Graphics chips on notebooks are for the most part highly disappointing. Being able to buy an external card that can improve that situation is a tempting proposition and one that Fujitsu Siemens is preparing to offer with the AMILO Graphics Booster, in the next couple of weeks.

The AMILO GraphicBooster is based on "ATI XGP" technology and makes it possbile for Fujitsu Siemens AMILO notebook owners to upgrade their graphics card, something that was not possible in the past. Fujitsu claims a 4.7X performance improvement with the GraphicBooster versus the graphics of a "small form factor" AMILO notebook, which are most likely integrated.

They maintain that an AMILO notebook with the GraphicBooster can get up to 8,000 points in 3DMark06 benchmarks.

While on the go, users can leave the GraphicBooster behind and enjoy long battery life courtesy of their onboard graphics solution. The GraphicBooster users can connect up to three external displays to their notebook: it includes DVI-D and HDMI connections. It is unclear how this device connects to the notebook itself (ExpressCard?) and whether it will work with other notebooks besides Fujitsu Siemens AMILOs.

No pricing details are available at this time, and some specifics remain unclear.