AMD C-50 socket: Socket FT1

What the C-50 is

AMD C-50 is a dual core Ontario APU that AMD released in January 2011 at the Fusion launch for netbooks with soldered boards. It uses the Bobcat core design on a 40 nm process, running at 1.0 GHz with no turbo. The cache is 1 MB of L2 with 512 KB per core. Power is 9 W. Graphics come from AMD Radeon HD 6250 with 80 shaders at 276 MHz.

Two Bobcat cores cover browsing, office and video playback while staying inside a netbook power budget. The single die integrates the CPU cores, the graphics block and the single channel DDR3 controller, which is why boards stay small and cheap. AMD positioned the C-50 as the dual core 9 W counterpart to the single core C-30 at 1.2 GHz.

At 9 W the C-50 belongs to the Ontario netbook group that defined low cost small laptops of 2011. Boards pair it with 1 GB to 2 GB of DDR3 and small hard drives or SSDs. The LGA, PGA and BGA: CPU package types explained guide explains why this soldered BGA part cannot be serviced like socketed chips.

Socket and motherboard compatibility

The C-50 solders to Socket FT1 with 413 balls and cannot be moved to another board. Netbook makers qualify each model with a specific board and BIOS, so even another Ontario part is not a drop in upgrade. Boards follow small notebook layouts with soldered memory in most designs.

The board BIOS must list the exact C-50 string. Power delivery is trivial at 9 W, so screen, keyboard and battery decide the buy. The CPU cooler compatibility by socket guide notes soldered parts have no desktop mount.

Memory, PCIe and cooling

Memory support is DDR3-1066, single channel. The single 64 bit channel feeds both cores and graphics, so 2 GB configurations feel direct while 1 GB swap under multitasking. Soldered options lock size at purchase.

PCI Express lanes come from the APU for Wi-Fi and storage. There is no graphics slot on netbook boards.

Cooling uses a small heatsink or spreader sized for 9 W, often with a tiny fan. Dust removal helps more than any setting change.

Upgrade paths

There is no CPU upgrade path on soldered Socket FT1. The C-50 cannot be removed, so a faster Bobcat part means a new board or a new netbook. Within the family AMD C-70 with burst to 1.33 GHz shows a later FT1 option, but boards rarely exchange models.

A platform move means a new small laptop on a current BGA package. Recycle the old netbook through a proper e waste path once data is wiped.