AMD's upcoming "Renoir" silicon will be the company's most important, as it will sit at the heart of not just desktops, but also notebooks and ultraportables. A brilliant report by _rogame on Reddit compiles the chip's many iGPU variants along with iGPU device-IDs, and slots them in various platform variants. Renoir will target four key market segments characterized by TDP: 15 W ultraportables, 45 W mainstream notebooks, 65 W mainstream desktops, and 35 W low-power desktops.

As for the iGPU itself, "Renoir" was last reported as being a processor that combines "Zen 2" CPU cores with an iGPU that has SIMD machinery from the "Vega" architecture, but with updated display- and multimedia-engines from "Navi." According to _rogame, Renoir's iGPU will have up to 13 NGCUs, which work out to 832 stream processors. AMD internally marks the iGPU as RV B##, where RV refers to "Radeon Vega," and B## referring to the iGPU variant. The commercial name of the iGPU will be different. B12 is the highest variant, with 12-13 CUs, B10 has 10-11 CUs, B8 has 8-9 CUs, B6 has 6 CUs, and B4 has 3-4 CUs. The B12 configuration will be exclusive to the mobile parts. The desktop parts cap out at B10. Renoir is expected to dominate AMD's processor launch cycle through the first half of 2020.

FEMFX is a multithreaded CPU library for deformable material physics, using the Finite Element Method (FEM). Solid objects are represented as a mesh of tetrahedral elements, and each element has material parameters that control stiffness, how volume changes with deformation, and stress limits where fracture or plastic (permanent) deformation occur. The model supports a wide range of materials and interactions between materials. We intend for these features to complement rather than replace traditional rigid body physics. The system is designed with the following considerations:

AMD today announced that it has joined the Blockchain Game Alliance (BGA) and forged partnerships with leading technology providers to help promote the development and proliferation of new blockchain-powered gaming platforms.

The Blockchain Game Alliance is committed to driving awareness and adoption of blockchain technologies within the game industry, providing an open forum for individuals and companies to share knowledge and collaborate, create common standards, establish best practices, and network. As the first major hardware manufacturer to join the BGA, AMD plans to enable alliance members with efficient and high-performance computing technologies for next-generation blockchain-based gaming platforms that could potentially transform the way games are created, published, purchased and played.

Hardware-accelerated ray tracing and variable-rate shading will be the design focal points for AMD's next-generation RDNA2 graphics architecture. Microsoft's reveal of its Xbox Series X console attributed both features to AMD's "next generation RDNA" architecture (which logically happens to be RDNA2). The Xbox Series X uses a semi-custom SoC that features CPU cores based on the "Zen 2" microarchitecture and a GPU based on RDNA2. It's highly likely that the SoC could be fabricated on TSMC's 7 nm EUV node, as the RDNA2 graphics architecture is optimized for that. This would mean an optical shrink of "Zen 2" to 7 nm EUV. Besides the SoC that powers Xbox Series X, AMD is expected to leverage 7 nm EUV for its RDNA2 discrete GPUs and CPU chiplets based on its "Zen 3" microarchitecture in 2020.

Variable-rate shading (VRS) is an API-level feature that lets GPUs conserve resources by shading certain areas of a scene at a lower rate than the other, without perceptible difference to the viewer. Microsoft developed two tiers of VRS for its DirectX 12 API, tier-1 is currently supported by NVIDIA "Turing" and Intel Gen11 architectures, while tier-2 is supported by "Turing." The current RDNA architecture doesn't support either tiers. Hardware-accelerated ray-tracing is the cornerstone of NVIDIA's "Turing" RTX 20-series graphics cards, and AMD is catching up to it. Microsoft already standardized it on the software-side with the DXR (DirectX Raytracing) API. A combination of VRS and dynamic render-resolution will be crucial for next-gen consoles to achieve playability at 4K, and to even boast of being 8K-capable.

ADATA Technology, a leading manufacturer of high-performance DRAM modules, NAND Flash products, and mobile accessories is pleased to announce that ADATA and XPG DDR4 memory modules are compatible with latest 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen and Ryzen Threadripper HEDT (High-end Desktop) platforms. Whether for creators that demand high-capacity modules or gamers and overclockers seeking high-performance modules, ADATA and XPG offer memory products that meet their specific needs.

ADATA and XPG have always strove to ensure high compatibility of their memory modules through the use of high-quality, rigorously tested IC chips and PCB boards. With the recent launch of AMD's most powerful desktop processors- Ryzen 9 3950X processor with X570 platform and AMD HEDT Ryzen Threadripper 3960X/3970X processor with TRX40 platform, ADATA's and XPG's commitment to high compatibility remains a key consideration, in addition to robust performance and sufficient capacity.

TUL Corporation, parent of the leading and innovative AMD Graphics Card Manufacturing brand, PowerColor, announces their latest cards in their lineup, PowerColor Red Dragon RX 5500 XT 8 GB and PowerColor RX 5500 XT 4 GB. Powered by the the newest and most advanced 7 nm RDNA architecture with GDDR6 VRAM, the RX 5500 series features performance delivery optimized for better visuals such as volumetric lighting, motion blurring effects, depth of field, and multi-level cache hierarchy for reduced latency and a highly responsive gaming experience.

PowerColor's newest RX 5500 XT series is a perfect match for 1080p gaming, reaching 60 FPS on AAA gaming titles on high graphics settings, and over 90 FPS on the leading e-sports titles. AMD's newest lineup of features on their Radeon Graphics Drivers enhances the experience further with settings such as Radeon Image Sharpening and FidelityFX for maximum performance and insane immersive gaming experiences as well Radeon Anti-Lag for highly responsive gaming.

AMD today announced the Radeon RX 5500 XT graphics card for the DIY (retail) channel, launched exclusively through its add-in board partners. Based on the 7 nm "Navi 14" silicon, the RX 5500 XT has the same exact core-configuration as the RX 5500 launched in October to OEMs. This means only 22 out of the 24 RDNA compute units are enabled, and the XT doesn't max the silicon out. These work out to 1,408 stream processors. Other vital specs include 88 TMUs, 32 ROPs, and a 128-bit wide GDDR6 memory interface. The RX 5500 XT will still end up faster than the RX 5500 OEM card from last month, since it has a higher engine "game clocks" of 1717 MHz, while the RX 5500 OEM ships with roughly 1670 MHz game clocks. Engine boost clocks for the RX 5500 XT are rated at up to 1845 MHz.

The Radeon RX 5500 XT comes in two variants based on memory size, 4 GB and 8 GB. Both variants use 14 Gbps GDDR6 memory chips across the chip's 128-bit wide memory bus. The 4 GB variant uses four commonly available 8 Gbit chips, while the 8 GB variant typically uses high-density 16 Gbit memory chips. AMD is pricing the Radeon RX 5500 XT at USD $169.99 for the 4 GB variant, and $199.99 for the 8 GB variant. It competes with a spectrum of NVIDIA cards including the GeForce GTX 1650 and GTX 1650 Super.

Read the TechPowerUp Reviews of the Sapphire Radeon RX 5500 XT 4 GB Pulse OC and MSI Radeon RX 5500 XT 8 GB Gaming XThe complete AMD slide deck follows.

AMD's Radeon RX 5600-series could see the company take on the top-end of NVIDIA's GeForce 16-series, such as the GTX 1660 Super and the GTX 1660 Ti. A report from earlier this month pegged a December 2019 product announcement for the RX 5600-series and subsequent availability in the weeks following. Regulatory filings by AMD AIB (add-in board) partners with the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) shed more light on the product differentiation within the RX 5600 series. The filings reveal that the RX 5600 and RX 5600 XT feature 6 GB and 8 GB sub-variants.

The regulatory filing by ASUS references products across its ROG Strix, TUF Gaming, and Dual lines of graphics cards. As mentioned in the older report, we expect AMD to carve the RX 5600 series out of the larger "Navi 10" silicon, by disabling many more RDNA compute units than the RX 5700, and narrowing the GDDR6 memory bus to 192-bit for the 6 GB variants. AMD has an opportunity to harvest "Navi 10" chips down to stream processor counts such as 1,792 (28 CUs) or 2,048 (32 CUs). It also has the opportunity to use cost-effective 12 Gbps GDDR6 memory chips.

Sapphire's upcoming take on AMD's RX 5500 XT graphics card has been spotted up for preorder on Amazon (availability set for December 12th), and it's a special one. Besides the usual Nitro+ edition, Sapphire will also be launching a fully customized RX 5500 XT Nitro+ Special Edition. Besides addressable ARGB fans, the card features what can be called a very interesting, reduced PCB design, with the shroud and backplate artificially adding length to the graphics cards so as to increase space for the dual fan cooling solution.

Images of MSI's upcoming interpretations of AMD's Navi 14-based RX 5500 XT graphics cards have leaked, which place them in the company's GAMING and MECH series of graphics cards. MSI's RX 5500 XT MECH features a gunmetal gray and black color scheme, without any of the red bangs and whistles that are usually associated with gaming graphics cards. It's a more understated design, even though there is added detail to the cooler shroud. The GAMING series, like usually, ships with gray/black and red accents, and has a more subdued shroud material design.

Based on AMD's Navi 14, the MSI MECH and GAMING RX 5500 XT will feature 1408 stream processors. In the case of the GAMING graphics card, AMD reference clocks of 1845 MHz will see an increase to 1905 MHz, with GDDR6 memory clocks untouched at 14 Gbps. MSI will be readying 4 GB VRAM SKUs in time as well, though you should expect only 8 GB models to be available come launch day. Both cards feature the usual I/O connectors of at 3x DisplayPort and 1x HDMI.

AMD today unveiled AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin 2020 Edition, the next generation of its software suite for AMD Radeon graphics, providing gamers, creators and enthusiasts with a unique set of features and capabilities that deliver unparalleled visual fidelity and phenomenal gaming experiences. Featuring a fully redesigned gaming application, AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin 2020 Edition puts powerful capabilities at gamers' fingertips. It includes the new Radeon Boost feature, bringing enhanced performance and fluidity to fast-motion gameplay, new Integer Display Scaling technology that rejuvenates old games for modern displays, as well as significant enhancements to the acclaimed AMD Link mobile application, to Radeon Image Sharpening, Radeon Anti-Lag, and much more.

Our detailed write-up, including performance testing on Navi, Vega and Polaris can be found here.

DOWNLOAD: AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin 2020 Edition 19.12.2 WHQL"With each Radeon Software release, we laser-focus on bringing innovative features gamers demand, significant performance improvements, and the ultimate in software stability and reliability," said Andrej Zdravkovic, corporate vice president of software development at AMD. "AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin 2020 Edition takes gaming on Radeon graphics to the next level with breathtaking visual quality, faster performance, and a host of unique, must-have features that dramatically improve the overall user experience."

EK Water Blocks, the leading premium computer liquid cooling gear manufacturer, is releasing EK-Quantum Vector Strix RX 5700 +XT D-RGB water blocks that are compatible with ROG Strix version of AMD Radeon RX 5700 and RX 5700 XT graphics cards. The new Quantum water blocks feature addressable D-RGB 5V LEDs for even more visual customizations.

EK-Quantum Vector Strix RX 5700 +XT D-RGB
With this full cover water block, cooling is directed at the GPU, 8 GB of GDDR6 memory, and VRM (voltage regulation module) as liquid is channeled directly over these critical areas. These newly developed Vector water blocks feature a redesigned cooling engine that has a larger footprint compared to the previous generation of EK Full Cover water blocks. This results in a larger surface area for heat transfer which increases the thermal performance of these water blocks.

Intel marketing is at it again, making sweeping performance claims about its embattled 9th generation Core processors against AMD's 3rd generation Ryzen. In a recent press conference in China, the company was shown claiming that its mid-tier 6-core/6-thread Core i5-9600KF is a "better" processor than AMD's 8-core/16-thread Ryzen 7 3800X. This claim is hard to defend with gaming, when even the "slower" 3700X is seen performing within 1% of the i5-9600K (identical CPU specs to the i5-9600KF) at gaming, and 22 percent faster at CPU tests, beating the i9-9900K in quite a few multi-threaded tests.

The marketing slide makes four key claims: 1. that Intel processors are faster in "real-world" use-cases (gaming, home/office, light content-creation), ; 2. that with boost-frequencies reaching 4.60 GHz, the higher IPC of these chips benefit gaming; 3. that the K-series chips easily overclock to 5.00 GHz yielding even more performance; and 4. that Intel processors have "smooth and stable drivers" compared to AMD. As if that wasn't bad enough, the slide claims that the 4-core/4-thread Core i3-9350KF is "better" than the 6-core/12-thread Ryzen 5 3600X, and the entry-level i3-9100F being better than the 6-core/6-thread Ryzen 5 3500. This incident closely follows its September gaffe that sought to sourgrape AMD's HEDT creator performance leadership by discrediting its lead in certain applications by claiming they don't reflect "real world usage." Making Intel's test relevance claims comically wrong was the fact that it used app usage data gathered exclusively from notebooks.

Thermaltake, the leading PC DIY premium brand for Cooling, Gaming Gear and Enthusiast Memory solutions, today announced the release of the Thermaltake TOUGHRAM Z-ONE RGB DDR4 Memory Kit 3,200 MHz, which is supported by Intel and AMD platforms. Featuring 10-layer PCB construction for enhanced performance and stability, the TOUGHRAM Z-ONE RGB is equipped with high-performance components including tightly-selected memory chips, 2oz copper inner layer for enhanced electrical conduction, and 10μ gold fingers for high resistance ensuring ultimate gaming performance.

Furthermore, the TOUGHRAM Z-ONE RGB memory can be controlled by our software to monitor the real-time temperatures, frequency and performance and create stunning lighting effects with over 25 lighting modes. Users can also sync with TT RGB PLUS to maximize unique settings for their RGB color theme. Synchronize TT RGB PLUS, TT AI Voice Control, Razer Chroma, and Amazon Alexa RGB with TOUGHRAM Z-ONE RGB, users can build their own ecosystem with 10 super-bright addressable LEDs for stunning 16.8M RGB illumination. The TOUGHRAM Z-ONE RGB also support motherboards that have 5 V addressable RGB headers - ASUS Aura Sync, GIGABYTE RGB Fusion, MSI Mystic Light Sync and ASRock Polychrome.

AMD's "Zen 4" CPU microarchitecture is on track for a 2021 launch as its principal foundry partner, TSMC, is optimistic about early yields of its 5 nm silicon fabrication node. TSMC supports the 5 nm product roadmaps of not just AMD, but also Apple and HiSilicon. "Zen 4" is particularly important for AMD, as it will release its next enterprise platform, codenamed "Genoa," along with the new SP5 socket. The new socket will present AMD with the opportunity to significantly change the processor's I/O, such as support for a new memory standard, a new PCIe generation, more memory channels, more PCIe lanes, etc. As early as 2019, the foundry is seeing yields of over 50 percent for the 5 nm node (possibly risk production designed to test the node), which is very encouraging for its customers.

AMD's roadmap for 2020 sees the introduction of "Zen 3" on the 7 nm EUV process (dubbed 7 nm+). AMD recently commented that the performance uplift of "Zen 3" versus "Zen 2" will be "right in line with what you would expect from an entirely new architecture." The 7 nm EUV node provides a significant 20 percent increase in transistor-density compared to the current 7 nm DUV node "Zen 2" chiplets and the company's "Navi" family of GPUs are built on. "Zen 3" could see the company do away with the CCX (quad-core CPU complex), and make chiplets monolithic blocks of CPU cores without sub-divisions. For the client-segment, 5 is a recurring number in 2021. It will see the introduction of the 5th generation Ryzen processors (5000-series), built on the 5 nm process, supporting DDR5 memory, PCI-Express gen 5, and the new AM5 client-segment CPU socket.

Store pages of AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT surfaced on Chinese retailer JD.com, confirming that AMD will launch the "XT" variant of the SKU very soon (by 12th December, according to these listings). While the product pages don't list out specifications, they confirm a wide launch through AMD add-in-board (AIB) partners covering non-reference designs, and include 8 GB variants. The 8 GB variant starts at roughly RMB ¥1,499 including taxes, which converts to roughly USD $212. You reserve your card by paying ¥100 ($14) upfront. Among the listings are two cards from Sapphire, one from Yeston, and one from XFX. The product pages confirm three dates: pre-orders starting today (5th December) in which you pay the ¥100 deposit and drop your hat in, order confirmation and shipping on 12th December upon payment of the balance, and earliest delivery by 15th December, depending on where you live in China.

Today TEAMGROUP's gaming brand T-FORCE announces the release of the world's first mirror design T-FORCE XTREEM ARGB Gaming Memory, leading the industry with full mirror reflection, light penetration and ARGB three major core technologies. Up to DDR4 4800MHZ of frequency offers a smooth user experience. The mirror design enhances the detail of the texture and it has an incomparable dominance in both visual beauty and gaming performance.

With creative thinking, T-FORCE XTREEM ARGB Gaming Memory is the first in the industry to feature full-screen light guiding technology. After researching optical principles and characteristics of light, special designed LED lighting method and Addressable RGB LED (Addressable RGB: A single LED capable of emitting colours independently and controlling speed) are used to allow players to change the RGB lighting freely. The product's full mirror screen is a combination of special spluttering process and full-screen light guiding technology, which is capable of directly penetrating and reflecting surrounding products. The optical beauty of gaming memory can be re-interpreted innovatively. The highest frequency of T-FORCE XTREEM ARGB is up to DDR4 4800 MHz. Its IC chips are selected through a rigorous testing process. Each of them is tested for complete compatibility and stability. This gaming memory with a magic mirror is specially designed for gamers and PC DIY enthusiasts.

That news title should come as a surprise to no one, and extends to most other PC makers who are affected by Intel's inability to keep up with demand on its 14 nm (+++++?) node. News of Intel's factories being outputting less than the entire professional and consumer markets are required has already been covered multiple times and in multiple ways. Sand steps Intel has taken to mitigate this issue whilst trying to solve its 10 nm execution woes range from moving chipset production up from its 14 nm nodes to 22 nm to free capacity, increase production capacity over the already installed one, and even outsource some of its silicon manufacturing to other players in the industry. However, these measures won't actually take effect in the availability equation in a heartbeat, and of course PC makers such as Dell, who has already revised its revenue forecast and placed the blame on Intel, are looking to alternatives.

AMD is wading into even deeper waters across Intel's markets with the announcement of new Mini-PCs powered by the company's AMD Ryzen embedded V1000 and R1000 processors. Mini PCs, powered by AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 and R1000 processors. Multiple partners such as ASRock Industrial, EEPD, OnLogic and Simply NUC have already designed their own takes on Mini-PCs (comparable to Intel's NUC, Next unit of Computing) as a way to give businesses a way to have a small form factor box for different computing needs. These aim to offer a high-performance CPU/GPU processor with expansive peripheral support, in-depth security features and a planned 10-year processor availability.

Until now, AMD's Ryzen Embedded product line had mostly scored one design win here and there, powering handheld consoles such as the Smach Z and such other low power, relatively high-performance environments. When AMD announced the R1000 SoC back in April, it already announced that partners would be bringing their own takes on the underlying silicon, and today is the announcement of that effort.

Global industrial and IoT computer hardware manufacturer, OnLogic, has teamed up with AMD to release a line of small form factor industrial computers powered by AMD Ryzen Embedded processors. Both the ultra-compact fanless ML100G-40, and actively-cooled MC510-40 are available for pre-order now and limited quantities are expected to begin shipping to customers in December.

Global industrial and IoT computer hardware manufacturer, OnLogic, has teamed up with AMD to release a line of small form factor industrial computers powered by AMD Ryzen Embedded processors. Both the ultra-compact fanless ML100G-40, and actively-cooled MC510-40 are available for pre-order now and limited quantities are expected to begin shipping to customers in December.

AMD X570 chipset is the industry's first PC platform core-logic to support PCI-Express gen 4.0, but has proven to be expensive and hot. Its 600-series chipset successor will be third-party sourced much like its 400-series predecessor, according to a MyDrivers report citing sources in the motherboard industry. AMD is reportedly sourcing its 500-series mid-range chipset, the B550, from ASMedia. The B550 uses PCI-Express 3.0 x4 as its chipset bus, and puts out eight PCIe gen 3.0 downstream general purpose lanes, however, B550 motherboards could still feature PCI-Express 4.0 x16 slots from the socket AM4 SoC (provided a 3rd gen Ryzen processor is installed), and at least one of the M.2 NVMe slots on B550 motherboards could have PCI-Express 4.0 x4, since they're wired to the SoC instead of the chipset.

The MyDrivers report predicts that the successor to X570, the supposed "X670," could be sourced from a third-party firm, much like the B550, and implement PCI-Express gen 4.0, not just as chipset-bus, but also putting out PCI-Express gen 4.0 general purpose lanes. A possible design goal of the X670 could be to implement PCIe gen 4.0 switching fabric without running too hot, resulting in a cooler chipset than can make do with fanless cooling solutions, much like the X470. AMD will continue to make "chipsets" in the form of I/O controller dies for use in its MCM processors, although the relatively low-margin motherboard chipset business could be axed.

AMD is expected to bolster its mid-thru-performance segments of graphics cards with a few new product announcements in December. To begin with, the Radeon RX 5500 XT, which maxes out the 24 RDNA compute units on the "Navi 14" silicon, could see an early-December announcement, possibly ahead of the mid-December release of the RX 5500 to the AIB (add-in board) retail channel. Next up, is the new RX 5600 series, which enables AMD to capture $200-$300 price-points, competing with the likes of the GeForce GTX 1660 Super and GTX 1660 Ti.

There's no word on how what silicon the RX 5600 series is based on, but VideoCardz reports that the series topping RX 5600 XT has 6 GB of GDDR6 memory across a 192-bit wide memory interface. We expect that the RX 5600-series will carved out of the "Navi 10" silicon by disabling many RDNA compute units and narrowing its memory bus. Given that the RX 5500 XT has 1,536 stream processors and the RX 5700 has 2,304, AMD's wiggle room is somewhere between the two, with stream processor counts of 2,048 or 1,920 being plausible for the RX 5600 XT, and 1,792 for the RX 5600, if it exists. Availability of the RX 5600 series is slated for January 2020.Image Courtesy: PCGamesN

AMD Monday released the latest version of Radeon Software Adrenalin. Version 19.12.1 beta adds support for the new Radeon RX 5300M graphics. It also fixes a major issue with Radeon RX 5700-series graphics cards stuttering at 1080p with low game settings. A crash-to-desktop noticed on machines with RX 5700-series graphics playing "The Outer Worlds" has also been fixed. Grab the drivers from the link below.DOWNLOAD: AMD Radeon Software Adrenalin 19.12.1

The change-log follows.

An independent study conducted by the European Hardware Association (EHA) has revealed that AMD now ranks higher than Intel in the CPU space. While we have seen this as recently as last week, where we reported on top sellers across some Amazon webstores in Europe, with AMD scoring most of the top sellers in both Germany and the UK, this is the first time a comprehensive study has put some verifiable, science-generated numbers for us to see.

According to the EHA, 60% of the European PC enthusiasts (in a sample of 10,000 respondents) showed a strong sentiment towards AMD as their favored manufacturer of CPUs, and would choose any sort of system with an AMD CPU over an Intel one (including APU, AMD + Radeon graphics cards and AMD + NVIDIA graphics cards). This is a far cry from the same time around last year, where AMD only held 40% of a similar sample's preferred buying intention, and up from the 50% shown in the same study, carried out in 2H2019. The same survey also shows a slightly increased preference for AMD's graphics cards, with the 1H2019 showing 19% preference compared to 23% in this latest study.

The EK Velocity sTR4 series water blocks that are specifically designed for HEDT AMD Ryzen Threadripper processors are compatible with all newly released AMD TRX40 based motherboards equipped with socket sTRX4 which supports Ryzen Threadripper 3000 Series Processors.

With the release of 32 core count HEDT computer processors and potential for even more cores, the requirement for the top of the line cooling has never been bigger. The sTR4 Lineup of EK-Velocity water blocks, designed for the sTR4 socket, is perfectly compatible with the newly released AMD TRX40 motherboards that are using the sTRX4 socket. The only difference between the sTR4 and sTRX40 sockets is the pin layout, thus it has no effect on the cooling performance or the mounting itself.