Graphics cards aren't just for games anymore.
Long a tool for faster and more intense video game play, computer processors now harness the power of graphics cards for many new applications. Consumers tap graphics-card power for crisper video and faster photo processing. Scientific researchers use it to find oil, simulate brain waves and forecast weather.
Nvidia, which competes with ATI in the sale of graphics cards, recently cut high-profile deals with computer manufacturers Apple and Toshiba, offering its higher-performing graphics processor — known as a GPU (graphics processing unit) — in new notebooks.
Software powerhouse Adobe just introduced a version of Photoshop that runs smoother and faster by taking advantage of such power. |