AMD Fusion A8-3850 Platform Review - Conclusions
I really like the AMD APU A8-3850.
Granted my stable of CPUs to benchmark is quite limited, I feel that the A8-3850 provides enough computations horsepower for today's games. (FWIW, I have just completed a Bulldozer setup that I will be testing, and have started plans for a Sandy/Ivy Bridge upgrade to my i7-920). The A8-3850 isn't going to set the world on fire for our core demographic here at the WSGF (all by itself), but I think it's a solid step in the APU evolution.
The CPU side provides excellent performance for the price, and you get an integrated GPU that does provide discrete-level performance. It's on the low-end of the discrete level spectrum, but it is head and shoulders above "integrated" graphics solutions.
The A8-3850 is targeted (by AMD's own admission) to the i5 and the integrated capabilities of the on-die GPU in the Sandy Bridge chip. The slides below (which I showed earlier) provide a good reminder and context. AMD didn't put the A8-3950 out there to challenge the i7 and high-end chips. At this point, I think they know they are playing catch up in that area. However, they also know that the vast majority of dollars spent are in the i5 arena.
Final Thoughts
The A8-3850 is a capable APU and can provide a good experience for gaming on a single widescreen - assuming that you enjoy more "indie" games, or have your expectations set somewhere about medium settings.
I can't whole-heartedly recommend the A8-3850 to solely power a system for someone, as my expectations are above "medium". I can't recommend it for you our dear reader, but I can probably recommend it for your mom, wife or friend who plays the odd game from time-to-time. For our readers, the A8-3850 would serve as a good building block and a phenomenal start - and it's budget conscious choice to boot.
Once AMD can squeeze HD 6670 level graphics into the APU, I think I'd be ready to recommend the APU without reservations for most everyone on a single screen. However, I'm not sure AMD would do that in the near future, for their mid-range chips. Doing so would undercut the need for any low-end discrete GPU for most single screen gamers. Maybe the economics of the PC landscape are squeezing out that low-end discrete segment. And maybe AMD can make up the revenue in APU and motherboard chipset sales. If that does ever happen, I believe that AMD would have a huge value proposition for the mainstream and for system integrators. The proposition is already good, the HD 6670 level of capability would simply shift the entire paradigm.
One final aspect I like about the Fusion AMD (and theoretically Intel's CPU with on-die GPU) is the fact that a processor swap provides an upgrade to both the CPU and the GPU. Unfortunately AMD has stated that the current socket FM1 won't be used for the A8's successor. So, the upgradablility of the A8-3850 is limited. Hopefully the FM2 will have a longer lifespan and a health upgrade path for both the CPU and GPU.
I'll leave you with a few more slides about the AMD A8 APU.
