January 23-24, 2002

Towards the Fanless PCTowards the Fanless PC

Bill GervasiBill Gervasi

Technology Analyst, TransmetaTechnology Analyst, Transmeta

Chairman, JEDEC Memory ParametricsChairman, JEDEC Memory Parametrics

bilge@transmeta.combilge@transmeta.com

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The New Multimedia PCsThe New Multimedia PCs

What doesn’t fit? MP3 music & DVD movies 100W per channel amplifier Surround sound speaker system

MP3 music & DVD movies 100W per channel amplifier Surround sound speaker system PC fans, disks, etc. with 75 dB of

white noise

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Market EffectsMarket Effects

PC having trouble escaping the den Too noisy for family room or bedroom Always-on strategies have failed

Limits applications for PCs Can’t hook into main sound system Can’t displace gaming stations

PCs not meeting government standards Especially in Europe Too noisy, consume too much power

Office and POS impacted by noise

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Why Are PCs So Noisy???Why Are PCs So Noisy???

Fans everywhere!!! Fan in the power supply Fans by the PCI/AGP cards Fans at the front of the box Fan on top of the CPU Fan on top of the graphics controller

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Know Your EnemyKnow Your Enemy

Wanted: Dead (only)

PublicEnemies

#1#2

#3 #4

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Fan NoiseFan Noise

And these are just the CPU fans!!!

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Why Do We Need Fans?Why Do We Need Fans?

CPUs on runaway thermal path Graphics controller overkill Memory subsystems not well managed Add-in cards with unknown wattage

requirements

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First Worst Culprit: The CPUFirst Worst Culprit: The CPU

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Transistor TrendsTransistor Trends

Pentium is a trademark of Intel Corp.

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CPU Power TrendsCPU Power Trends

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CPU Power Density, 2000-2010CPU Power Density, 2000-2010

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… … and the CPUand the CPUisn’t the onlyisn’t the onlypower hog inpower hog inthe system …the system …

… … while most subsystems while most subsystems are stable, the graphics are stable, the graphics

controller challenges the controller challenges the CPU for watts …CPU for watts …

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x86 PC Platform Powerx86 PC Platform Power

GraphicsGraphics

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PC GraphicsPC Graphics

2D & text essentially unchanged Addition of video acceleration & data

types 3D explosion

Texturing, bumping Antialiasing

Out of control… !!!

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PC Graphics RealityPC Graphics Reality

Few features ever used 2D & text is still the dominant use

Wasted frame buffer performance 9.6 GB/s memory bandwidth for 2D???

AGP bus a power drain

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Memory & ChipsetsMemory & Chipsets

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MemoryMemory

Market just now shifting from 3.3V SDRAM

Full size 5 ¼“ DIMMs, 3 slots Does a mainstream PC need 1.5 GB???

No power management implemented Thermal throttles enabled only when the

bandwidth is really needed

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ChipsetsChipsets

No power management Inefficient buses with PLLs “Soft peripherals” using power hungry

CPU instead of ultra low power DSPs Polled mode peripherals burn power on

bus Interrupting protocols (like USB) prevent

deep sleep modes

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What About Other Sources of What About Other Sources of Noise?Noise?

DVD or CD drives

Hard disk drives

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Other Sources of Noise: DVDOther Sources of Noise: DVDRicoh MP9060A-DP

The first thing we didn't like was a noisy work of the optical head (2 times louder than that of TEAC 532EB(32x)).

As you know, loud CD spinning is one of the major drawbacks of all CD-ROMs with more than 24x. Here, thanks to the tight-fitting tray, nothing can be heard... but the

combine may not "like" some kinds of discs, in this case there begins strong vibration with some noisy effects. …

AOpen DRW4624

Noise effects are practically the same as that of the Ricoh device. The construction of the tray's lid is not ideal, so there is some unpleasant air whistle. The combine is not so sensible to the disc quality and balance. It read low-quality discs more quietly and without so strong vibration. The combine did not overheat after it had written 6 discs successively. The tray and the case were just a little warm.

Samsung SM-304

In this case noise effects were quite inaudible, the tray fitted tight. The optical head moved noiselessly. The combine is not sensible to the disc quality (perhaps, it depends on the type of the tray). …

Toshiba SD-R1002

As for noise effects we can place this combine between Ricoh and Samsung. Since there installed the standard tray, you can hear the "standard" air noise. The combine is not very sensitive to the disc quality, though there is some light vibration. The tray's lid fits quite tight. The optical head moves noiselessly. …

Source: http://www.digit-life.com/articles/dvdcdrwreview/

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Other Sources of Noise: HDDOther Sources of Noise: HDD

db(A)

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What effectWhat effecthas this trend hadhas this trend hadon the PC market?on the PC market?

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Desktop PCs are a CommodityDesktop PCs are a Commodity

Margins are shrinking everywhere so OEMs are relying upon other sources Internet signup bounties (AOL, Earthlink) Subscription services (Real Networks) Software services (Quicken)

Press & Analysts are saying the “PC is dead”

Rapid technology advances have out-paced user needs Free CPU Cycles, Free GB, Free Bandwidth

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What the world needs now…What the world needs now…

eefficient fficient cocomputingmputing

ecoecoPCPC

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ecoecoPC GoalsPC Goals

No fans, no noise Never needs to be

turned off Utilize existing industry infrastructure Lay out a new roadmap for the future

Cost competitive with BYO generic boxes

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Today’s Product DifferentiationToday’s Product Differentiation

iMac NetVista iPAQ Desktop DISCOVERYThin Client

Differentiated designs– right idea but NO MASS MARKET

Prevents volume discount of infrastructure

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What Do BYO Generic Boxes What Do BYO Generic Boxes Do Right?Do Right?

$BOM $BOM $BOM

These things are dirt cheap because they use standard parts

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Low Energy Consumption 15Watt Typical, 20Watt Max

Low Cost of Acquisition Sub $800

Low Noise No fans, quiet drives = Silent PC

Low Space Consumption 1” thick chassis

Low Cost of Operation Low Energy Bills from Power Efficiency

Low TCO Maintenance Costs Legacy Free

Low Cost of Manufacturing & Assembly Standard parts like BYO generic

ecoecoPC: Segment DefinitionPC: Segment DefinitionWindows XP Based PCWindows XP Based PC

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Similar to today’s notebooks

Low power x86 CPU & energy efficient chipset Low power graphics, integrated or discrete Low power hard disk & optical drive RAM: DDR 2.5V External power supply No cooling fans Legacy free USB or Bluetooth keyboard & mouse Integrated LAN, modem, 802.11 wireless

ecoecoPC -- Key SpecsPC -- Key Specs

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No extra bays; only external expansion Universal Flash slot: CF, Smart, Stick No PCI-class add-in slots

Cardbus? Possibly…need a better expansion strategy!

1394 & USB suffer from abstraction overhead

Universal Docking with serialized host bus PCI or HyperTransport or 3GIO Merges out-of-box with native contact

ecoecoPC -- ExpansionPC -- Expansion

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ecoecoPC PeripheralsPC Peripherals

New ecoPC specification needed Acoustic limits defined Drives selected for low noise

DVD Hard disk

Power limits strictly enforced Thermal/power sensors prevent violation ecoPC certification and logo

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ecoecoPC Processing UnitsPC Processing Units

On Demand processing Monitor system activity and shut off unused execution

units Scale operational frequency on application demand

E.g., LongRunTM & PowerNow!TM

Utilize every microsecond that power is being burned Offload interruptions to remote low power units (e.g.,

DMA units, DSPs)

LongRun is a trademark of Transmeta Corp.PowerNow! is a trademark of AMD Corp.

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Power = CVPower = CV22f%f%

Factors: Capacitance (C) Voltage (V) Frequency (f) Duty cycle (%) Power states

Keys to mobile

design:

Reduce C and V Match f to demand Minimize duty cycle Utilize power states

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ecoecoPC CPUPC CPU

Low Transistor Count CPU Seldom executed instructions in software Run time optimization

Scaleable operating frequency and voltage

Integrates smart memory controller Utilize every powered microsecond

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ecoecoPC GraphicsPC Graphics

Shuts down unused pipes 2D, 3D, video Rendering engines Slows memory during screen refresh

Avoid unnecessary operations Scatter-gather DMA using SMA Focal point prioritized rendering resolution

Thermal limits switch rendering style Reduce rendering quality of low priority objects

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ecoecoPC MemoryPC Memory

JEDEC roadmap triples GB/s/W with each generation Power reduction of 30% Bandwidth doubles

Move from 3 DIMMs to 2 SO-DIMMs Sufficient capacity, higher performance,

lower power, and no evil PLLs

SDR DDR I DDR IISDR DDR I DDR II3.3V 2.5V 1.8V3.3V 2.5V 1.8V

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Power: DDR II vs DDR I vs SDRPower: DDR II vs DDR I vs SDR

Relative GB/s per Watt

PC133

DDR333

“DDR I”

Four times the bandwidth yet half the power!

DDR533

“DDR II”

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Low Power DRAM FuturesLow Power DRAM Futures

Aggressive use of power states (CKE) Increased refresh flexibility

Temperature compensated refresh Partial array refresh

Reduced page size Fewer cells discharged/recharged

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ecoecoPC DRAM TimingPC DRAM Timing

Relaxed mode timing Comprehend effects of DLL

Aligns data to clock on reads… only! Use DRAM in low performance mode while

DLL is not locked Accommodate wide range on clock to strobe

> tDQSCK

CK

DQS

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Strobe to Data is FixedStrobe to Data is Fixed

H

L

DATA

DQS

ODDDATA

EVENDATA

EVENDATAENABLE

ODDDATAENABLE

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tDQSQ even odd

DQS

DLL has no effect on data to strobe timing, therefore DRAM can

be used while DLL not locked!

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Why Relaxed Mode Timing?Why Relaxed Mode Timing?

Utilize the DLL/PLL lock times 2-100 s per power management event Allows much finer granularity on control Better utilization of powered on state

Switch back to full performance mode after the DLL/PLL lock

This concept can be applied to any locked bus

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BuildingBuilding

thethe

ecoecoPC PC

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Today’s PCToday’s PC

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Cooler CPUCooler CPU

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Integrated GraphicsIntegrated Graphics

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Efficient MemoryEfficient Memory

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Eliminate PCIEliminate PCI

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No FansNo Fans

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Slimline CaseSlimline Case

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ecoecoPCPC

A NewA NewStandardStandard

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ConclusionsConclusions Thermals of today’s PCs too

high Use of fans to cool PCs restricts

market growth

ecoPC standard definition needed to expand the PC market Low heat No noise Performance on demand

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SummarySummary We have the basic components

for the ecoPC now from notebook market

Future focus on high computing efficiency will increase performance without compromising power or noise limits

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Thank YouThank You