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Nvidia revs up game notebooks

Notebooks with Nvidia's technology can now handle two graphics chips, and desktops up to four.

Tom Krazit
Nvidia on Thursday unveiled new technology that will let gamers double the number of graphics chips in their desktops and notebooks.

The company's SLI (scalable link interface) technology now allows PC users to put up to four graphics processors in their desktop PCs to handle the most demanding high-definition video and games, Nvidia announced at the CeBit technology fair in Hannover, Germany. PC makers such as Dell, which previewed a Quad SLI system at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, and others like Alienware, Voodoo and Falcon Northwest can now offer the technology to their customers.

However, like most PC users, gamers are increasingly using notebooks as their primary systems. They'll also now be able to take advantage of multiple graphics processors with support for two GeForce Go 7800 GTX processors in Nvidia's nForce4 SLI chipset. Sager, Alienware, Velocity Micro and Voodoo announced notebooks with the technology at CeBit.

Nvidia also pressed onward with new standalone graphics processors for add-in graphics cards. The GeForce 7900 GTX, 7900 GT and 7600 GT represent the new high end of Nvidia's graphics technology, and cards featuring the chips will be available soon. (Click here for a CNET review of the GeForce 7900 GTX.)

Meanwhile, consumers who aren't looking to play a lot of games can get by with basic graphics technology integrated into a PC's chipset. That basic performance got a boost this week with Nvidia's new integrated graphics chipset for Advanced Micro Devices' Turion notebook processors that can play high-definition video.