Introduction

AMD today expanded its Ryzen 7000 "Zen 4" desktop processor series, and we have a couple of reviews for you today, starting with the Ryzen 7 7700 8-core processor. At the 2023 International CES, AMD expanded its desktop processor series in two distinct directions apart from the Ryzen 7000X series it debuted in 2022. Towards the value end, you have three new processor models with 65 W TDP and included stock cooling solutions; and towards the high-end, it introduced the 7000X3D processors with 3D Vertical Cache, which will release in February.

The 65 W models being introduced today are equally important for the company, as they appeal to a much wider range of PC part buyers, particularly small businesses. AMD has standardized integrated graphics with the Ryzen 7000 series. Every business that picks up a 65 W Core i5 or Core i7 processor for its office needs and only uses the integrated graphics, now gets the first real alternatives from AMD that aren't fancy APUs that compromise on CPU performance in favor of strong iGPUs. The integrated graphics included with these processors are feature-rich, and match the ones Intel includes with its mainstream desktop processors in performance.



The new "Zen 4" microarchitecture powering the Ryzen 7 7700 from this review introduces a roughly 13% IPC uplift over the previous-generation "Zen 3," which when combined with the power headroom scooped out by the new 5 nm process to enable boost frequencies north of 5 GHz, work out to a roughly 29% generational single-threaded performance uplift. The lowering of the TDP down to 65 W should technically have no impact on single-threaded performance, or even performance for less-parallelized workloads.

The Ryzen 7 7700 is an 8-core/16-thread traditional multi-core processor with only one kind of high-performance core. AMD uses a classical definition of TDP, and for the 7700 this is rated at 65 W, with 95 W package power tracking (PPT). The processor has nearly everything in common with the Ryzen 7 7700X, but with lower boost frequencies of 5.30 GHz compared to 5.40 GHz of the 7700X, and much tighter electrical headroom to hold on to boost frequencies compared to the 7700X, which enjoys 105 W TDP and 140 W PPT.

Just like Intel includes cooling solutions with its retail 65 W Core i7 and Core i5 processors, AMD is doing so, and has given the 7700 its top-of-the-line Wraith Prism RGB cooler that's capable of handling thermal loads of up to 140 W, and looks really cool when installed. This is the kind of stuff AMD should be doing to clinch the deal for gamers shopping in this segment. Despite its lower TDP, the Ryzen 7 7700 comes with an ace up its sleeves that rival Intel processors lack—an unlocked multiplier, which lets you overclock it. That's not all, even mid-range AMD motherboard chipsets such as the B650, support CPU overclocking.

The Ryzen 7 7700 also comes with the same I/O capabilities as the rest of the Ryzen 7000 series. The processor supports up to 128 GB of dual-channel DDR5 memory (4 sub-channels), but without backwards-compatibility with DDR4. Memory prices are cooling down, so you might be able to grab DDR5-4800 memory at just 10-15% higher prices than DDR4-3600 (2x 16 GB capacity equated). The PCI-Express I/O is superior to that of Intel "Raptor Lake." Besides a PCI-Express Gen 5 x16 slot for graphics, you get two PCIe Gen 5 M.2 slots wired to the processor. On the "Raptor Lake" platform, the processor only puts out one Gen 4 M.2 slot from the processor, and the only motherboards that offer Gen 5 M.2 slots do so by cutting into the x16 slot.

AMD is pricing the Ryzen 7 7700 at US $330, or about $70 cheaper than the launch price of the 7700X. This still comes across as a little bold, as Intel now has the Core i7-13700 8P+8E at $380, and the Core i5-13600K 6P+8E unlocked processor at the same $330 price, but without a boxed cooler. Can the new 65 W AMD "Zen 4" hold out? In this review we take a closer look.