS5.0

[cp256]

The first thing that occurred to me was why the hell would I want my kid and my wife using my computer while I'm using it? To be "green?" Screw that, they can have their own lower powered green machines (notebooks) while my 256 core workstation concentrates on what I want it to do!

[Icebreeze]

Minor nitpick: It's Tom Clancy's HAWX, not Hawks.

[superaznman]

noticed that 2

[smiller987]

I would like to see hardware and games support user configurable assignment of different view angles to individual screens. It seems that it would be more immersive to be able to have front, left and right side, top, down, back, etc. views.

[spoonie1972]

i run non-3d data through 4 monitors right now (music writer studio setup).

the concept of a 2nd mouse pointer on the screen - even in the SAME session, is an interesting one.

[Peteara]

Pretty crazy stuff...I can't even begin to imagine what something like that would cost. How long do you think it will take before this reaches a consumer level?

[pithenumber]

the graphics card, a single GPU RV870 card will cost $449

not sure about the monitors

[wasp74]

You'll be able to buy these video cards by the end of the month (sept). It'll be the new DX11 5000 series from ATi. I think the HD5850 is going to be around $350 and the 5870 ~$450. the monitors are just regular monitors.

Besides the borders issue - you would likely need quad crossfire to render games like Crysis that are very demanding at anywhere near the resolutions needed to take advantage of six displays. HAWX is pretty light on the hardware compared to most current games.

[pithenumber]

one problem with playing games on multiple monitors

the big black bars in between the screen

[Mark Holloway]

Perhaps they will build monitors without borders, Screens to the very edge.
Its possible

[ikramerica--2008]

Not until OLED is cost effective. LCDs must have frames. OLED can be "stitched" so that you basically end up with a slight color/brightness anomaly line.

[shootfirst]

I think that making an environment on VR would be better than wasting it trying to make a monitor that is so awesome. We lived with crappy TVs for a long time. Holographic projections would be a good way to go to, but I still don't see the reason to make a display so vivid as there are many other areas that would benefit from research over trying to make a display so clear for the human eye.

[scottthesculptor]

geeze- I get the human eye arc resolution on my libretto at arms length

200dpi

just not as wide . . .

so,
how far away are *they* standing?

[shellcodes_coder]

You didn't mention that we will see this feature in upcoming directx 11 graphics cards