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Delivering powerful serial and parallel computing capabilities for HD video, 3D rendering, and data-intensive workloads in a single-die processor, AMD’s A-Series APUs offer unprecedented power and potential in an ever smaller package.

This 3.0 GHz AMD A8-3870K APU combines four unlocked x86 CPU cores with an AMD Radeon HD 6550D graphics processor featuring dedicated HD video processing and DirectX 11 support–all on a single chip. AMD A-Series APUs also allow for advanced capabilities such as gestural interfaces, multi-monitor support, 3D entertainment and real-time image stabilization (additional hardware may be required).

Additionally, AMD’s dynamic switchable graphics capabilities optimize power consumption on PCs featuring AMD dual-graphics solutions by intelligently managing power states on the APU and a separate discrete AMD Radeon GPU.

Build or upgrade your desktop with this AMD A8-3870K APU and a compatible FM1 socket-compatible motherboard (sold separately; see a range of options below).

What is an APU?

Personal computers have traditionally been built with a central processing unit (CPU) that handled the bulk of the system processing and was linked to a graphics processing unit (GPU), which was used for rendering 2D and 3D images.

Traditional PC architecture with separate central and graphics processing units.

An accelerated processing unit (APU) combines a powerful AMD processor and a discrete-class, DirectX 11-capable GPU on a single chip. The APU can quickly offload demanding tasks and applications from your CPU to the GPU, enabling you to do more with your computer in less time.

AMD’s A-Series APUs accelerate daily applications while also delivering lower power consumption than previous AMD processor-based desktop platforms. For example, enhanced hardware acceleration delivers smooth online streaming of HD content and web browsing that’s up to 3 times faster. Some of the over 50 applications that benefit from accelerated processing include Windows Internet Explorer 9, Firefox 4, Microsoft Office, and Adobe Flash Player.

Brilliant HD: Every Pixel Matters

Complementing the quad-core processing power of the AMD A8-3870K APU is an AMD Radeon HD 6550D graphics processing unit and the cutting-edge AMD VISION Engine, which combine to provide powerful DirectX 11-capable discrete-level graphics and dedicated HD video processing on a single chip.

A key feature of AMD’s VISION Engine is the Radeon Core (also called a GPU shader processor), which calculate rendering effects with a high degree of flexibility for customized effects. The AMD Radeon HD 6550D contains 400 Radeon Cores, which compares to 80 Radeon Cores found on the AMD E-350 accelerated processor.

You’ll enjoy crystal clear HD video playback and dynamic post-processing, and web sites will render faster with accelerated HTML5 and Direct2D performance. Editing, transferring and viewing HD content is fast and easy with support for advanced connection standards, including HDMI 1.4a, DisplayPort 1.1, and USB 3.0, along with native support for multiple monitors. And AMD’s A-Series APUs include a new feature called AMD Steady Video, which is designed to stabilize videos during playback–making unsteady, jumpy content look steady and smooth.

DirectX 11 is the very latest in high-speed, high-fidelity gaming and computing. Featuring technologies like Compute Shaders, Direct2D, Multithreaded Rendering and Tessellation, DirectX 11 can enable not just more visually stunning games, but significant performance improvements in some of your favorite websites and everyday applications.