AMD A4-4355M vs AMD A10-5757M vs AMD A8-4500M

AMD A4-4355M

The AMD A4-4355M is a mobile ultra-low-voltage (ULV) dual-core processor based on the Trinity architecture. Officially introduced in Q4 2012, it is the direct successor to the Llano A-series of APUs (Accelerated Processing Unit). The processing unit is manufactured in 32nm SOI and integrates a 1.9 GHz CPU (up to 2.4 GHz w/ Turbo Core) with a Radeon HD 7400G GPU alongside a dual-channel memory controller, video de- and encoders and a northbridge.

The CPU cores are based on a reworked Bulldozer architecture, called Piledriver. Although marketed as a dual-core processor, the A4-4355M includes only one module with two integer-cores and a floating-point core. As a result, the CPU is not a true dual-core processor.

When compared to previous Bulldozer cores, AMD has managed to improve upon the IPC (instructions per clock) performance of Trinity cores while allowing for higher clock frequencies. However, when compared to its Llano predecessor, the multithreaded performance of Trinity has only been slightly improved. The enhanced Turbo Core 3.0 feature functions well in speeding up single threaded performance, although it is still not on the same level as Intel’s Turbo Boost equivalent. Regardless, AMD has managed to include other features as well, such as the AVX extension (including FMA) and support for AES encryption.

In terms of raw general performance, the A4-4355M performs significantly faster than the E-Series (e.g. E2-1800) and competes with Intels Celeron and Pentium ULV processors. CPU performance from the AMD processor should be sufficient for all daily workloads like Office and Internet browsing, but will reach its limits in more demanding applications and multitasking.

The APU integrates a DirectX 11-compatible GPU called Radeon HD 7400G.

The power consumption of the A4-4355M APU is rated at 17 Watt TDP and is therefore comparable to Intels ULV-processors. Consequently, the A4-4355M is best suited for thin-and-light notebooks.

AMD A10-5757M

The AMD A10-5757M is a mobile quad-core processor based on the Richland-architecture. In contrast to the A10-5750M, the 5757M is a BGA version. As the successor of the A10-4600M, the A10-5750M/5757M offers a slightly higher CPU and graphics performance and represents the new top model of the A-series (March 2013).

Compared to Trinity, Richland has been modified just slightly. Therefore, no changes in the feature set or the Pro-MHz performance can be reported. The design of the chip is still based on the Bulldozer architecture, which consists of so-called modules. Each of the two modules integrates 2 integer units, but only one FPU. Just like Trinity, Richland supports nearly all current techniques such as AVX (including FMA), AES or Turbo Core.

Our benchmarks show a performance increase of around 10 percent on the A10-4600M. Thus, the A10-5757M performs at the level of a Core i3-2330M (Sandy Bridge).

The graphics unit called Radeon HD 8650G offers 384 shader units (VLIW4) and clocks at 533 - 720 MHz (slightly higher than the HD 7660G). With fast dual-channel memory, performance is similar to a dedicated HD 7670M.

The power consumption of the entire APU is rated at 35 watts, which is comparable to conventional middle-class models of competition. Thus, the APU is best suited for 14 inch notebooks or bigger.

AMD A8-4500M

The AMD A8-4500M is a mobile quad-core processor based on the Trinity architecture. Officially introduced in Q2 2012, it is the direct successor to the Llano A-series of APUs (Accelerated Processing Unit). The processing unit is manufactured in 32nm SOI and integrates a 1.9 GHz CPU (up to 2.8 GHz w/ Turbo Core) with a relatively fast Radeon HD 7640G GPU alongside a dual-channel memory controller, video de- and encoders and a northbridge.

The CPU cores are based on a reworked Bulldozer architecture, called Piledriver. Although marketed as a quad-core processor, the A8-4500M includes only two modules with four integer-cores and two floating-point cores total. As a result, the CPU is not a true quad-core processor.

When compared to previous Bulldozer cores, AMD has managed to improve upon the IPC (instructions per clock) performance of Trinity cores while allowing for higher clock frequencies. However, when compared to its Llano predecessor, the multithreaded performance of Trinity has only been slightly improved. The enhanced Turbo Core 3.0 feature functions well in speeding up single threaded performance, although it is still not on the same level as Intel’s Turbo Boost equivalent. Regardless, AMD has managed to include other features as well, such as the AVX extension (including FMA) and support for AES encryption.

In terms of raw general performance, the A8-4500M performs similar to the Llano-based A8-3500M. Single-threaded workloads can especially benefit from the new architecture and the updated Turbo Core functionality. If compared to Intels Core-i3-series, the A8-4500M offers less performance in most cases. Nonetheless, CPU performance from the AMD processor should be sufficient for all daily workloads like Office, Internet browsing and even light video editing or gaming.

The integrated DirectX 11-compatible Radeon HD 7640G offers only 256 shader cores of the Trinity chip (7660G: 384) and, thanks to Turbo Core, will operate anywhere between 497 to 686 MHz depending on the current application demand. On average, the performance of the HD 7640G GPU is comparable to a dedicated Radeon HD 7610M and is even faster than the HD Graphics 4000 as found in Intel’s Ivy Bridge.

The power consumption of the A8-4500M APU is rated at 35 Watt TDP and is therefore comparable to mid-range dual-core Ivy Bridge processors. Consequently, the A8-4500M is best suited for 14-inch notebooks or larger.