PC Watch recently got hands-on with Shanghai Zhaoxin's latest desktop processor for some in depth testing and published a less than optimistic review comparing it to both the previous generation KX-U6780A and Intel's equally clocked budget quad-core offering from 2017, the 3.6 GHz Core i3-8100. Though Zhaoxin's latest could muscle its way through some multithreaded tests such as Cinebench R23 due to having twice the core count, the single core performance showed to be nearly half that of the i3 in everything from synthetic tests to gaming.

PC Watch tested with the Dragon Quest X Benchmark, a DX9.0c title, to put the spotlight on single core gaming performance even in older games as well as with Final Fantasy XIV running the latest Golden Legacy benchmark released back in April of this year to show off more modern multithreaded gaming. With AMD's RX 6400 handling graphics at 1080p the KX-7000/8 scored around 60% of the i3-8100 in Dragon Quest X, and in Final Fantasy XIV it scored 90% of the i3. The result in Final Fantasy XIV was considered, "somewhat comfortable" for gameplay but still less than optimal. As a comparison point for a modern budget gaming PC option the Ryzen 5 5600G was also included in testing, where in Final Fantasy XIV it was 30% ahead of the KX-7000/8. PC Watch attempted to put the integrated ZX-C1190 to work in games but found that despite supporting modern APIs and features, the performance was no match for the competition.

Zhaoxin finally released its oft-delayed KX-7000 CPU series last December—the Chinese manufacturer claimed that its latest "Century Avenue Core" uArch consumer/desktop-oriented range was designed to "deliver double the performance of previous generations." Freshly discovered Geekbench 6.2.2 results indicate that Zhaoxin has succeeded on that front—Wccftech has pored over these figures, generated by an: "entry-level Zhaoxin KX-7000 CPU which has 8 cores, 8 threads, 4 MB of L2, and 32 MB of L3 cache. This chip was running at a base clock of 3.0 GHz and a boost clock of 3.3 GHz which is below its standard 3.6 GHz boost profile."

The new candidate was compared to Zhaoxin's previous-gen KX-U6780A and KX-6000G models. Intel's Core i3-10100F processor was thrown in as a familiar Western point of reference. The KX-7000 scored: "823 points in single-core, and 3813 points in multi-core tests. For comparisons, the Intel's Comet Lake CPU with 4 cores and 8 threads plus a boost of up to 4.3 GHz offers a much higher score. It's around 75% faster in single and 17% faster in multi-core tests within the same benchmark." The higher clock speeds, doubled core counts and TDPs do deliver "twice the performance" when compared to direct forebears—mission accomplished there. It is clear that Zhaoxin's latest CPU architecture cannot keep up with a generations old Team Blue design. Loongson's 3A6000 processor is a very promising prospect—reports suggest that this chip is somewhat comparable to mainstream AMD Zen 4 and Intel Raptor Lake products.

Chinese x86 CPU developer Zhaoxin is working on adding support in the Linux kernel for scheduling optimization on its processors featuring "preferred cores." Similar to asymmetric core designs from Intel and AMD, Zhaoxin's chips may have specific higher-performance cores the OS scheduler should target for critical workloads. To enable this, Zhaoxin has proposed Linux patches leveraging existing ACPI functionality to indicate per-core differences in max frequency or capabilities. The CPUfreq driver is updated to reflect this, allowing the scheduler to favor the designated high-performance cores when assigning threads and processes. This ensures tasks can dynamically take advantage of the faster cores to maximize performance. The approach resembles tuned scheduling, aware of core topology and heterogeneity already found in Intel and AMD processors.

Zhaoxin's patches don't specify which existing or upcoming CPUs will expose preferred core hints. The company likely wants the functionality in place for future server-class products where asymmetric designs make sense for efficiency. The new code contribution reflects Zhaoxin's broader upstreaming effort around Linux kernel support for its Yongfeng server CPU family. Robust open-source foundations are crucial for gaining developer mindshare and data center adoption. Adding sophisticated features like preferred core scheduling indicates that Zhaoxin's chips are maturing from essential x86 compatibility to more refined performance optimization. While still trailing Intel and AMD in cores and clocks, closing the software ecosystem and efficiency gap remains key to competitiveness. Ongoing Linux enablement work is laying the groundwork for more capable Zhaoxin silicon.

After years of delays, Chinese chipmaker Zhaoxin has finally launched its long-awaited KX-7000 series consumer CPUs, only one of its kind in China, based on the licensed x86-64 ISA. Zhaoxin claims the new 8-core processors based on "Century Avenue" uArch deliver double the performance of previous generations. Leveraging architectural improvements and 4X more cache, the KX-7000 represents essential progress for China's domestic semiconductor industry. While still likely lagging behind rival AMD and Intel chips in raw speed, the KX-7000 matches competitive specs in areas like DDR5 memory, PCIe 4.0, and USB4 support. For Chinese efforts to attain technological independence, closing feature gaps with foreign processors is just as crucial as boosting performance. Manufactured on a 16 nm process, the KX-7000 does not use the best silicon node available.

Other chip details include out-of-order execution (OoOE), 24 PCIe 4.0 lanes, a 32 MB pool of L3 cache and 4 MB L2 cache, a base frequency of 3.2 GHz, and a boost clock of 3.7 GHz. Interestingly, the CPU also has VT-x, BT-d 2.5, SSE4.2/AVX/AVX2 support, most likely also licensed from the x86 makers Intel and/or AMD. Ultimately, surpassing Western processors is secondary for China next to attaining self-reliance. Instructions like SM encryption catering to domestic data protection priorities underscore how the KX-7000 advances strategic autonomy goals. With its x86 architecture license giving software compatibility and now a vastly upgraded platform, the KX-7000 will raise China's chip capabilities even if it is still trailing rivals' speeds. Ongoing progress closing that performance gap could position Zhaoxin as a mainstream alternative for local PC builders and buyers.

FinalWire Ltd. today announced the immediate availability of AIDA64 Extreme 6.90 software, a streamlined diagnostic and benchmarking tool for home users; the immediate availability of AIDA64 Engineer 6.90 software, a professional diagnostic and benchmarking solution for corporate IT technicians and engineers; the immediate availability of AIDA64 Business 6.90 software, an essential network management solution for small and medium scale enterprises; and the immediate availability of AIDA64 Network Audit 6.90 software, a dedicated network audit toolset to collect and manage corporate network inventories. The new AIDA64 update supports the latest AMD and Intel CPU platforms as well as the new graphics and GPGPU computing technologies by AMD, Intel and nVIDIA.

DOWNLOAD: FinalWire AIDA64 Extreme v6.90

Chinese PC and server processor designer Loongson claims that its upcoming processor microarchitecture will offer an IPC that matches that of the AMD "Zen 3" (or slightly faster than Intel "Willow Cove."). The Godson 3A6000 processors are based on the LA664 microarchitecture, which Loongson has compared with off-the-shelf AMD Ryzen 5 5600G and Intel Core i7-1165G7 processors, on several cross-platform benchmarks, and claimed to have obtained comparable single-threaded performance.

The LA664 microarchitecture is based on Loongson's in-house ISA, and unlike Zhaoxin processors, aren't x86-64 compatible. Loongson processors are generally bought in bulk by the Chinese government and military, to run servers and workstations that are completely devoid of foreign hardware, for security reasons. The custom machine architecture is paired with a compatible *nix operating system that's equally built from the ground-up. 2023 will see Loongson launch 3A6000 processor as a multi-chip module with 32 CPU cores.

Many companies, including Intel and AMD, have stopped product shipments to Russia amidst the war in Ukraine in the past few months. This has left the Russian state without any new processors from the two prominent x86 designers, thus slowing down the country's technological progress. To overcome this issue, it seems like the solution is embedded in the Chinese Zhaoxin x86 CPUs. According to the latest report from Habr, a motherboard designer called Dannie is embedding Chinese Zhaoxin x86 CPUs into motherboards to provide the motherland with an x86-capable processor. More precisely, the company had designed a BX-Z60A micro-ATX motherboard that embeds Zhaoxin's KaiXian KX-6640MA SoC with eight cores based on LuJiaZui microarchitecture. The SoC is clocked at a frequency range of 2.1-2.7 GHz, carries 4 MB of L2 cache, 16 lanes of PCIe 3.0, and has integrated graphics, all in a 25 Watt TDP.

As far as the motherboard is concerned, it supports two DDR4 memory slots, two PCIe x16 connectors, M.2-2280 and M.2-2230 slots, and three SATA III connectors for storage. For I/O you have USB ports, DisplayPort, HDMI, VGA/D-Sub, GbE, 3.5-mm audio, and additional PS/2 ports. This is a pretty decent selection; however, we don't know the pricing structure. A motherboard with KaiXian KX-6640MA SoC like this is certainly not cheap, so we are left to wonder if this will help Russian users deal with the newly imposed restriction on importing US tech.

QNAP, today introduced the 6-bay TVS-675 NAS powered by the x86 Zhaoxin KaiXian KX-U6580 8-core 2.5 GHz processor. Featuring dual-port 2.5 GbE connectivity, dual M.2 SSD slots for cache acceleration, PCIe expansion, multi-cloud backup, 4K HDMI 2.0 output, expandable storage capacity and install-on-demand apps, the TVS-675 provides modern businesses with a cost-effective 2.5 GbE NAS solution.

The TVS-675 has 8 GB DDR4 memory (expandable up to 64 GB - 2x 32 GB) and supports AES-NI encryption acceleration. The built-in dual 2.5 GbE RJ45 ports can deliver up to 5 Gbps potential under Port Trunking, satisfying bandwidth-hungry applications such as large file transfers, fast backup/restoration, and multimedia transfer & editing. To attain optimal I/O and reduced latency, users can configure SSD caching by using the two built-in M.2 2280 SSDs slots (supports PCIe NVMe Gen 3 SSDs or SATA 6 Gb/s SSDs, sold separately) without occupying disk drive bays. By utilizing QNAP's Qtier technology the TVS-675 NAS can benefit from auto-optimized tiered storage to achieve optimal performance while also balancing storage utilization.

Zhaoxin, the Chinese chip-maker famous for Kaixian line of x86 processors, and a major beneficiary of the Chinese government's ambitious "3-5-2 plan" of public investment toward the country's computer hardware independence by the mid-2020s, unveiled plans to design its first discrete GPUs that could double up as scalar-compute and AI processors. The company's baby step is a tiny 70-Watt dGPU that will be fabricated on TSMC's 28 nm silicon fabrication process that will likely serve as a tech demonstrator and development platform for ISVs. The dGPU is largely expected to derive from VIA's S3 Graphics IP as VIA has collaborated with Zhaoxin as an iGPU provider for its Kaixian line of x86 SoCs.

Apple on Monday formalized the beginning of its departure from Intel x86 machine architecture for its Mac computers. Apple makes up to 4 percent of Intel's annual CPU sales, according to a MarketWatch report. Apple is now scaling up its own A-series SoCs that use Arm CPU cores, up to performance levels relevant to Macs, and has implemented support for not just new and upcoming software ported to the new Arm machine architecture, but also software over form the iOS and iPadOS ecosystems on Mac, starting with its MacOS "Big Sur" operating system. We reached out to Intel for some of its first comments on the development.

In a comment to TechPowerUp, an Intel spokesperson said "Apple is a customer across several areas of our business, and we will continue to support them. Intel remains focused on delivering the most advanced PC experiences and a wide range of technology choices that redefine computing. We believe Intel-powered PCs—like those based on our forthcoming Tiger Lake mobile platform—provide global customers the best experience in the areas they value most, as well as the most open platform for developers, both today and into the future."

With a 2.4-liter volume, a conventional black plastic body, and essential connectivity, the Ruijie RG-CT7800 may come across as a run-of-the-mill mini-PCs for small businesses or those who do precious little offline, except what's under the hood. This humble compact desktop is among the first design wins of China's ambitious effort at having an x86 processor built entirely on Chinese soil, the Zhaoxin KaiXian. This processor is making its way to products, and was recently pictured on an embedded motherboard. The KaiXian, along with the notebooks, motherboards, micro-servers, and mini-PCs that implement it, form the tip of China's 3-5-2 policy, an ambitious plan to rid all state- and state-owned institutions of "foreign hardware."

The numerals in "3-5-2" are supposed to correspond to foreign hardware replacement targets set by the country's Central Government - 30% by the end of 2020, an additional 50% by the end of 2021, and the remaining 20% by the end of 2022. To support this plan, the Chinese electronics industry, flush with state investment, has indigenized several key components of the modern PC, including DRAM, NAND flash, and now CPU. The country already dominates the global electronic components market. The RG-CT7800 implements The KaiXian KX-U6780A SoC that sports eight x64 CPU cores running at 2.70 GHz. Interestingly, the chip is manufactured on TSMC's 16 nm FinFET node (a de facto "foreign" source, but one that's de jure China from Beijing's perspective). Ruijie is equipping the RG-CT7800 with 8 GB of DDR4 memory, and 256 GB of SSD-based storage. One can make out industry-standard USB, Ethernet, 3.5 mm audio jacks, etc., from the pictures. The box will be compatible with UOS and NeoKylin (Linux distros built under scrutiny of the Chinese Government). With state institutions being on the clock to implement their 3-5-2 targets, it's possible that the first volumes of RG-CT7800 will be sold exclusively to state customers.

Zhaoxin is a brand that makes multi-core 64-bit x86 processors primarily for use in Chinese state IT infrastructure. It's part of the Chinese Government's ambitious plan to make its IT hardware completely indigenous. Zhaoxin's x86-64 CPU cores are co-developed by licensee VIA, specifically its CenTaur subsidiary that's making NCORE AI-enabled x86 processors. The company's KaiXian KX-6780A processor is now commercially available in China to the DIY market in the form of motherboards with embedded processors.

The KaiXian KX-6780A features an 8-core/8-thread x86-64 CPU clocked up to 2.70 GHz, 8 MB of last-level cache, a dual-channel DDR4-3200 integrated memory controller, a PCI-Express gen 3.0 root-complex, and an iGPU possibly designed by VIA's S3 Graphics division, which supports basic display and DirectX 11.1 readiness. The CPU features modern ISA, with instruction sets that include AVX, AES-NI, SHA-NI, and VT-x comparable virtualization extensions. The chip has been fabricated on TSMC 16 nm FinFET process.

FinalWire Ltd. today announced the immediate availability of AIDA64 Extreme 6.20 software, a streamlined diagnostic and benchmarking tool for home users; the immediate availability of AIDA64 Engineer 6.20 software, a professional diagnostic and benchmarking solution for corporate IT technicians and engineers; the immediate availability of AIDA64 Business 6.20 software, an essential network management solution for small and medium scale enterprises; and the immediate availability of AIDA64 Network Audit 6.20 software, a dedicated network audit toolset to collect and manage corporate network inventories.

The latest AIDA64 update introduces optimized benchmarks for AMD Renoir and Intel Ice Lake processors, monitoring of sensor values on EVGA Z10 RGB displays, and supports the latest AMD and Intel CPU platforms as well as the new graphics and GPGPU computing technologies by both AMD and NVIDIA.DOWNLOAD: FinalWire AIDA64 Extreme v6.20

The only other active x86 architecture licensee than AMD, VIA Technologies, is planning a comeback to the x86 processor market, bolstered by R&D investment by Shanghai Zhaoxin Semiconductor. VIA and Zhaoxin have been co-developing the ZX family of x86 processors for rollout in 2018, and at least on paper, the chips appear to have the chops to take on Intel's "Gemini Lake" SoCs. The new VIA-Zhaoxin combine CPU family begins with the KX-5000 "Wudaoku" SoCs launched late-2017. These are full-fledged SoCs, which completely integrate the chipset (including the southrbidge).

The KX-5000 chips feature 4 or 8 CPU cores without SMT, 2.00-2.20 GHz nominal CPU clock, 2.40 GHz boost clock, a dual-channel DDR4 IMC, a PCI-Express gen 3.0 root complex, an integrated graphics core, and platform I/O that includes SATA 6 Gbps, and USB 3.1 gen 2. This chip debuted on only one product from a major OEM, the Lenovo M6200 desktop model launched in China. 2018 could see a broader launch of VIA-Zhaoxin chips, with the KX-6000. While the older chips were built on the 28 nm process, the KX-6000 series will be built on the newer 16 nm process, feature 4 or 8 CPU cores clocked at speeds of up to 3.00 GHz, while retaining the feature-set of the KX-5000 series. These chips could realistically be touted as low-cost alternatives to Intel "Gemini Lake" SoCs, although Zhaoxin is making bold claims about its performance nearing that of AMD Ryzen processors.