It's been public knowledge for a while now that Lenovo is planning an imminent successor to its Legion Go handheld that has proven rather popular among handheld gamers. Previous leaks and rumors indicated that the Legion Go S 8ARP1, as it will apparently be named, will be a more affordable version of the current Legion Go. Now, thanks to Roland Quandt, Windows Central, and WinFuture, more details about the upcoming Legion Go S have leaked, including images of the device, supposed specifications, and a potential price.

According to the leaks, the new affordable handheld gaming PC will feature some substantial hardware changes, including a slightly smaller eight-inch display, this time with a much lower 1920 × 1200p resolution and a slightly lower 120 Hz refresh rate. Gone, too, are the Nintendo Switch-style detachable controllers, with the Legion Go S instead featuring a white unibody design. What's more interesting than the leaked images of the Legion Go S or the hardware changes—detachable controllers or not, the Legion Go is still intended to be used as a handheld—is the new AMD APU that will seemingly power the Go S. The as-yet unannounced AMD Ryzen Z2G looks like it will be an odd core configuration featuring an AMD Radeon 680M iGPU and Zen 3+ cores. Ultimately, the APU seems like it will put the Legion Go S somewhere between the current-generation Legion Go and devices featuring the AMD Ryzen Z1 (non-extreme), which is a good place to be if Lenovo hopes to compete with the likes of the Steam Deck OLED, which will seemingly cost around the same as the Legion Go S, depending on which region you are in.

With Windows 11 23H2 setting the stage for increased prevalence of AI in client PC use cases, the new hardware battleground between AMD and its rivals Intel, Apple, and Qualcomm, will be in equipping their mobile processors with sufficient AI acceleration performance. AMD already introduced accelerated AI with the current "Phoenix" processor that debuts Ryzen AI, and its Xilinx XDNA hardware backend that provides a performance of up to 16 TOPS. This will see a 2-3 fold increase with the company's 2024-25 mobile processor lineup, according to a roadmap leak by "Moore's Law is Dead."

At the very top of the pile, in a product segment called "ultimate compute," which consists of large gaming notebooks, mobile workstations, and desktop-replacements; the company's current Ryzen 7045 "Dragon Range" processor will continue throughout 2024. Essentially a non-socketed version of the desktop "Raphael" MCM, "Dragon Range" features up to two 5 nm "Zen 4" CCDs for up to 16 cores, and a 6 nm cIOD. This processor lacks any form of AI acceleration. In 2025, the processor will be succeeded with "Fire Range," a similar non-socketed, mobile-friendly MCM that's derived from "Granite Ridge," with up to two 4 nm "Zen 5" CCDs for up to 16 cores; and the 6 nm cIOD. What's interesting to note here, is that the quasi-roadmap makes no mention of AI acceleration for "Fire Range," which means "Granite Ridge" could miss out on Ryzen AI acceleration from the processor. Modern discrete GPUs from both NVIDIA and AMD support AI accelerators, so this must have been AMD's consideration to exclude an XDNA-based Ryzen AI accelerator on "Fire Range" and "Granite Ridge."

It's almost cherry-blossom season in Japan, and MINISFORUM released a special edition mini PC to mark it. The UM773 SE has a pastel pink body color along with a cherry-blossom print. Under the hood, it rocks an AMD Ryzen 7 7735HS processor (6 nm, Zen 3+, "Rembrandt Refresh" silicon), with an 8-core/16-thread CPU, and a 12-CU RDNA2 iGPU (Radeon 680M). You get two DDR5 SO-DIMM slots to drop in your own memory, and an M.2-2280 NVMe SSD slot with PCI-Express 4.0 x4 wiring, to use your own SSD, and a 2.5-inch drive bay with SATA 6 Gbps.

Networking connectivity on the MINISFORUM UM773 SE include 2.5 GbE, WiFi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.2. USB connectivity includes USB4, for a type-C port that supports DisplayPort passthrough from the iGPU. There are a couple of 10 Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2 type-C ports, a couple of such type-A ports, and a couple of USB 2.0 type-A. A couple of HDMI ports, and HD audio make for the rest of it. The box measures 127 mm x 128 mm x 47 mm (WxDxH). The UM773 SE is sold either as a barebones that lacks memory and SSDs; or as prebuilts with 1x 16 GB, 2x 8 GB, and 2x 16 GB memory; each with a 512 GB NVMe SSD.

Update Mar 10th: MINISFORUM confirmed the US price of the UM773 SE to be $429 for the barebones, $579 for the prebuilt with 16 GB memory and 512 GB SSD, $639 for the one with 32 GB memory and 512 GB SSD, and $679 for the top model with 32 GB memory and 1 TB SSD storage.

ASRock Industrial announces the 4X4 BOX 7000/D5 Series Mini PCs powered by AMD Ryzen 7000U-Series APUs up to 8 Zen 3+ cores. Featuring maximum dual DDR5 4800 MHz memory up to 64 GB, the 4X4 BOX 7000/D5 Series bring about performance enhancement through unleashing higher standards of power, speed, and energy efficiency. Now poised with enriched IOs and expansions, the Series also provide quad-display outputs of up to 8K outstanding graphics with one HDMI 2.1, three DisplayPort 1.4a, and five USB ports, including two USB4 for versatile connectivity. Moreover, dual storages with one SATA 3.0, one M.2 Key M, plus dual LAN ports up to 2.5 Gigabit, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.2 are supported for reliable communications. The unleashed features make this Series the leading choice for a wide range of top-notch applications such as gaming, entertainment, content creation, office productivity, business, and AIoT use cases.

Powered by AMD Ryzen 7 7735Uand Ryzen 5 7535U, ASRock Industrial presents the 4X4 BOX 7000/D5 Series selections: 4X4 BOX-7735U/D5 and 4X4 BOX-7535U/D5. Featuring up to 8 Zen 3+ cores and next-generation AMD Radeon Graphics, the Series guarantee optimal power, speed, and performance upgrades. The 4X4 BOX 7000/D5 Series showcase the very first dual-channel DDR5 4800 MHz SO-DIMM memory up to 64 GB with new features that unleash effortless multitasking abilities for higher performance, lower power consumption, and more robust data integrity for future computing.

Minisforum introduced a new variant called HX99G in its Neptune portfolio today. It is an upgraded version of the first member, the HX90G (5900HX processor + RX6600M GPU), which was announced in May 2022 before going up for sale in September 2022. The Neptune HX99G looks practically identical to the HX90G. Measuring 205 x 203 x 69 mm (8.1" x 8" x 2.7"), both models feature 45 watts, 8-cores/16-threads graphics and the same laptop-class discrete GPU. However, it updates the Ryzen 9 5900HX with a faster Ryzen 9 6900HX and replaces the two DP ports with two speedier USB4 ports.

R9 6900HX integrates all eight cores based on the Zen 3+ microarchitecture. It's clocked at 3.3 (guaranteed base clock) to 4.9 GHz (max boost). Ryzen 6000 brings a slew of technological advancements, like support for USB 4, PCI-E Gen 4, DDR5-4800MT/s, WIFI 6 and Bluetooth 5.2. The other AMD performance component is the RDNA 2 graphics architecture Radeon RX 6600M (GDDR6 8 GB) with a TDP of up to 100 watts. Users can expect to utilize the full performance of this dedicated GPU to handle professional-class photo and video editing as well as content creation. Also, this GPU packs enough firepower to hit 60 frames per second at 1080p (depending on the specific game and settings).

ASUS Turkey has jumped the gun and revealed ASUS' upcoming Zenbook 14 laptop, which in itself might not be a big deal, but the UM3402 as the specific model is known as, will apparently be available with an AMD Ryzen 7 7730U CPU. As AMD has as yet to unveil such a CPU, it appears that ASUS Turkey has gotten ahead of things. A quick search for the Zenbook 14 SKU in question reveals that the current UM3402 model has a Ryzen 5825U processor.

The remaining specs appear identical to the current model, but this is clearly not a typo, as the CPU SKU is mentioned at multiple points on the product page. Based on AMD's CPU model name "decoder", the Ryzen 7 7730U is based on a Zen 3 or a Zen 3+ core that sits in the 15-28 W TDP range. According to Videocardz, it will be using an AMD Vega based GPU. Beyond that, we don't know any specifics about the CPU, but one thing that stands out and may or may not be correct, is that the Zenbook 14 is only listed as supporting two USB 3.2 10 Gbps USB-C ports, rather than USB4, which seems a bit odd. Then again, this is a lower-tier CPU, so it's possible that this is the reason for lack of USB4 support. The fact that ASUS has moved to an IPS based display, from an OLED display on the current UM3402 SKU, also suggests that this might be a cheaper model in ASUS lineup.

Acer today introduced the Acer Swift Edge (SFA16-41), the world's lightest 16-inch OLED laptop. Designed to help maximize the productivity and creativity demands of the present-day hybrid workforce, the 16-inch laptop is powered by AMD Ryzen PRO 6000 Series and AMD Ryzen 6000 Series processors and incorporates the Microsoft Pluton security processor, shipped on by default, to help defend against increasingly sophisticated attacks. The Acer Swift Edge also features a 4K OLED display supporting 100% of the DCI-P3 color gamut and 500 nits peak brightness for cinema-grade visuals.

The 16-inch lightweight laptop boasts a simple yet sleek design. Weighing only 1.17 kg (2.58 lbs) and measuring 12.95 mm (0.51 inches) in height, the Acer Swift Edge sports an ultra-slim magnesium-aluminium (Mg-Al alloy) chassis, making it significantly more portable and durable. The design concept showcases precise linear structural details, a sharp rear edge, and a simple aesthetic that inherits the Swift series' stylish and premium feel. Coupled with its stunning display, well-thought hinge design, and sharp-cut front recess, the Acer Swift Edge is an excellent and stylish choice for mobile professionals with active and fast-paced lifestyles.

The Ryzen 6000-series processors are exclusively-mobile, meant for notebooks and tablets, but is already making its way across several other form-factors, including handheld game consoles, and now desktops, as mini-PCs. Based on the 6 nm "Rembrandt" silicon, Ryzen 6000 combines an up to 8-core/16-thread "Zen 3+" CPU, with an iGPU based on the RDNA2 graphics architecture, with up to 12 compute units; and an exclusively DDR5/LPDDR5 memory interface making for a powerful mobile processor. At least three upcoming ASUS PN53-series mini-PCs powered by "Rembrandt" have surfaced in pre-order online store listings.

Among the three "Rembrandt" powered ASUS PN53 mini-PCs are the ASUS PN53-S9022MD, ASUS PN53-S7021MD, and ASUS PN53-S5020MD. The PN53-S9022MD leads the pack, with a Ryzen 9 6900HX processor (8C/16T, up to 4.90 GHz, 12-CU iGPU, 45 W TDP), 16 GB of DDR5-4800 memory, and 512 GB NVMe SSD; all priced at 1,100€. The ASUS PN53-S7021MD is positioned a notch below, with a Ryzen 7 6800H (8C/16T, up to 4.70 GHz, 12-CU iGPU, 45 W TDP), and otherwise same specs; priced at 1,000€. The ASUS PN53-S5020MD is the most affordable of the lot, powered by a Ryzen 5 6600H (6C/12T, up to 4.50 GHz, 6-CU iGPU, 45 W TDP), 8 GB of DDR5-4800 memory, and 256 GB NVMe storage. This one is going for 840€.

AMD in its 2022 Financial Analyst Day presentation announced the codename for the second generation of Ryzen desktop processors for Socket AM5, which is "Granite Ridge." A successor to the Ryzen 7000 "Raphael," the next-generation "Granite Ridge" processor will incorporate the "Zen 5" CPU microarchitecture, with its CPU complex dies (CCDs) built on the 4 nm silicon fabrication node. "Zen 5" will feature several core-level designs as detailed in our older article, including a redesigned front-end with greater parallelism, which should indicate a much large execution stage. The architecture could also incorporate AI/ML performance enhancements as AMD taps into Xilinx IP to add more fixed-function hardware backing the AI/ML capabilities of its processors.

The "Zen 5" microarchitecture makes its client debut with Ryzen "Granite Ridge," and server debut with EPYC "Turin." It's being speculated that AMD could give "Turin" a round of CPU core-count increases, while retaining the same SP5 infrastructure; which means we could see either smaller CCDs, or higher core-count per CCD with "Zen 5." Much like "Raphael," the next-gen "Granite Ridge" will be a series of high core-count desktop processors that will feature a functional iGPU that's good enough for desktop/productivity, though not gaming. AMD confirmed that it doesn't see "Raphael" as an APU, and that its definition of an "APU" is a processor with a large iGPU that's capable of gaming. The company's next such APU will be "Phoenix Point."

AYANEO has recently announced the AYANEO 2 featuring AMD's latest "Rembrandt" Ryzen 7 6800U APU with Zen 3+ & RDNA2 architectures. The AMD Ryzen 7 6800U is a mobile processor with a configurable TDP of 15 - 28 W featuring 8 cores and 16 threads with a base clock of 2.7 GHz and a boost of 4.7 GHz. The processor also includes integrated Radeon 680M graphics with 12 RDNA2 cores running at 2.2 GHz which should offer performance almost twice of that as the Steam Deck. This APU is paired with an unspecified amount of LPDDR5 6400 MHz memory and a 7" 1280×800 IPS frameless display. The console is also set to feature an integrated fingerprint sensor and has been showcased running numerous games such as Metro Exodus, Cyberpunk 2077, Witcher 3, and Elden Ring. The AYANEO 2 is set to launch sometime later this year however an exact date or pricing was not shared.

AMD has unveiled a host of new laptop processors under its Ryzen PRO branding for corporate notebooks, although this time around, AMD has also tagged on an extra "50" to the model number. As such, the top of the range models are the Ryzen 9 Pro 6950H/HS, which appears to be more or less identical to the Ryzen 9 6900HX/HS. There's also a Ryzen 7 and 5 version in the H-series, as well as a Ryzen 7 and 5 in the U-series. In addition to these models, AMD also announced three new Ryzen PRO 5000 U-series models, which end up with the 75 suffix compared to the 25 suffix of the consumer models. These last three CPUs are based on the Zen 3 rather than the Zen 3+ architecture, just as with the consumer models.

AMD claims in excess of 26 hours of battery life from the Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U fitted inside an HP EliteBook 865 G9 with a 76 Wh battery pack. HP and Lenovo appear to be the launch partners for the new PRO series CPUs and HP will offer three different 800-series SKUs with the 6000-series processors and three other notebook series with the 5000-series processors. Lenovo on the other hand has its new Thinkpad Z13 and Z16 notebooks as AMD Ryzen 6000 PRO series exclusive models, as well as the four different Thinkpad models that will come with the same series of CPUs, plus several other models based on the 5000 series CPUs.

Although not yet available directly from AMD, its latest chipset drivers, version 4.03.03.624, have been released by Gigabyte and possibly other motherboard partners and it contains a couple of interesting additions. The first one is support for USB4, albeit only for 64-bit versions of Windows 10 at this point in time. This part really only applies to the Zen 3+ "Rembrandt" mobile Ryzen 6000-series CPUs so far, as they're the only products from AMD that supports USB4 at this point in time.

The other interesting part is that AMD has included a 3D V-Cache Performance Optimizer Driver for both the 64-bit version of Windows 10 and Windows 11. As to what this driver does, is anyone's guess at this point in time, but it's likely to be some kind of cache scheduler, or possibly a means for AMD to allocate software that can't take advantage of the 3D V-Cache to the CPU native cache. We should be finding out in a couple of weeks time, as the Ryzen 7 5800X3D is scheduled for retail availability on the 20th of April.

AMD on Thursday unveiled its Ryzen 6000 series "Rembrandt" mobile processors. The company claims these chips offer generational increases in CPU performance, along with big leaps in energy-efficiency and integrated graphics performance. At the heart of these processors is the new 6 nm "Rembrandt" silicon that the company is building on the TSMC N6 silicon fabrication node that leverages EUV lithography.

The "Rembrandt" silicon broadly combines an 8-core/16-thread CPU based on the new Zen 3+ microarchitecture, a large new iGPU based on the RDNA2 graphics architecture, complete with real-time ray tracing support; a DDR5 + LPDDR5 memory controller, and a full PCI-Express Gen4 root-complex. The iGPU, memory interface, and PCIe interface are generational updates over the previous-gen "Cezanne," and it may seem like the CPU is largely unchanged, but AMD claims there are several optimizations that have gone into the CPU to earn the "+" tag.

AMD (NASDAQ:AMD) today announced revenue for the fourth quarter of 2021 of $4.8 billion, operating income of $1.2 billion, net income of $974 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.80. On a non-GAAP basis, operating income was $1.3 billion, net income was $1.1 billion and diluted earnings per share was $0.92. For full year 2021, the company reported revenue of $16.4 billion, operating income of $3.6 billion, net income of $3.2 billion and diluted earnings per share of $2.57. On a non-GAAP basis, operating income was $4.1 billion, net income was $3.4 billion and diluted earnings per share was $2.79.

"2021 was an outstanding year for AMD with record annual revenue and profitability," said AMD President and CEO Dr. Lisa Su. "Each of our businesses performed extremely well, with data center revenue doubling year-over-year driven by growing adoption of AMD EPYC processors across cloud and enterprise customers. We expect another year of significant growth in 2022 as we ramp our current portfolio and launch our next generation of PC, gaming and data center products."

Corsair is readying a gaming device it calls "Xenomorph." At this point we don't know its exact form-factor, but given its display resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels, and the fact that desktop monitors with it are hard to come by; this is very likely a 16-inch gaming notebook with a 16:10 display with that resolution. A UserBenchmark submission sheds light on the hardware specs of the device, which includes an AMD Ryzen 6000 series "Rembrandt" mobile processor. Built on the 6 nm node, "Rembrandt" combines an 8-core/16-thread "Zen 3+" CPU with an iGPU based on the latest RDNA2 graphics architecture. The iGPU features 768 stream processors, full DirectX 12 Ultimate support, including ray tracing; and the ability to share rendering workloads with an RDNA2-based discrete GPU, such as the Radeon RX 6800M.

The name "Xenomorph" sparks a lot of speculation, mainly around the form-factor. Could this be a gaming notebook with a killer hardware feature such as an integrated touchscreen? Something with a foldable screen? A convertible that turns into a tablet? Another possibility is a device that looks otherworldly enough to be a tribute to HR Giger, the artist who created the Xenomorph alien. We don't know if Xenomorph is an internal codename, or an actual product name, as that might require some legal understanding with 20th Century Fox.

AMD is planning to crash Intel's big 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake-P" mobile processor launch with its own next-gen launch, the Ryzen 6000 mobile processor series. These chips are the company's first built on the TSMC N6 (6 nm) silicon fabrication process, and combine up to 8 "Zen 3+" CPU cores, with a next-generation iGPU based on the RDNA2 graphics architecture. The company has given the Media CoreNext and Video CoreNext engines incremental updates, according to a leaked slide scored by VideoCardz.

Ryzen 6000 "Rembrandt" processors come with hardware-accelerated decode of the AV1 video format. The Display CoreNext (display I/O engine) now supports DisplayPort 2.0, complete with DSC, UHBR10, HDR10+, and variable refresh-rate. The HDR pipeline has awareness for the various display panel types, including OLED and mini-LED. The iGPU on "Rembrandt" features up to 12 compute units (768 stream processors). It remains to be seen if Ray Accelerators are featured, as that would make this the first iGPU (on the PC platform) with DirectX 12 Ultimate support.

AMD is preparing to update its Ryzen Threadripper PRO line of workstation processors, with product announcements slated for January 2022, along the sidelines of CES, with availability slated for March 8, 2022, according to a VideoCardz report. The new Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5000 series processors are likely to combine "Zen 3+" CCDs (6 nm, featuring 3D Vertical Cache memory), with full sWRX8 I/O that includes 128 PCI-Express Gen 4 lanes, and 8-channel DDR4 memory. There are no sTRX4 options on the horizon.

What's interesting with the lineup is that CPU core-counts range all the way from 12-core/24-thread to 64-core/128-thread. Past generations of Threadripper WX stuck with higher core-counts (32 and up). The series begins with the Threadripper PRO 5945WX (12-core/24-thread), followed by the PRO 5955WX (16-core/32-thread), the PRO 5965WX (24-core/48-thread), PRO 5975WX (32-core/64-thread), and the 64-core/128-thread PRO 5995WX. There's no 48-core part in the stack. The TDP of all these chips is rated at 280 W.

Quite possibly the first sighting of a next-generation AMD processor with DDR5 memory surfaced on the web. A BAPCo CrossMark Database entry references a prototype processor with the name-string "AMD Eng Sample: 100-000000560-40_Y," running on a platform titled "ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. M3402RA." The chip has 16 GB of memory across 2 memory channels, and a memory frequency of 4800 MHz DDR. The platform here could be either a desktop motherboard, or a notebook. 4800 MHz is an unusual memory speed for a mobile platform, unless it's a single stick of DDR5-4800 SO-DIMM, with two 40-bit channels.

The first notebooks with DDR5 memory make landfall early next year, when Intel launches mobile variants of its 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake" processors. This would mean that DDR5 SO-DIMMs are already in circulation with OEMs. If the theory of this being a mobile chip holds true, it could very well be the "Rembrandt" APU that combines "Zen 3+" CPU cores with an iGPU based on the RDNA2 graphics architecture. If however the platform is a prototype Socket AM5 motherboard, it could be one of the first sightings of a next-generation "Raphael" desktop processor with "Zen 4" CPU cores, and a combination of DDR5 memory and PCI-Express Gen 5.

Prominent chip designers like AMD and NVIDIA could bless consumers with a broader offering of their new products as soon as CES 2022 arrives. AMD should present its rumored Rembrandt-H lineup of processors based on the enhanced Zen 3 core, sometimes referred to as Zen 3+. According to the latest report coming from MyLaptopsGuide, Bluetooth SIG has some data entry about ASUS'es upcoming ROG Zephyrus Duo GX650 laptop that integrates AMD Rembrandt-H processors and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30-series graphics. As the website claims, the heart of this laptop will be AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX processor built on TSMC's 6 nm manufacturing process. We don't know much about this model, but we expect it to refine the previous Ryzen 9 5900HX.

We again see the rumored NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti graphics card for mobile, powering the graphics side of things. This model is supposedly based on GA103S GPU SKU, which is likely tailor-made for laptops in mind and exclusive to them. ASUS has also paired 16 GB of DDR5-4800 RAM with an AMD Ryzen processor, suggesting that Rembrandt-H has a new memory controller in place. This laptop model also has a 16-inch 300 Hz Full HD screen with anti-glare; however, the amount of information ended there. We have to wait for CES 2022 launch to find out more.

The first trace of AMD's upcoming Ryzen 6000 mobile series has recently appeared with a processor of OPN code 100-000000518-41_N surfacing in the UserBenchmark database with the socket listed as FP7 which is the rumored platform for AMD's 6 nm Rembrandt family. The engineering sample features 8-cores and 16-threads with a base clock of 3.9 GHz and a boost of 4.1 GHz along with an integrated RDNA2 iGPU.

This marks the move from Vega to Navi 2 for the integrated GPU which should result in significant graphics performance and efficiency improvements. The processor was paired with a single 16 GB DDR5 memory module from Corsair running at 4800 MHz CL40, the computer is also listed as Corsair Xenomorph which is interesting as we are not aware of any plans for Corsair to release laptops. AMD is expected to announce Rembrandt at CES 2022 and the processors have allegedly already entered production.

Intel's upcoming Core i5-12400 "Alder Lake-S" processor could be an interesting piece of silicon. Apparently, not all 12th Gen Core i5 desktop chips have the same core-configuration. While the top Core i5-12600K is expected to have six "Golden Cove" P cores and four "Gracemont" E-cores, some of the lower variants, such as the i5-12400, will lack E cores, and be pure P core chips. In this case, the chip is 6-core/12-thread with just P cores; 1.25 MB of dedicated L2 cache per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache. You'll probably get all the next-gen I/O, including PCI-Express Gen 5 (PEG slot), a PCI-Express Gen 4 CPU-attached NVMe slot, and DDR5+DDR4 memory.

Given that the Core i5-11400 is a $190 part, even with a 10-15% price hike, the i5-12400 is expected to be under $220. The only drawbacks here are expected to be locked BClk multiplier, and rather low clock speeds of 4.00 GHz. A user on Chinese social media posted alleged Cinebench R20 results of the i5-12400. It scores 659 points in the single-threaded test, and 4784 points in the multi-threaded test. Wccftech tabulated this against known performance numbers of popular chips, and found that the i5-12400 might end up slightly ahead of the Ryzen 5 5600X, a currently-$300 part. The table also puts out leaked i9-12900K numbers, which indicate why AMD is rushing with "Zen 3+" with 3D Vertical Cache, instead of next-gen "Zen 4."

AMD is looking to launch a substantial lineup of HEDT and workstation processors before the end of 2021, based on its latest "Zen 3" microarchitecture. These processors are categorized in two distinct lines—the Ryzen Threadripper 5000X targeting HEDTs, and the Ryzen Threadripper Pro 5000WX targeting workstations. Both are based on different sockets, sTRX4 and sWRX8, respectively, with the latter featuring 8-channel DDR4 memory, compared to the former's 4-channel. Two Ryzen Threadripper Pro 5000WX series chips surfaced on the Milky Way@Home distributed computing database, the 5945WX and 5995WX.

The application identifies the 5945WX as a 12-core/24-thread processor, while the 5995WX is the top-dog 64-core/128-thread part. AMD maintains lower core-count Threadrippers to target the section of the market that seeks I/O capabilities over core-counts (memory bandwidth, a large number of PCIe lanes supporting NVMe RAID or multiple AIC compute accelerators, etc,). The lower core counts also come with higher CPU clock-speeds, benefiting less-parallelized applications. At this point it's not known if the Threadripper 5000 family features the conventional "Zen 3" CCD chiplet, or the new "Zen 3+" chiplets with 64 MB 3D Vertical Cache (3DV cache), but the company is planning to monetize the new chiplet across its EPYC enterprise line as the additional cache benefits certain applications with large streaming data-sets. It's conceivable that the Threadripper Pro series could benefit from 3DV cache, too.

AMD CEO Dr Lisa Su, in the company's Q2-2021 financial results call, confirmed that the company is on-track to launch the Zen 4 CPU microarchitecture and RDNA3 graphics architecture, in 2022. Zen 4 would herald the first major desktop platform change since the original Zen architecture, with the introduction of a new CPU socket, and support for DDR5 memory. The RDNA3 graphics architecture, meanwhile, is expected to nearly triple SIMD resources over the previous generation, and introduce even more fixed-function hardware for raytracing.

In the meantime, AMD is preparing a counter to Intel's 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake-S" processor, in the form of Zen 3 with 3D Vertical Cache, which is also being referred to as the Zen 3+ architecture. These processors feature additional last-level cache, and the company claims a 15% gaming performance uplift, which should help it close the gaming performance gap with Intel, and win on sheer core-count of its big cores. It remains to be seen if Zen 3+ remains on Socket AM4 or if it debuts AM5, as AMD will be under pressure to match "Alder Lake" in platform I/O, which includes DDR5. Dr Su also confirmed that AMD has started shipping the Instinct MI200 "Aldebaran" compute accelerator based on the CDNA2 architecture. AMD's first MCM GPU with two logic dies, "Aldebaran" takes the fight to NVIDIA's top A100 series compute accelerators, and has already scored wins with ongoing HPC/supercomputing projects.

AMD via its official YouTube has shared a video that goes into slightly more detail on their usage of V-Cache on the upcoming Zen 3+ CPUs. Firstly demoed to the public on AMD's Computex 2021 event, the 3D V-Cache leverages TSMC's SoIC stacking technology, which enables silicon developments along the Z axis, instead of the more usual footprint increase along the X axis. The added 3D V-Cache, which was shown in Computex as being deployed in a prototype Ryzen 9 5900X 12-core CPU, adds 64 MB of L3 cache to each CCX (the up-to-eight-cores core complex on AMD's latest Zen design), basically tripling the amount of L3 cache available for the CPU. This, in turn, was shown to increase FPS in games quite substantially (somewhere around 15%), as games in particular are sensitive to this type of CPU resources.

The added information explains that there is no usage of microbumps - instead, there is a perfect alignment between the bottom layer (with the CCX) and the top layer (the L3 cache) which enables the bonding process to occur naturally via the TSVs (Through Silicon Vias) already present in the silicon, in a zero-gap manner, between both halves of the CPU-cache sandwich. To enable this, AMD flipped the CCX upside down (the core complex now faces the bottom of the chip, instead of the top), shaved 95% of the silicon on top of the upside-down core complexes, and then attaches the 3D V-Cache chips on top of this formation. This also has the added bonus of decreasing the distance between the L3 cache and the CCX (the distance between both in the Z axis is around 1,000 times smaller than if the L3 cache was deployed in the classical X axis), which decreases power consumption, temperatures, and latency, allowing for further increases to system performance. Look after the break for the full video.

AMD is expected to debut its next-generation "Zen 4" microarchitecture and RDNA3 graphics architectures around the same time, in 2022, according to internal company roadmaps seen by Broly_X1 on Twitter, who has leaked AMD roadmaps before. The "Zen 4" microarchitecture in particular sees AMD debut processors based on the 5 nm silicon fabrication process, and the company's first implementation of an EUV node. With "Zen 4" in 2022, the company could target a so-called "Zen 3+" microarchitecture launch later in 2021, which combines the "Zen 3" CCD with 64 MB of 3D Vertical Cache, a feature that enables a 15% gaming performance uplift, the company claims.

The RDNA3 graphics architecture could see a greater deal of effort toward improving real-time raytracing performance, with more fixed-function hardware dedicated to raytracing. The architecture could see an even bigger generational performance uplift than the one seen between RDNA and RDNA2, according to a PCGamesN report. Across the fence, "Zen 4" and RDNA3 will be squaring off against Intel's "Meteor Lake" and NVIDIA's "ADA Lovelace" architectures, respectively. RDNA3 finishes tape-out toward the end of 2021, as the 5 nm EUV node is already available to AMD for prototyping.