Continuing to push its Visualization strategy, Sun Microsystems
Sun(TM) XVR-4000 graphics accelerator.
The development release will allow software vendors and customers to
thoroughly test and tune the new graphics technology for performance and
stability, before the final release, which is expected to come before the
end of the year.
The release of the XVR-4000 graphics accelerator signals a strong move
forward in Sun’s Visualization strategy, which was first initiated in March
with the release of Sun’s Personal Visualization Systems, based on the Sun
XVR-1000 graphics accelerator.
The XVR-4000 graphics accelerator targets customers in the manufacturing,
oil and gas, and scientific research industries who wish to run
visualization applications either in a personal immersive desk-side, a CAVE,
or a small or large Workgroup Visualization environment. Additionally, the
product is used for visual simulation segments that run training or
simulation applications in a multi-display environment.
“With the XVR-4000 graphics accelerator, Sun is moving the high-end
visualization market from experimentation and custom fabrications to more
affordable volume deployment platforms,” said Robbie Turner, vice president,
Client and Technical Market Products, Sun Microsystems.
The release signals a paradigm change for Sun in the development of
graphics, moving from outsourcing graphics requirements to focusing in-house
development on high-end visualization markets.
According to Sarang Ghatpande, a graphics analyst for D.B. Brown and
Associates, the move makes sense for the company.
“Going forward with the XVR-4000, SUN doesn’t want to focus on in-house
development of low-end graphics, which makes sense, because low-end has
become a commodity market and there is no value-added (feature) for Sun to
bring to the table,” said Ghatpande. “With the XVR-4000 they are moving up
the food chain in this new market segment that is dominated by SGI.”
With the XVR-4000 graphics accelerator, Sun is targeting SGI
XVR-4000 graphics accelerator is expected to deliver nine times better 3D
geometry performance than SGI’s Infinite Reality (IR-3) graphics and four
times the usable texture memory.
Ghatpande notes that the geometry performance, along with the 1MB of extra
texture memory are important features, and will prove important for Sun to
distinguish itself from SGI, yet notes that it is just one aspect of
performance and the accelerator will be judged as a whole.
The XVR-4000 graphics accelerator is expected to be available later this
year for less than $30,000 list price.
Sun Addresses Graphics Market with New Tools
