New rumor about ATI Southern Islands

[tajoh111]

renaming is when you give something which already has a name another name (8800->9800->GTX250)

model numers have change numerous times and i see no problem as they need to make space to slot in integrated DX11 cards inteo the lower end = Ontario APU below the low end cards and Llano APU above low end cards

my guess:
successor of 56xx series will take the 67xx name;
Llano will take the 66xx name
ontario will carry the 62xx and 63xx brands;
64xx and 65xx will stay the same; and the 61xx series will be renamed OEM low end parts from the last product cycle just like 5145

if you have 2 completely new pricepoints / types of product you have to make certain adjustments to the naming schemes; it might be slightly misleading but it is understandable that they want to keep more space at the bottom range to accomodate special OEM only products or cut down APUs

This is completely not valid because they have tonnes of room as it is as I have shown in my example.

6870 indicates better performance than 5870 and may decieve
alot of 4xxx owners into upgrading into performance that has already been around at a pricepoint(if my concerns turn out to be true) that was already around last generation. A 5850 at 259 does not look nearly as attractive as a 6870 at 269.

I can see pricing of the 6870 being around 269-299. and the 6850 around 199-239, either of which is very pricey for a successor to the 5770 series.