Video card - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Video cardFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A video card, video adapter, graphics-

accelerator card, display adapter or graphics

card is an expansion card whose function is to

generate and output images to a display. Many

video cards offer added functions, such as

accelerated rendering of 3D scenes and 2D

graphics, video capture, TV-tuner adapter, MPEG-2

and MPEG-4 decoding, FireWire, light pen, TV

output, or the ability to connect multiple monitors,

while other modern high performance cards are

used for more graphically demanding purposes such

as PC games.

Video hardware can be integrated on the

motherboard, as it often happened with early

computers; in this configuration it was sometimes

referred to as a video

controller or

graphics

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Connects to Motherboard via one of:

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Display via one of:

$1.9M USD $7.5M USD

● ISA

● MCA

● VLB

● PCI

● AGP

● PCI-X

● PCI Express

● PCI Express 2.0

● Others

● VGA connector

● Digital Visual Interface

● Composite video

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controller .

The first IBM PC video card, which

[edit]History

Contents [hide]

● S-Video

● Component video

● HDMI

● DMS-59

● DisplayPort

● Others

● 1 History

● 2 Components

● 3 See also

● 4 References

● 5 External links

�❍ 2.1 Graphics processing unit (GPU)

�❍ 2.2 Video BIOS

�❍ 2.3 Video memory

�❍ 2.4 RAMDAC

�❍ 2.5 Outputs

�❍ 2.6 Motherboard interface

�❍ 2.7 Cooling devices

�❍ 2.8 Power demand

■ 2.5.1 Video Graphics Array (VGA) (DE-15)

■ 2.5.2 Digital Visual Interface (DVI)

■ 2.5.3 Video In Video Out (VIVO) for S-

Video, Composite video and Component

video

■ 2.5.4 High-Definition Multimedia Interface

(HDMI)

■ 2.5.5 DisplayPort

■ 2.5.6 Other types of connection systems

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was released with the first IBM PC,

was developed by IBM in 1981. The

MDA

(Monochrome

Display

Adapter ) could

only work in text mode representing

80 columns and 25 lines (80x25) in

the screen. It had a 4KB video

memory and just one color.[1]

Starting with the MDA in 1981,

several video cards were released,

which are summarized in the

attached table.[2][3][4][5]

In 1995 the first consumer 2D/3D cards were released, developed by Matrox, Creative, S3, ATI and

others.[citation needed

] These video cards followed the SVGA standard, but

incorporated 3D functions. In 1997, 3dfx released the Voodoo graphics chip, which was more powerful compared

to other consumer graphics cards, introducing 3D effects such as mip mapping, Z-buffering and anti-aliasing into

the consumer market. After this card, a series of 3D video cards were released, such as Voodoo2 from 3dfx, TNT

VGA was widely accepted, which led

some corporations such as ATI, Cirrus

Logic and S3 to work with that video

card, improving its resolution and the

number of colours it used. This

developed into the SVGA (Super VGA ) standard, which reached 2 MB of video memory and a

resolution of 1024x768 at 256 color mode.

YearText Mode

(columns/lines)

Graphics Mode

(resolution/colors)Memory

1981 80×25 - 4 KB

1981 80×25 640×200 / 4 16 KB

1982 80×25 720×348 / 2 64 KB

1984 80×25 640×480 / 256 320 KB

1984 80×25 640×350 / 16 256 KB

1987 80×25 1024×768 / 256 -

1987 80×25 320×200 / 256 -

1987 80×25 640×480 / 16 256 KB

1989 80×25800×600 / 256 512 KB

640×480+ / 256+ 512 KB+

1990 80×25 1024×768 / 256 1 MB

1992 80×25 1024×768 / 65,536 2 MB

1998 132×60 1280×1024 / 16.7M -

MDA

CGA

HGC

PGA

EGA

8514

MCGA

VGA

SVGA

(VBE 1.x)

XGA

XGA-2

SVGA

(VBE 3.0)

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and TNT2 from NVIDIA. The bandwidth required by these cards was approaching the limits of the PCI bus

capacity. Intel developed the AGP (Accelerated Graphics

Port ) which solved the bottleneck between the microprocessor and the video card. From 1999 until

2002, NVIDIA controlled the video card market (taking over 3dfx) with the GeForce family.[6]

The improvements

carried out at this time were focused in 3D algorithms and graphics processor clock rate. Video memory was also

increased to improve their data rate; DDR technology was incorporated, improving the capacity of video memory

from 32 MB with GeForce to 128 MB with GeForce 4.

From 2002 onwards, the video card market came to be dominated almost entirely by the competition between ATI

and Nvidia, with their Radeon and Geforce lines respectively, taking around 90% of the independent graphics card

market between them, while other manufacturers were forced into much smaller, niche markets.[7]

A modern video card consists of a printed circuit board on which the components are mounted. These include:

Main article: Graphics

processing unit

A GPU is a dedicated processor optimized for accelerating graphics. The processor is designed specifically to

perform floating-point calculations, which are fundamental to 3D graphics rendering. The main attributes of the

GPU are the core clock frequency, which typically ranges from 250 MHz to 4 GHz and the number of pipelines

(vertex and fragment shaders), which translate a 3D image characterized by

vertices and lines into a 2D image formed by pixels.

The video BIOS or firmware contains the basic program, which is usually hidden, that governs the video card's

operations and provides the instructions that allow the computer and software to interact with the card. It may

contain information on the memory timing, operating speeds and voltages of the graphics processor, RAM, and

[edit]Components

[edit]Graphics processing unit (GPU)

[edit]Video BIOS

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other information. It is sometimes possible to change the BIOS (e.g. to enable factory-locked settings for higher

performance), although this is typically only done by video card overclockers and has the potential to irreversibly

damage the card.

The memory capacity of most modern video

cards ranges from 128 MB to 4 GB, though very

few cards actually go over 1 GB.[8][9]

Since video

memory needs to be accessed by the GPU and

the display circuitry, it often uses special high-

speed or multi-port memory, such as VRAM,

WRAM, SGRAM, etc. Around 2003, the video

memory was typically based on DDR technology. During and after that year, manufacturers moved towards DDR2,

GDDR3, GDDR4, and even GDDR5 utilized most notably by the ATI Radeon HD 4870. The effective memory clock

rate in modern cards is generally between 400 MHz and 3.8 GHz.

Video memory may be used for storing other data as well as the screen image, such as the Z-buffer, which

manages the depth coordinates in 3D graphics, textures, vertex buffers, and compiled shader programs.

The RAMDAC, or Random Access Memory Digital-to-Analog Converter, converts digital signals to analog signals for

use by a computer display that uses analog inputs such as CRT displays. Depending on the number of bits used

and the RAMDAC-data-transfer rate, the converter will be able to support different computer-display refresh rates.

With CRT displays, it is best to work over 75 Hz and never under 60 Hz, in order to minimize flicker.[10]

(With LCD

displays, flicker is not a problem.) Due to the growing popularity of digital computer displays and the integration of

the RAMDAC onto the GPU die, it has mostly disappeared as a discrete component. All current LCDs, plasma

displays and TVs work in the digital domain and do not require a RAMDAC. There are few remaining legacy LCD

and plasma displays that feature analog inputs (VGA, component, SCART etc.) only . These require a

[edit]Video memory

[edit]RAMDAC

Type Memory clock rate (MHz) Bandwidth (GB/s)

166 - 950 1.2 - 30.4

533 - 1000 8.5 - 16

700 - 2400 5.6 - 156.6

2000 - 3600 128 - 200

3400 - 5600 130 - 230

DDR

DDR2

GDDR3

GDDR4

GDDR5

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RAMDAC, but they reconvert the analog signal back to digital before they can display it, with the unavoidable loss

of quality stemming from this digital-to-analog-to-digital conversion.

The most common connection systems between the video card and the computer display are:

Analog-based standard adopted in the late 1980s designed for CRT displays,

also called VGA connector. Some problems of this standard are electrical noise,

image distortion and sampling error evaluating pixels.

Digital-based standard designed for displays such as flat-panel displays (LCDs,

plasma screens, wide high-definition television displays) and video projectors. It

avoids image distortion and electrical noise, corresponding each pixel from the

computer to a display pixel, using its native resolution.

Included to allow the connection with televisions, DVD players,

video recorders and video game consoles. They often come in

two 9-pin Mini-DIN connector variations, and the VIVO splitter

cable generally comes with either 4 connectors (S-Video in and

out + composite video in and out), or 6 connectors (S-Video in

and out + component PB out + component PR out +

[edit]Outputs

[edit]Video Graphics Array (VGA) (DE-15)

[edit]Digital Visual Interface (DVI)

[edit]Video In Video Out (VIVO) for S-Video, Composite video and Component video

Video Graphics Array (VGA)

(DE-15).

Digital Visual Interface (DVI).

9-pin VIVO for S-Video (TV-out), DVI for HDTV, and DE-15 for VGA outputs.

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component Y out [also composite out] + composite in).

An advanced digital audio/video interconnect released in 2003 and is commonly

used to connect game consoles and DVD players to a display. HDMI supports

copy protection through HDCP.

An advanced license- and royalty-free digital audio/video interconnect released

in 2007. DisplayPort intends to replace VGA and DVI for connecting a display to

a computer.

[edit]High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI)

[edit]DisplayPort

[edit]Other types of connection systems

Analog system with lower resolution; it uses the RCA connector.

It has three cables, each with RCA connector (YCBCR); it is used in projectors,

DVD players and some televisions.

An analog standard once used by Sun Microsystems, SGI and IBM.

A connector that provides two DVI outputs on a single connector.

Composite video

Component video

DB13W3

DMS-59

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Main articles: Bus

(computing) and Expansion

card

Chronologically, connection systems between video card and motherboard were, mainly:

[edit]Motherboard interface

● S-100 bus: designed in 1974 as a part of the Altair 8800, it was the first industry-standard bus for the

microcomputer industry.

● ISA: Introduced in 1981 by IBM, it became dominant in the marketplace in the 1980s. It was a 16-bit bus

clocked at 8 MHz.

● NuBus: Used in Macintosh II, it was a 32-bit bus with an average bandwidth of 10 to 20 MB/s.

● MCA: Introduced in 1987 by IBM it was a 32-bit bus clocked at 10 MHz.

● EISA: Released in 1988 to compete with IBM's MCA, it was compatible with the earlier ISA bus. It was a 32-bit

bus clocked at 8.33 MHz.

● VLB: An extension of ISA, it was a 32-bit bus clocked at 33 MHz.

● PCI: Replaced the EISA, ISA, MCA and VESA buses from 1993 onwards. PCI allowed dynamic connectivity

between devices, avoiding the jumpers manual adjustments. It is a 32-bit bus clocked 33 MHz.

● UPA: An interconnect bus architecture introduced by Sun Microsystems in 1995. It had a 64-bit bus clocked at

67 or 83 MHz.

● USB: Mostly used for other types of devices, but there are USB displays.

● AGP: First used in 1997, it is a dedicated-to-graphics bus. It is a 32-bit bus clocked at 66 MHz.

● PCI-X: An extension of the PCI bus, it was introduced in 1998. It improves upon PCI by extending the width of

bus to 64-bit and the clock frequency to up to 133 MHz.

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In the attached table[11]

is a comparison between a selection of the features of some of those interfaces.

Main article: Computer

[edit]Cooling devices

● PCI Express: Abbreviated PCIe, it is a point to point interface released in 2004. In 2006 provided double the

data-transfer rate of AGP. It should not be confused with PCI-X, an enhanced version of the original PCI

specification.

Bus Width (bits) Clock rate (MHz) Bandwidth (MB/s) Style

8 4,77 8 Parallel

16 8,33 16 Parallel

32 10 20 Parallel

32 8,33 32 Parallel

32 40 160 Parallel

32 - 64 33 - 100 132 - 800 Parallel

32 66 264 Parallel

32 66 528 Parallel

32 66 1000 Parallel

32 66 2000 Parallel

1 2500 / 5000 250 / 500 Serial

1 × 4 2500 / 5000 1000 / 2000 Serial

1 × 8 2500 / 5000 2000 / 4000 Serial

1 × 16 2500 / 5000 4000 / 8000 Serial

1 × 16 5000 / 10000 8000 / 16000 Serial

ISA XT

ISA AT

MCA

EISA

VESA

PCI

AGP 1x

AGP 2x

AGP 4x

AGP 8x

PCIe x1

PCIe x4

PCIe x8

PCIe x16

PCIe x16 2.0

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cooling

Video cards may use a lot of electricity, which is converted into heat. If the heat isn't dissipated, the video card

could overheat and be damaged. Cooling devices are incorporated to transfer the heat elsewhere. Three types of

cooling devices are commonly used on video cards:

As the processing power of video cards has increased, so has their demand for electrical power. Present fast video

cards tend to consume a great deal of power. While CPU and power supply makers have recently moved toward

higher efficiency, power demands of GPUs have continued to rise, so the video card may be the biggest electricity

user in a computer.[12][13]

Although power supplies are increasing their power too, the bottleneck is due to the PCI-

Express connection, which is limited to supplying 75 W.[14]

Nowadays, video cards with a power consumption over

75 watts usually include a combination of six-pin (75W) or eight-pin (150W) sockets that connect directly to the

power supply to supplement power.

[edit]Power demand

[edit]See also

● Heat sink: a heat sink is a passive-cooling device. It conducts heat away from the graphics card's core, or

memory, by using a heat-conductive metal (most commonly aluminum or copper); sometimes in combination

with heat pipes. It uses air (most common), or in extreme cooling situations, water (see water block), to

remove the heat from the card. When air is used, a fan is often used to increase cooling effectiveness.

● Computer fan: an example of an active-cooling part. It is usually used with a heat sink. Due to the moving

parts, a fan requires maintenance and possible replacement. The fan speed or actual fan can be changed for

more efficient or quieter cooling.

● Water block: a water block is a heat sink suited to use water instead of air. It is mounted on the graphics

processor and has a hollow inside. Water is pumped through the water block, transferring the heat into the

water, which is then usually cooled in a radiator. This is the most effective cooling solution without extreme

modification.

● List of manufacturers

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[edit]References

● ATI, NVIDIA - examples of 3D chip GPU and graphics card designers

● GeForce, Radeon – Examples of GPUs.

● Framebuffer - The computer memory used to store a screen image

● 3D computer graphics

● Z-buffering – A means of determining visibility.

● Texture mapping - A means of adding image details to a 3D scene

● Graphics hardware and FOSS

● Scalable Link Interface - NVIDIA's proprietary mechanism for scaling graphics performance

● ATI Crossfire - ATI's proprietary mechanism for scaling graphics performance

● Mini-DIN connector

● Video In Video Out (VIVO)

1. ^ "MDA in IBM PC". http://www.answers.com/topic/timeline-of-computing-1980-1989.

2. ^ "History Table Reference (1)". http://www.computerhope.com/help/video.htm.

3. ^ "History Table Reference (2)". http://www.martinreddy.net/gfx/SVGAInfo.

4. ^ "History Table Reference (3)". http://industrial-computers.globalspec.com/Specifications/

Industrial_Computers_Embedded_Computer_Components/Desktop_Personal_Computers/

Desktop_Personal_Computers.

5. ^ "History Table Reference (4)". http://burks.bton.ac.uk/burks/pcinfo/hardware/video/part4.htm.

6. ^ "NVIDIA takes over 3dfx". http://www.firingsquad.com/news/newsarticle.asp?searchid=2545.

7. ^ "NVIDIA vs ATI". http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=36433.

8. ^ ATI FireGL V8650.

9. ^ NVIDIA Quadro FX 5800 .

10. ^ "Refresh rate recommended". http://www.worldstart.com/tips/tips.php/1146.

11. ^ "Buses features". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_device_bandwidths#Computer_buses.

12. ^ http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/power-noise.html X-bit labs: Faster, Quieter, Lower: Power

Consumption and Noise Level of Contemporary Graphics Cards

Video card - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Search

[edit]External links

● Mueller, Scott (2005) Upgrading and Repairing

PCs . 16th edition. Que Publishing. ISBN 0-7897-3173-8

● How Graphics Cards Work at HowStuffWorks

Categories: Graphics hardware | Video cards

13. ^ http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000662.html Coding Horror Video Card Power Consumption

14. ^ "Power supply solution". http://www.maxim-ic.com/appnotes.cfm/an_pk/3605.

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