New VIA VX855 Media System Processor Brings Power-Efficiency to 1080p HD Playback

IA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the VIA VX855 Media System Processor (MSP) - an ultra power efficient, all-in-one chipset that addresses the key performance and entertainment requirements of today's small form factor and mobile PC systems.

Increasingly, content is being filmed in high-definition (HD), with movies, TV shows and sporting events taking advantage of the smooth playback, extraordinary picture clarity, and brilliant colors that HD video offers. However, until now the high bit-rates associated with quality HD video have posed a real challenge to the processing capabilities of power efficient PC systems such as those found in small form factor and mobile devices.

Set to be Microsoft Windows 7-ready, the VIA VX855 MSP solves the problem by offering support for full hardware acceleration of the widest variety of leading video standards including H.264, MPEG-2/4, VC-1 and WMV9, greatly reducing the workload and thus the power consumption of the processor.

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"For the first time, system developers have an ultra low power media system processor that delivers high bit-rate HD video to small form factor and mobile devices," said Richard Brown, Vice President of Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. "The VIA VX855 opens up exciting opportunities for several PC segments, particularly the mini-notebook category that will now be able to offer true 1080p HD video playback."

Compatible with the ultra compact VIA Nano, VIA C7 and VIA Eden processor families, the VIA VX855 MSP integrates all the cutting-edge features of a modern chipset's North and South bridges into a 27mm x 27mm single chip package that saves over 46% of silicon real estate compared with competing twin-chip core logic implementations. This miniaturization, combined with extensive power management technologies and the ability to run fanlessly within a tiny 2.3 watt power envelope, enables system builders to design ever smaller, lighter, and more portable systems.