AMD faces class action suit over Bulldozer missrepresentation

[Prysin]

So? Few programs would see, as in use, the iGPU and CPU as "12 compute cores".

They still get advertised as having 12 compute cores, on websites and in stores, its still misleading.

 

While AMD explains what the 12 compute cores are, they still call them 12 compute cores:

http://www.amd.com/en-us/products/processors/desktop/a-series-apu

 

The very term itself is misleading, and if AMD didn't want people to think that their APU were 12 cores they shouldn't even be using the term "12 compute cores". They know that most people buying their products wont understand the terminology at all even with an explanation as to what they mean by compute cores.

 

lets see how many mention it as 12 core or 12 compute core...

 

Komplett Norway: does not market as 12 core

https://www.komplett.no/product/806072/datautstyr/prosessorer/amd-a10-7850k-black-edition-socket-fm2#

 

Newegg: markets it as quad core.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113359&cm_re=A10_7850k-_-19-113-359-_-Product

 

Amazon: does market as 12 compute core. BUT they do also outline that it is 4 CPU and 8 graphics.

http://www.amazon.com/AMD-A10--A10-7850K-Socket-AD785KXBJABOX/dp/B00H7Z7YMI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1446860884&sr=8-1&keywords=A10+7850k

 

Overclockers UK: Does market as 12 Compute BUT they also outline it is 4 CPU and 8 graphics...

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/amd-kaveri-a10-7850k-12-compute-core-apu-w-radeon-r7-graphics-4-cpu-8-gpu-compute-cores-reta-cp-372-am.html

 

do i need to go on?

 

EDIT: in regards to your last few lines.

If a consumer is uncertain about a product, it is his or her responsibility to investigate and educate themselves on the product before purchasing. This can be done either by searching the web, or by asking customer support/staff. It is the responsibility of the retailers selling these SKUs to make sure it is NOT confusing for THEIR customers..

 

Remember the chain of "purchase" goes:

AMD -> Retailer -> Customer

 

AMDs responsibility lies in giving retailers AS DETAILED AND CORRECT INFORMATION AS POSSIBLE SO THEY CAN SELL THEIR STUFF WITH THE CORRECT INFO. They have done that, pretty clearly too.

[Dabombinable]

lets see how many mention it as 12 core or 12 compute core...

 

Komplett Norway: does not market as 12 core

https://www.komplett.no/product/806072/datautstyr/prosessorer/amd-a10-7850k-black-edition-socket-fm2#

 

Newegg: markets it as quad core.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113359&cm_re=A10_7850k-_-19-113-359-_-Product

 

Amazon: does market as 12 compute core. BUT they do also outline that it is 4 CPU and 8 graphics.

http://www.amazon.com/AMD-A10--A10-7850K-Socket-AD785KXBJABOX/dp/B00H7Z7YMI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1446860884&sr=8-1&keywords=A10+7850k

 

Overclockers UK: Does market as 12 Compute BUT they also outline it is 4 CPU and 8 graphics...

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/amd-kaveri-a10-7850k-12-compute-core-apu-w-radeon-r7-graphics-4-cpu-8-gpu-compute-cores-reta-cp-372-am.html

 

do i need to go on?

That is barely a fraction of all of the stores that sell them, or computers with them.

[Prysin]

That is barely a fraction of all of the stores that sell them, or computers with them.

yeah, but 3 of those ship globally...

 

lets check NCIX too shall we? Seeing as they too ship internationally -> NCIX says its a quad core CPU

http://www.ncix.com/detail/amd-a10-7850k-black-edition-47-92941-1378.htm

 

also, reread my last post. edited in a part in response to your quote

[Dabombinable]

yeah, but 3 of those ship globally...

 

lets check NCIX too shall we? Seeing as they too ship internationally -> NCIX says its a quad core CPU

http://www.ncix.com/detail/amd-a10-7850k-black-edition-47-92941-1378.htm

 

also, reread my last post. edited in a part in response to your quote

Look, stores are there to sell a product, and if AMD uses terms that make selling a product easier, they'll do whatever they need to do to sell it. When you start dealing with people who know nothing more than how to use a computer for basic tasks such as online shopping, Facebook and so on, you'll understand why I say the term compute cores is misleading despite AMD's explanation.

[CoolaxGaming]

I think I started a flame war about this once...

[TechGod]

https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/217672-analysis-amd-lawsuit-over-false-bulldozer-chip-marketing-is-without-merit

[Dabombinable]

https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/217672-analysis-amd-lawsuit-over-false-bulldozer-chip-marketing-is-without-merit

And that's what you get when people don't know that ALU are the same as coprocessors from the 80's and 90's.

[Clyne]

I think I started a flame war about this once...

This lawsuit is stupid in the first place anyway, it should be thrown out/rejected.

If AMD had the "Bulldozer" design for more than 5 years, why haven't AMD been sued yet.

It's just 8 cores, but AMD marketing never actually said it was physical or not. It had 8 logical cores for sure which could be defined as a "8 Core", surely AMD must have though of this before they released Bulldozer to the public.

[Belgarathian]

This whole lawsuit kinda seems like a massive troll to me. 

 

[patrickjp93]

Says I.

Cores always had symmetrical floating point and integer math capability. If you make a CPU effectively a 4 core for floating point operations, and an 8 core for integer calculations, you have a 4 core. Rule of weakest link.

Uh...no. Go back to the 8086 or even the generation pre-Pentium 2. You had to buy a dedicated math coprocessor to get floating point capability.

[patrickjp93]

@patrickjp93

can you please explain to this person why GPGPU is near worthless to the normal man-in-the-street consumer?

cuz my patience is wearing a bit thin here

@LAwLz, for now he's right. Without the software infrastructure out there (much like the missing multithreaded support out there), it's near pointless to mention the capability outside professional circles.

[SeriousDad69]

Cant wait for some lawyerberg to get his big payday and for me to get my $4 in the mail.

[TechStyle]

I feel like AMD is always in some hot water.

 

*sees myself out*

[patrickjp93]

I feel like AMD is always in some hot water.

 

*sees myself out*

I just hope after 2016 either AMD fails completely or makes a roaring comeback. I'm sick of the fan children and of the desperation. Either way is a victory for consumers. The triangle between AMD, Nvidia, and Intel must either be balanced or destroyed. If AMD can't sustain competition, it's useless to keep around and a hindrance to a brighter future for the tech world.

[TechGod]

I just hope after 2016 either AMD fails completely or makes a roaring comeback. I'm sick of the fan children and of the desperation. Either way is a victory for consumers. The triangle between AMD, Nvidia, and Intel must either be balanced or destroyed. If AMD can't sustain competition, it's useless to keep around and a hindrance to a brighter future for the tech world.

I'm hoping on the whole comeback thing tbh.

[Dabombinable]

Uh...no. Go back to the 8086 or even the generation pre-Pentium 2. You had to buy a dedicated math coprocessor to get floating point capability.

If he'd been reading the posts he'd have seen me mention that-and I've got to find it but I do have a 387 DX40 coprocessor to go with my 386 DX40. Now I never actually needed it since I didn't have programs for it, but it was nice to have.

 

Edit: For those with no idea what the 386 DX 40 is, http://redhill.net.au/c/c-4.html

Edit 2: My DX40 is a socketed variant, if it dies I can replace it.

Edit 3: A 486 was pretty much just a 386 with the coprocessor built in, aka it had an ALU.

[patrickjp93]

I'm hoping on the whole comeback thing tbh.

I'd personally prefer AMD laid down and died. No one fighting a 2-front war has ever won in the end, and at least Intel and Nvidia would try to rip each other to pieces and would trade blows while pursuing the peaks of their engineering prowess. AMD has neither the budget nor the manpower to push two sides of the computing industry long-term. Shortly after Zen's arrival, Kaby Lake will be there to answer, I don't see it being remotely possible to end in favor of AMD's resurgence, but I've never played the long odds other than 1 lottery ticket a year.

[patrickjp93]

If he'd been reading the posts he'd have seen me mention that-and I've got to find it but I do have a 387 DX40 coprocessor to go with my 386 DX40. Now I never actually needed it since I didn't have programs for it, but it was nice to have.

 

Edit: For those with no idea what the 386 DX 40 is, http://redhill.net.au/c/c-4.html

Edit 2: My DX40 is a socketed variant, if it dies I can replace it.

That is...ancient... How the Hell does the board it's attached to still work? Under electrical current copper oxidizes fairly rapidly, not as rapidly as silver, but still...

[SurvivorNVL]

-Patrick level snip-

What if AMD were bought out by Apple?  I've been thinking on that a lot lately, and if there was a way to enable three way competition - that would be it in all likelihood. 

[Dabombinable]

That is...ancient... How the Hell does the board it's attached to still work? Under electrical current copper oxidizes fairly rapidly, not as rapidly as silver, but still...

I've looked after it, though while in storage the battery from my 286 (which funnily enough seemed almost as fast as my 386, despite being from 1982) and shitty 486 (I've got a far faster and newer one that was a true upgrade from my 386, but no board for it) leaked onto it and corroded the tracks around the header for the front panel-meaning that I need to either get the minor corrosion repaired or just start doing some wiring. The board itself never had the optional barrel battery installed (thank god I went for an expensive board) and relies in Lithium-Ion battery packs for its Bios. There is actually a protective coating over the tracks on the PCB which was eaten away around the header.

[TechGod]

I'd personally prefer AMD laid down and died. No one fighting a 2-front war has ever won in the end, and at least Intel and Nvidia would try to rip each other to pieces and would trade blows while pursuing the peaks of their engineering prowess. AMD has neither the budget nor the manpower to push two sides of the computing industry long-term. Shortly after Zen's arrival, Kaby Lake will be there to answer, I don't see it being remotely possible to end in favor of AMD's resurgence, but I've never played the long odds other than 1 lottery ticket a year.

That's the thing. AMD will not die. People have been saying they'll die for the past seen years and they haven't. Furthermore if AMD can stage a comeback, then yeah, they'll fight on two fronts and might end up being able to fight Intel and Nvidia and drive tech forward.

[patrickjp93]

What if AMD were bought out by Apple?  I've been thinking on that a lot lately, and if there was a way to enable three way competition - that would be it in all likelihood. 

As a Macbook Pro Retina owner: BARF! Apple would never sell to other platforms than its own. Qualcomm is the last longshot hope AMD has of getting a buyout. Samsung being foreign (even if in US-cosy Japan) would be denied by the FTC over national security concerns. Apple being Apple, good Lord please no... No one is a worse patent troll than Apple. For every frivolous lawsuit Nvidia brings against Samsung, Apple brings 5. Apple is not an open company at all. It would mean the end of competition in the PC space. Nvidia getting x86_64 and Intel getting control of Radeon would mean two financial and technological heavyweights would be duking it out instead of two heavyweights giving an occasional love tap to a co-competitor barely left standing

[Dabombinable]

That's the thing. AMD will not die. People have been saying they'll die for the past seen years and they haven't. Furthermore if AMD can stage a comeback, then yeah, they'll fight on two fronts and might end up being able to fight Intel and Nvidia and drive tech forward.

AMD can only get cash injections from the US government so many times....they will get to a point where they have no alternative but to declare bankruptcy.

[SurvivorNVL]

-Snip-

Can't argue with that.

[patrickjp93]

That's the thing. AMD will not die. People have been saying they'll die for the past seen years and they haven't. Furthermore if AMD can stage a comeback, then yeah, they'll fight on two fronts and might end up being able to fight Intel and Nvidia and drive tech forward.

For a year or two... Nvidia's happy to accept Intel's payments for GPU IP, which the blue beast resents but has no alternative to go after since AMD and Nvidia are the two biggest owners of GPU IP and are patent trolls nearly on par with Apple when it comes to GPU IP (and since AMD refused to license Radeon tech to Intel bak in 2010). Intel's perfectly happy to keep AMD on life support to prevent the FTC from forcing it to sell the x86 license to someone other than VIA. Nvidia's happy to keep AMD barely alive so it doesn't have to duel Intel in graphics card price wars.

 

AMD makes a 1-year comeback with the cash to last another 10. Suddenly Icelake (rumored Cannonlake replacement) and Volta move in with absolutely unprecedented performance increases, and AMD's left alive but scrambling and struggling, with no one to push Nvidia and Intel to keep shedding blood to keep customers happy (Intel has IBM and Nvidia to contend with on the highest end of the server side as we all know, but that's not to say a lack of strong competition elsewhere would be good for consumers).