One of the advantages of higher integration is lower power consumption and that, combined with the 32 nm
process, helps keep the A8-3850's power consumption under control. Now in this graph there are two sets of
numbers for the APU, one with, and one without the HD 5870 card. Without the card the system idles at just 50
watts and under CPU-load reaches 157 watts. The dedicated card adds 25 W to both figures and brings the
numbers very close to those of the i5- and i7-processors.
We also tried simultaneously loading the GPU and the HD 6550D, which brought the wattage up to 180 W. So
even in worst case scenario the whole Lynx-platform drew under 200 watts from the grid, and once you take into
account the PSU efficiency of about 85% at this load, the number is not half bad for a system as capable as
this.
Conclusion
PROS
Low cost of the platform
Connectivity (graphics, USB3, S-ATA3)
Reasonable power consumption
GPU-performance
CONS
-
Editor's Choice Award!
To wrap the performance figures up, it's no surprise that the new APU can't match the CPU-oomph of the
Phenoms and higher spec Intel-models, but that's not really the point, either. The thing is, these A-series
APUs are never even meant for high performance use, but rather designed to offer ENOUGH performance for most
uses, and indeed for regular office, and especially HTPC-needs the 2,9 GHz quad core is all you'll ever going
to need.
The graphics, on the other hand, proved very capable indeed, it's in a whole different league when compared
to the older IGPs, and makes entry level graphic cards useless. It also packs DX11 and all the connectivity
you could ask for.
Overall then, the Lynx offers good CPU- and GPU performance at reasonable power consumption and with
excellent connectivity and looks like a very tempting platform for a number of uses. In fact, I hope I can
keep the test hardware and build myself a new combined HTPC/file server out of these components
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