Nvidia 退出晶片組 ? |
 | ||
| ||
繪圖晶片大廠恩威迪亞（Nvidia）由於產品出現瑕疵，導致惠普、戴爾和聯想等主要PC大廠約1,800萬台產品受到波及；外電並報導，Nvidia可能退出系統晶片組市場，將晶片組研發人員調到繪圖晶片研發專案，但此傳言被Nvidia公司嚴厲駁斥。 Nvidia目前是台積電（2330）晶圓代工前五大客戶，Nvidia近幾年在繪圖晶片市場一直維持領先地位，跨足系統晶片組市場短短幾年，即取代威盛（2388），成為全球最大超微平台晶片組供應商，在英特爾平台晶片組市場也有番成績。 不過，外電最近報導，Nvidia評估退出晶片組市場，並可能將其晶片組部門的人員調動到繪圖晶片專案中，還有一些主機板廠商已取消了基於nForce7系列晶片組的高階主機板研發項目。Nvidia發言管道認為以上傳言「不實且沒有根據」。 晶片組和繪圖晶片為Nvidia兩大主力產品，在繪圖晶片部分，外電報導，Nvidia先前表示，部分G84和G86系列筆記本顯卡的核心和封裝材料組合存在缺陷，如果核心溫度變化起伏比較頻繁，就會引發故障，導致客戶產品受到影響。 惠普日前列出24款包含了Nvidia繪圖晶片瑕疵的筆記型電腦機種，並表示該漏洞去年11 月起就已經成了保固問題。 Nvidia則表示，只有一部分的筆記本晶片出現品質問題，桌上型電腦相關產品不受影響。 【2008/08/04 經濟日報】 |
http://udn.com/NEWS/FINANCE/FIN3/4454509.shtml
G84 系列
* 8600GS
* 8600GT
* 8600GTS
* 8600M GS
* 8600M GT
* 8700MGT
G86 系列
* 8300GS
* 8400GS
* 8400M G
* 8400M GS
* 8400M GT
* 8500GT
All Nvidia G84 and G86s are bad
Comment No word on MCPs yet
THE BURNING QUESTION on everyone's mind is what Nvidia parts are failing in the field? No GT200 jokes here, NV personnel are still quite sensitive about that, but our moles have told us about the bum GPUs.
The short story is that all the G84 and G86 parts are bad. Period. No exceptions. All of them, mobile and desktop, use the exact same ASIC, so expect them to go south in inordinate numbers as well. There are caveats however, and we will detail those in a bit.
Both of these ASICs have a rather terminal problem with unnamed substrate or bumping material, and it is heat related. If you ask Nvidia officially, you will get no reason why this happened, and no list of parts affected, we tried. Unofficially, they will blame everyone under the sun, and trash their suppliers in very colourful language.
The press is totally stonewalled, but analysts are quite another story. If you call up with Wall Street credentials, they will tell you what is going on, but unfortunately it doesn't seem to be entirely accurate. What analysts tell me they were officially told is that it is a specific batch of parts that only HP got.
The official story is that it was a batch of end-of-life parts that used a different bonding/substrate process for only that batch. Once again, the trusty INQUIRER bullshit detectors went off so loudly that the phone almost vibrated out of my hand. More than enough people tell us both the G84 and G86 use the same ASIC across the board, and no changes were made during their lives.
When the process engineers pinged by the INQ picked themselves off the floor from laughing, they politely said that there is about zero chance that NV would change the assembly process or material set for a batch, much less an EOL part.
On the less technical side, multiple analysts also told us that NV specifically told them that this problem is confined only to HP. I wonder why Dell is having failures in huge numbers for their XPS lines and replacing them with ATI parts? Why is Asus having similar problems? Go check the message boards, any notebooks that came with G84s and G86s have boards filled with dead machine problems. Most of these, especially on the NV forums are being quashed and removed by admins, so act quickly and take screenshots of your posts.
Basically, NV seems to have told each analyst a highly personalised version of the story, and stonewalls everyone else who asks. Why? The magnitude of the problem is huge. If Dell and HP hold their feet to the fire, anyone want to bet that $200 million won't cover it? This has all the hallmarks of things the SEC used to investigate in a time before government was purchasable.
The other problem is the long tail. Failures occur due to heat cycling, cold -> hot -> cold for the non-engineers out there. If you remember, we said all G84s and G86s are affected, and all are the same ASIC, so why aren't the desktop parts dying? They are, you are just low enough on the bell curve that you don't see it in number that set off alarm bells publicly yet.
Laptops get turned on and off many times in a day, and due to the power management, throttle down much more than desktops. This has them going through the heat cycle multiple times in a day, whereas desktops typically get turned on and off once a day, sometimes left on for weeks at a time. Failures like this are typically on a bell curve, so they start out slow, build up, then tail off.
Since laptops and desktops have a different "customer use patterns", they are at different points on the bell curve. Laptops have got to the, "we can't bury this anymore" point, desktops haven't, but they will - guaranteed. The biggest question is whether or not they will be under warranty at that point, not whether or not they are defective. They are.
If you look at the HP page, the prophylactic fix they offer is to more or less run the fan all the time. Once again, for the non-engineers out there, fan running eats a lot of power, so this destroys the battery life of notebooks. Basically, people bought a machine with a battery life of X, and now it is Y to prevent meltdown from a bum part. It doesn't fix anything, it just makes the failures take longer, hopefully past the warranty period, at a huge battery life cost. Fire up your class actions people, you got shafted.
Back to the engineering, we intoned that this was a cover-up of engineering failures by Nvidia. We also said that they probably knew what was happening. Think we were kidding? Read this, twice, linked again here for those that can't move their mouse to the left, it is that important.
If we knew a year and change ago that these exact parts had heat problems, think Nvidia did? Think the voltage difference between A02 and A03 is coincidence? This is a classic example of not meeting engineering goals and overclocking through brute force (voltage bump in engineering terms) to compensate.
HP and the others were blindsided by this, it happened far too late in the design cycle to compensate, and it looks to have been covered up hastily, badly, and eventually fatally. Blaming suppliers, OEMs and users is completely unfounded and says that NV is unwilling to properly address this issue, only hide from it. NV knew, they made silicon changes to fix another problem that directly lead to this problem.
Nvidia is covering this up, hard. All the usual sources are keeping mum on the topic with only a few daring to speak out. Given the sheer magnitude of this, their marketshare for notebooks was huge in the period, this could very well suck up most of their remaining cash. Don't underestimate how bad this is going to be for NV, we highly doubt $200 million will even begin to cover it.
Told ya so. µ
nVidia顯卡缺陷殃及全部筆記本廠商
北京新浪網 (2008-08-02 11:40)
新浪科技訊 北京時間8月2日消息，據國外媒體報導，作為全球兩家最大的顯卡廠商之一， nVidia當前正面臨著前所未有的危機。由於旗下G84和G86系列顯卡存在缺陷，導致惠普、戴爾和聯想等主要PC廠商的1800多萬款產品受到影響。有消息稱，nVidia已經準備了2億美元的應急資金，但能否擺平這場危機還是個未知數。
G84和G86筆記本顯卡有缺陷
nVidia在7月初承認，部分G84和G86系列筆記本顯卡的核心/封裝材料組合存在瑕疵，如果核心溫度變化起伏比較頻繁，就可能會引發故障，出現多重圖像、隨機字符、縱橫線條、沒有視頻信號等一種或多種現象。
近日，nVidia又對部分傳聞做出下列澄清：1)只有一小部分筆記本晶片組出現質量問題，而台式機產品不受影響；2)只有小部分已經出貨的筆記本產品上出現過這種問題。而且，質量問題取決于環境溫度，機器設置以及用途。
至今，nVidia仍未透露具體哪些產品受此影響。但從用戶反饋看，受影響的顯卡型號主要為：G84系列-8300GS、8400GS、8400M G、8400M GS、8400M GT和8500GT；G86系列-8600GS、8600GT、8600GTS、8600M GS、8600M GT和8700MGT。
1800萬台筆記本受影響
過去一年半里，全球估計售出了1800萬台配置NVidia G84和G86系列顯卡的筆記本，它們都面臨較高的顯示出錯機率。惠普、戴爾、聯想、蘋果、索尼和其他筆記本生產商的多種型號的筆記本都受到影響。
其中，惠普受影響的產品型號主要為：HP Pavilion系列─dv20xx、dv21xx 、dv22xx、dv23xx、dv24xx、dv60xx、dv61x、dv62xx、dv63xx、dv64xx、dv90xx、dv92xx、dv93xx和dv94xx。
Compaq Presario系列─v30xx、v31xx、v32xx、v33xx、v34xx、v60xx、v61xx、v62xx、v63xx和v64xx。
戴爾受影響產品型號為：Inspiron 1420、Latitude D630、Latitude D630c、Precision M2300、Vostro Notebook 1310、Vostro Notebook 1400、Vostro Notebook 1510、Vostro Notebook 1710、XPS M1330和XPS M1530。
解決方案
如果召回這些筆記本，nVidia將要出資1.5億到2億美元，而另一半費用將由OEM廠商支付。這意味惠普、戴爾和聯想三大筆記本生產商需要拿出數千萬美元。
於是，PC廠商們尋找到了一個折中方法：更新BIOS。戴爾和惠普都已經發布了受影響筆記本的新BIOS。BIOS更新將增加筆記本風扇的頻率，穩定GPU溫度。
遭用戶指責
對此，有戴爾用戶稱：『開啟風扇的補丁軟件不是一種恰當的解決方案，我擔心花2000美元購買的XPS筆記本電腦的使用壽命會因此而縮短。』
還有用戶稱：』戴爾不更換有問題的元件，而是讓你打開風扇，減少電池使用壽命和增加噪音。我寧願不安裝這個BIOS升級，等出了問題時再去維修。我認為，即使發生問題時過了保修期，戴爾也應該免費維修，因為這是已經承認的生產缺陷。『
誰之過？
據nVidia稱，故障是由於脆弱的晶元/包裝材料引起的，導致晶片可能隨著GPU溫度波動而衰竭。最初，nVidia將該過錯推給台積電。nVidia說：』封裝材料是由台積電提供的。『
隨後，nVidia來了一個360度大轉彎，稱：』從根本上講，我們應該對此負責。我們並不責怪台積電，因為材料是我們雙方確定的。『
而台積電發言人稱：』這個問題很複雜，涉及到很多方面，但各方目前正在緊密協作，爭取更好地解決該問題。『(李明)
HP 今天列出24款筆記本電腦需要作出更新BIOS, HP指出由於是硬體上的問題, 故以下型號的電腦需作出BIOS的更新!
HP Pavilion dv2000 (dv20xx/21xx/22xx/23xx/24xx)
HP Pavilion dv6000 (dv60xx/61xx/62xx/63xx/64xx)
HP Pavilion dv9000 (dv90xx/92xx/93xx/94xx)
Compaq Presario V3000 (V30xx/31xx/32xx/33xx/34xx)
Compaq Presario V6000 (V60xx/61xx/62xx/63xx/64xx)
雖然HP 沒有指出什麼硬體引起問題, 但是有消息指HP 受影響的產品亦是採用了NVIDIA GPU (G84/G86)!
HP 指出若有用家使用以下型號的產品及出現以下問題, 可以帶到HP維修!
Pavilion dv2000 及 Presario v3000 筆記本電腦:
--電腦不能偵測無線網絡的存在, 以及裝置管理員內找不到無線網絡接收器!
--電腦沒有畫面顯示, 或是接上外置顯示器亦沒有畫面輸出.
Pavilion dv6000, dv9000 及 Presario v6000 筆記本電腦:
--電腦不能偵測無線網絡的存在, 以及裝置管理員內找不到無線網絡接收器!
--電腦沒有畫面顯示, 或是接上外置顯示器亦沒有畫面輸出.
--電腦上的電源燈及ACTIVE LED沒有發亮.
--電腦不能起動
--當電池已安裝在電腦上, 又或是用家駁上AC 電源器後, 電池充電指示燈會無法發亮.
--接上外置顯示器會看到有畫面, 但是電腦上的LCD顯屏則沒有顯示..
更多資料/下載: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/d...842189&lang=en
| NOTE: | If you are a customer in Canada with an HP Notebook model DV2412CA or DV2404CA, do not update the notebook to BIOS version F.39. |
| NOTE: | This service enhancement program is available in North America for 24 months after the start of your original standard limited warranty for issues listed below; otherwise your current standard limited warranty applies. Customers who already have a 24 month or longer warranty period will be covered under their existing standard HP Limited Warranty. |
- Click on your series in the table to see the complete list of included notebook product numbers.
NOTE: After clicking on the link in the table you will be taken to a different Web page. - If the product number of your notebook is listed in that table then return to this page and continue to Step 2 for further instructions.
- If the product number of your notebook is not listed in that table then your notebook PC is not included in the Limited Warranty Service Enhancement program.
- The notebook does not detect wireless networks and the wireless adapter is not detected in the Device Manager.
- There is no video on the computer LCD panel or external monitor.
- The notebook does not detect wireless networks and the wireless adapter is not detected in the Device Manager.
- There is no video on the computer LCD panel or external monitor.
- The notebook has no power and no active LEDs.
- The notebook does not start.
- The battery charge indicator light does not turn on when the battery is installed and the AC adapter is connected.
- The notebook issues a single beep during boot indicating no power.
- The external monitor functions but there is no image on the notebook LCD panel.
- Free shippingIf your notebook needs to be returned to HP for repair, the shipping costs are free. HP will immediately send you a postage paid container in which to send in your computer, and we will pay the return shipping.
- Post-service warrantyAfter HP repairs your notebook, you will continue to be covered by the HP Limited Warranty Service Enhancement program for 24 months after the start of your original standard limited warranty, or 90 days after receiving your free repair, whichever is later.
| NOTE: | This service enhancement program does not affect your current standard limited warranty. If you are experiencing issues or concerns other than those listed above, your current standard limited warranty applies.In the event your notebook has been serviced for one of the above issues and you have been charged for service please contact HP to determine if you are eligible for cost re-imbursement. |
| Notebook PC Series | BIOS Version |
|---|---|
| dv2000/V3000 | F.39 or later |
| dv6000/dv9000/V6000 | F.3D or later |
| NOTE: | If you are a customer in Canada with an HP Notebook model DV2412CA or DV2404CA, do not update the notebook to BIOS version F.39. |
- Press the power button to turn on the PC.
- When the HP or Compaq logo appears, press F10 to enter the BIOS Setup.
- When the Main menu is displayed, make note of the BIOS version. You will need this information to determine if a newer revision is available.
- To exit the BIOS setup, press F10 , select Yes , and then press Enter .
| NOTE: | It is recommended that the notebook PC is connected with an AC adapter and connected to the Internet via an Ethernet cable as interruptions in power or wireless connections may result in the download failing to install. |
- Open a browser and go to the HP Software & Drivers web site.
- On the Support & Drivers page, type the model number in the Search field and then press Enter .
- Select the operating system currently installed on the notebook.
- In the BIOS section, click WinFlash for HP Notebook System BIOS . The Version should be listed as the one identified in the table above or later.
- Click the Download only button on the page to begin the download of the BIOS update. Save the file to a convenient folder on the PC.
- Double-click the downloaded file to start the installation. Follow all prompts and restart the notebook when requested by the installation. Do not turn off the notebook until prompted to do so.
- When should I contact HP for my free repair?You should only call HP for this free repair if your notebook computer is experiencing one of the symptoms and is one of the notebooks listed in the Product Numbers Included document.
- I am experiencing one of the symptoms, but my product number is not listed. Is there any possibility that my notebook PC has the same issue?To date, the only products affected are listed in Step 1 of this document. If you continue to experience symptoms with your notebook PC please contact your HP in country support center.
- If my notebook is not experiencing any of the symptoms described in the support article but is part of the program because it is a listed notebook in the Product Numbers Included document can I call HP to obtain a free repair?No. Only notebooks that are experiencing one or more of the symptoms described in the support article are eligible for a free repair.
- If my notebook is functioning properly will I experience these symptoms in the future?Your notebook may experience some of the symptoms listed in the support article at a future date. However, certain notebooks may not display these symptoms at all. You have up to 24 months after the start of your original standard limited warranty entitlement to get your notebook repaired if it is listed in the Product Numbers Included document and displays one or more than one of the symptoms listed in the support article.
- Can I continue to use my notebook if I do not experience a failure?Absolutely. If your notebook is not experiencing any of the symptoms listed in the support article you can continue using your notebook.
- I have more than one notebook that may be included in this program because they are listed in the Product Numbers Included document. Will HP provide free repair for all of my notebooks that may be included in this program?Yes. HP will provide a free repair for each notebook that meets the conditions described in the support article for inclusion in this program and experiences one or more of the symptoms described either during your normal limited warranty period or for a period of 24 months after the start of your original standard limited warranty.
- What is the benefit gained from updating to this new system BIOS?The BIOS updates the fan control algorithm of the system to reduce the likelihood of future system issues. This BIOS release is preventative in nature.
- What kind of issues will I experience if I do not update with this new system BIOS?You may not experience any issues if you do not update with this new BIOS; however, HP strongly recommends that you do since this BIOS release is preventative in nature and may reduce the likelihood of future system issues.
- I just recently updated to the new BIOS and everything works fine, but now my notebook fan remains on whenever my notebook PC is on. Why is that?The BIOS updates the fan control algorithm of the system and turns the fan on at a lower, constant speed. This is normal functionality for this BIOS.
- Will I experience any issues with my system because the fan remains on for an extended period of time?No, you should not experience issues with your system because the fan remains on for any extended period of time.
- Will there be a future BIOS release that does not make my notebook fan remain on for an extended period of time?HP will update our fan control algorithm as needed. The latest BIOS results in a sound profile at idle which is well within the design requirements.
- I do not see the previous BIOS version on the HP Support Web? What happened to the previous versions of the BIOS?In order to eliminate any confusion on which BIOS version is the latest, only the latest version is available on the Web.
NOTE: The current version of the BIOS contains all content/modifications from the previous BIOS versions. - What should I do if my notebook PC is already experiencing symptoms?If your HP Pavilion or Compaq Presario notebook PC is already exhibiting one or more of the symptoms described, please call your local HP technical support team for assistance. Do not flash (install) any BIOS if your notebook PC is already exhibiting one or more of the symptoms described.
- If I'm not experiencing the symptoms described and flash the new BIOS that HP recommends, is my personal data at risk of corruption or loss?The HP BIOS flash process is simple, secure and does not pose a risk of data loss. However, if power is interrupted during the BIOS flash process, the notebook PC system board can be altered in a manner that would prevent the notebook from functioning and require the system board be replaced.
NVIDIA GPU Update for Dell Laptop Owners
Earlier this month, sites like Ars Technica and ZDNet blogged about NVIDIA's statement regarding a potential issue with some of NVIDIA's Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) used in notebooks. According to NVIDIA, these affected GPUs are experiencing higher than expected failure rates causing video problems. Though this issue is not unique to Dell, some of these affected GPUs are used in certain Dell laptops. That's why I wanted to take a few minutes here to explain the issue and to let customers know what to do next.
The issue is a weak die/packaging material set, which may fail with GPU temperature fluctuations. If your GPU fails, you may see intermittent symptoms during early stages of failure that include:
- Multiple images
- Random characters on the screen
- Lines on the screen
- No video
Dell recommends that you flash your system BIOS (see links in the table below). Each of these BIOS updates listed in the table below modifies the fan profile to help regulate GPU temperature fluctuations. Note: if you are already experiencing video-related issues like the bullet points above, updating the BIOS will not correct them. Dell will provide support for customers who have experienced GPU failure according to the terms of the system warranty.
These BIOS updates will help reduce the likelihood of GPU issues. New systems are being shipped with the updated BIOS revisions. Here's the list of the latest BIOS versions. Click on the links below to download them.
| Dell Product Name | BIOS Revision | Date | Update File Name |
| A09 | 7/14/08 | 1420_A09.EXE | |
| A12 | 6/22/08 | D630_A12.EXE | |
| A06 | 7/11/08 | D630CA06.EXE | |
| A07 | 7/11/08 | M2300A07.EXE | |
| A10 | 7/10/08 | V1310-A10.EXE | |
| A09 | 7/10/08 | 1400_A09.EXE | |
| A10 | 7/10/08 | V1510A10.EXE | |
| A07 | 7/10/08 | V1710A07.EXE | |
| A12 | 7/9/08 | M1330A12.EXE | |
| A09 | 7/25/08 | 1530_A09.EXE |
Update: As Direct2Dell reader foduekid noted, the A09 BIOS update for the XPS M1530 was made available yesterday after I published this blog post. I've updated the table above with the link.
Update 2: I'm getting e-mails and comments that are similar to those of Direct2Dell readers like Customer, fr and barryd. Like I mentioned in one of my responses, this will not be the only blog post on this topic. When I have new details to share, I will share them here. Several of you have expressed concern over potential battery life issues. The reality is that these BIOS updates will not have any noticeable effect on battery life or overall system performance. These updates do not make the cooling fan run all the time. The fan may cycle on more frequently, but when it does, it will run at half or quarter speed.
Update 3: Since Kara Krautter unveiled the Vostro 2510 on the Small Business blog yesterday, we've gotten some questions about it since it uses an NVIDIA GPU. Take a look at some of the comments in the Vostro 2510 Engadget post to see what I'm talking about. The Vostro 2510 will ship with the latest BIOS updates.
If you need help flashing your system BIOS or experience any of the video-related issues listed above, please contact Dell Technical Support. Our teams are committed to working with affected customers to resolve issues on a case-by-case basis.
by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger
Filed under: Products, Consumer, Customer Experience, What You Need To Know
http://direct2dell.com/one2one/archive/2008/07/25/nvidia-gpu-update-for-dell-laptop-owners.aspx
沒有留言:
張貼留言