AMD discontinues driver support for older graphics cards

The launch of the Radeon Software Crimson Edition means that AMD Catalyst will retire after 13 years, but it is not only software that is reaching the end of the road. At the same time, the company takes the opportunity to discontinue support for all graphics cards that are not based on the Graphics Core Next (GCN) architecture.

The decision means that the graphics cards in the Radeon HD 5000 and HD 6000 series will not be supported with future drivers. The decision also covers Radeon HD 7600 and HD 8400 or lower, which means that HD 7700 and HD 8500 and up, which are based on GCN, will also be supported by new drivers in the future. The same goes for the latest Radeon 200 and 300 series.

According to the company, the older graphics cards have achieved the highest possible performance and thus can not take part in further software optimizations. However, it also means that AMD will no longer fix bugs or ensure that the graphics cards work with the latest game titles.

Radeon Software Crimson Edition is officially in beta combined with the older graphics cards. For those who want to take the safe before the unsafe, Catalyst 15.7.1 is the latest with WHQL certification.