3Dlabs
| Company type | Public (former) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Semiconductor, Graphics processing units |
| Predecessor | DuPont Pixel Systems |
| Founded | April 1994 |
| Founder | Yavuz Ahıska, Osman Kent |
| Defunct | 2009 |
| Fate | Evolved into ZiiLABS; acquired by Creative Labs in 2002 |
| Successor | ZiiLABS |
| Headquarters | San Jose , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | GLINT and PERMEDIA GPUs; Wildcat and Oxygen graphics cards; media processors (ZMS series) |
| Owner | Creative Technology (from 2002) |
| Parent | Creative Technology (from 2002) |
3DLABS Inc. Ltd. was a fabless semiconductor company established in 1994 by founders Yavuz Ahıska and Osman Kent, with its main office located in San Jose, California. The company engineered the GLINT and PERMEDIA series of advanced graphics processing unit technologies, which powered prominent graphics cards tailored for the CAD and DCC sectors, including its proprietary Wildcat and Oxygen product lines.
By 2006, 3DLABS redirected its business model toward media processing solutions for embedded and mobile platforms, eventually evolving into the Singapore-based entity known as ZiiLABS in 2009.
History
3DLABS was formed through a management buyout of DuPont Pixel Systems in the UK in April 1994 and subsequently went public on the Nasdaq stock exchange in October 1996. The company grew by acquiring Dynamic Pictures in 1998 and Intense3D from Intergraph in 2000, before being purchased by Creative Labs in June 2002. In 2006, it discontinued its development of professional 3D graphics chips to concentrate on embedded media processor technologies.
As a trailblazer in the industry, 3DLABS introduced the GLINT 300SX—the first single-chip graphics processor capable of 3D rendering adopted by multiple manufacturers—and developed Gamma, recognized as the first single-chip geometry processor designed for personal computers. Its Permedia chip was among the earliest cost-effective OpenGL accelerators. The company played a significant role within the OpenGL Architecture Review Board, contributing extensively to the advancement of OpenGL 2.0 and its API enhancements.
The media processor division was primarily developed at the UK research and development center; however, numerous engineers specializing in workstation graphics from Intense3D and Dynamic Pictures later transitioned to roles at Intel and NVIDIA.
In November 2006, 3DLABS unveiled the DMS-02 media processor, capable of handling 720P HD video playback for portable devices. By January 2009, its system-on-chip (SoC) team was integrated into a Creative product division and rebranded as ZiiLABS, focusing on providing processors along with complete hardware and software platforms for consumer OEMs and ODMs.
Media processors
The ZMS series processors employ a low-power multicore design that combines dual ARM cores for standard CPU operations with a programmable SIMD array processor engineered for demanding media tasks such as 2D/3D graphics rendering, video decoding/encoding, image manipulation, and 32-bit IEEE floating-point calculations. These chips also feature integrated on-chip peripherals suitable for a broad spectrum of handheld and embedded device applications.
Initially created under the 3DLABS brand, these processors are currently marketed and supported by ZiiLABS.
Graphics card listing
The graphics cards listed here were produced by 3DLABS, with drivers and limited support accessible through archived resources.
Chips:
- 3Dlabs GLINT GMX family (GMX 1000, GMX 2000)
- 3Dlabs GLINT Gamma (geometry processing unit)
- 3Dlabs GLINT DMX series (DMX 1000, DMX 2000)
- 3Dlabs GLINT Delta (triangle setup unit)
- 3Dlabs GLINT MX
- 3Dlabs GLINT models: 500TX, 300SX
- 3Dlabs Permedia family (Permedia, Permedia NT, Permedia 2)
Graphics Boards:
- Wildcat Realizm series (2004–2005): High-end graphics cards featuring Vertex/Scalability Units (VSU) alongside Visual Processing Units (VPU), equipped with up to 512 MB GDDR3 memory and supporting PCIe or AGP interfaces.
- Wildcat VP series (2002–2003): Built around P9/P10 chips offering various memory options and an AGP x8 interface.
- Wildcat4 and Wildcat III/II series: Mid-tier professional graphics solutions utilizing AGP Pro connections.
- Oxygen series: Encompasses GVX420, GVX1 Pro, GVX210, GVX1, VX1 models—professional PCI/AGP cards based on GLINT chipsets.
- Permedia3 Create!: Advanced card based on Permedia3 technology.
- Oxygen GMX and RPM: High-performance multi-chipset configurations.
Expansion through acquisitions included:
- The Intense3D purchase added Wildcat models such as Wildcat 4210, 4110, and Pro series cards.
- Acquisition of Dynamic Pictures Inc. incorporated Oxygen family cards (Oxygen 102, 202, 402) along with V192 models.
Before ATI Technologies acquired the FireGL team in 2001, Diamond Multimedia utilized chipsets from 3DLABS for certain FireGL graphics cards. Furthermore, Macintosh graphics cards based on various Permedia chips were manufactured by Newer Technology and Formac Elektronik GmbH.
This broad product range underscores the company’s strategic emphasis on delivering professional-grade graphics solutions across diverse platforms and industry segments.
See also
External links
- Articles with short description
- Graphics hardware companies
- Fabless semiconductor companies
- Intel graphics
- Defunct semiconductor companies of the United States
- Companies formed by management buyout
- 2002 mergers and acquisitions
- 1994 establishments in California
- 2009 disestablishments in California
- American companies established in 1994
- American companies disestablished in 2009
- Computer companies established in 1994
- Computer companies disestablished in 2009
- Electronics companies established in 1994
- Electronics companies disestablished in 2009
- Manufacturing companies based in San Jose, California
- Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq
- Creative Technology acquisitions
- Defunct computer companies of the United States
- Defunct computer hardware companies
- 5
- Companies of the United States by year of establishment