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The AMD graphics part found inside the Wii U will be based on the firm’s Radeon HD 4000 family – two generations above the HD 2000 line which has similarities to the graphics chip inside the Xbox 360 – reports Japanese video games website Game Watch.
The Radeon HD 4000 line saw a commercial release for PC builders in 2009/2009 and sports support for Shader Model 4.1. In comparison the Xbox 360 and PS3 graphics parts are Shader Model 3.0 level.
Of course there are vastly different performance levels within a specific GPU line, based on clock speed, the number of shader units, memory bandwidth and other specs. In addition Nintendo may have requested a level of customisation to the GPU, which could introduce additional functionality.
According to Game Watch, the Radeon part powering the Wii U has a secondary output mode, capable of generating an HD image for the main display and four additional SD images for Wii U controllers. This functionality is reported to not currently be utilised due to cost concerns. There’s also the issue of wireless bandwidth to transmit the four separate images to the Wii U controllers – something which could also scupper any plans of multiple tablets being active simultaneously.
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