[ Thanks to Michael
Larabel for this link. ]
Introduced in ATI’s v8.19.10 proprietary display drivers for
their RADEON series was support for PowerPlay. For the uninitiated,
ATI’s PowerPlay allows the user to specify various ‘power-states,’
or rather various frequencies and voltages at which the card can
operate. The purpose for these various performance levels is
ultimately to allow mobile users to save on battery life through
running at reduced speeds when not performing strenuous 3D tasks.
As we had shared at Phoronix upon the public release of ATI
PowerPlay for Linux, the technology does indeed work as expected by
specifying the power-state to conserve the battery along with
generating less heat…”