What is APU (Accelerated Processing Unit)?

The central processing unit (CPU) is the computer's brain, which processes most processes. However, one area where the CPU is not really outstanding. That is the graphics.

To compensate for this, Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) exclusively handle visual output tasks. However, designing and producing two units to process this data is inefficient.

The solution to this problem is to use the Accelerated Processing Unit or APU.

What is APU?

Accelerated Processing Unit is designed to combine two separate units on one mold. In this case, the mold is a small piece of semiconductor material, containing a copy of a mass-produced circuit.

Placing two circuits on a single die is a design and manufacturing decision that affects the performance of a computer.

Reducing processor space reduces costs, allowing more room for other hardware and making the device more efficient. Putting the components together increases the data transfer rate and reduces power consumption.

If you've never heard of APU technology, the reason is probably because the term is almost exclusively used by a single manufacturer, AMD.

Benefits of APU

When considering upgrading to a CPU or GPU, things can quickly overwhelm you. There are many products out there, with similar names and manufacturers for many winged words. Each new released product is advertised as a huge improvement over the previous version.

Of course, it's natural for a company to make every effort to sell its products, so you also have the right to be skeptical about APU. However, there are some real benefits to using this technology. It is an immediate change in system performance.

If the computer used to use only one CPU and integrated graphics, now you will see surprising performance improvements. The task will be faster, the video will run smoother and the speed will usually increase. In the long run, you will also see reduced power usage.

This is a welcome change because many of us want to reduce our power usage (see the article: How much power is the PC consuming? For more details).

When two processors are on the same mold, they can also share resources. This makes computers more efficient, increases speed and reduces production costs. For this reason, APUs are often a more logical way to upgrade hardware.

Should you buy an APU?

Despite performance improvements, choosing an APU is not as simple as you think. The first point to consider is that AMD's APUs are just a combined processor unit. Intel and other manufacturers also produce components like APU, except the name.

Assuming you can buy devices that look and work like APUs, why should you choose AMD products? However, you should also consider the fact that the APU is a step up from the integrated motherboard graphics.

But if gaming or video processing is an important part of your setup, then the APU will only give you limited improvements. In this case, it is recommended to purchase high-end CPU and GPU separately. If you are unsure about the function of a central processor, you can learn more about the CPU and what it does.

APU made a huge impact, when it was first released in 2011, but the technology began to change. When a combined processor becomes the standard, designers will find other improvements they can make to electronics. This led to the conversion of APU into System-on-a-Chip.