AMD stops support for GPUs before the GCN architecture

AMD has stopped supporting all video cards not based on the Graphics Core Next architecture. These include the Radeon HD 5000 and 6000 series. According to AMD, they have reached their peak in performance.

In practice, this concerns the video cards based on the VLIW architecture, i.e. the HD 5000 and 6000 series and the cards with a type number in the HD 7600 and HD 8400 series or lower. In addition, AMD stops supporting APUs with VLIW GPUs. These are apus in the Llano, Trinity and Richland series.

New drivers are no longer available for the relevant video cards and apus. According to AMD, this makes “valuable engineering resources” available for developing new functionality for GPUs and APUs based on the GCN architecture.

Owners of the older cards can still use the beta of AMD Radeon Software Crimson Edition driver, which the company released Tuesday. However, those who want a certified whql driver should stick to Catalyst version 15.7.1, which was released last summer. AMD announced the GCN architecture in 2011.