It has been two years since AMD released Zen 5 Ryzen CPUs, and the launch of the next-gen Zen 6 CPUs should slowly be approaching—or at least we hope so. So far, there have not been many leaks indicating what kind of performance to expect, but this week a Geekbench database entry appeared showing a processor that appears to be a laptop Zen 6 sample—a Medusa APU. However, the performance scores raise more questions than answers. Read more “Geekbench benchmark leak reveals Zen 6 core performance”
When AMD came back nine years ago with the Zen core, its strategy was to eliminate the split between big and little (Bobcat and Jaguar) cores and cover the entire market with a single, balanced architecture. Intel, on the other hand, moved to hybrid (big.LITTLE) CPUs. AMD is apparently going there too, now. It has used classic and compact cores where both shared the same architecture so far, but now there will be a separate low-power core. Read more “AMD confirms development of little “LP” core for Zen 6″
Next-gen Intel Core Ultra 400 “Nova Lake” processors are expected to launch later this or early next year, bringing major changes to the desktop platform. The new LGA 1954 socket will support dual compute die CPUs, akin to AMD models such as the Ryzen 9 9950X, but with up to 52 cores. As a result, these processors are expected to have unprecedented power draw and we have finally learned just how high that figure will be. Read more “Intel Nova Lake Processors Could Consume Up to 474 Watts”
Recently, reports spread that AMD had disabled TSME, one of the Ryzen CPU security features without warning. It’s a bit more complicated than that, however, as this was not a regular default feature, but rather a Pro SKUs technology that was only present on standard Ryzen CPUs unofficially if not accidentally. The media attention seems to have resulted in access to TSME technology being restored for the non-Pro Ryzen processors, though. Read more “AMD Re-Enables RAM Encryption on Ryzen CPUs Following Criticism”
One of the advantages of AMD CPUs for the AM5 socket compared to the AM4 platform is that even the higher‑end chiplet models include an integrated GPU located in the IO chiplet. Thanks to this, these processors can be used in office PCs (or workstations that don’t require high GPU performance) without the needing a discrete graphics card. But the new generation with Zen 6 cores may lose this advantage, likely due to the AI hype. Read more “Zen 6 Desktop Ryzen CPUs Reportedly Lack Integrated GPU”
Nvidia unveiled its own RTX Spark laptop CPUs at Computex, with considerable support from PC manufacturers and Microsoft, who clearly expect Nvidia processors to capture a significant share of the PC market. Whether that’s achievable for the first generation, which has been delayed by more than a year, remains to be seen. Nvidia, however, already has a full roadmap of successors in development and revealed it at Computex. Read more “Nvidia’s plans with Spark CPUs: Next generation, lower-cost chips”
We previously covered information about Intel’s future Razor Lake processors, expected to launch as the Core Ultra 500 generation likely at the end of 2027 (that is, after the upcoming Nova Lake generation). Moore’s Law is Dead, who leaked those details, also revealed information about the following generations—Titan Lake and Hammer Lake. These are even further out, but they will introduce a long‑awaited, radical architectural shift. Read more “Intel Titan Lake, Hammer Lake CPUs detailed: Unified Core and HT”
It’s been nearly two years since AMD’s Zen 5 architecture launched (in late July and early August 2024) and time is ripe for a successor—especially given how far competitors such as Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite and Apple’s M5 have advanced in the meantime. AMD’s answer in the form of the Zen 6 architecture is now finally getting closer—the company has announced the ramp up of production, which could signal a launch later this year. Read more “AMD has started mass production of Zen 6. Only for Epycs for now?”
For a while, we’ve been seeing reports that Apple could become one of the key major customers Intel signed up for chip production in its Foundry fabs—a critical factor in Intel’s long-term effort to turn the fab division around. At first, this may have been little more than Intel shareholder’s wishful thinking, but it appears the contract may indeed happen, with Intel set to manufacture Apple chips—for laptops as well as mobile phones. Read more “Future Apple Silicon processors will be fabbed by Intel Foundry”
Longtime rivals AMD and Intel have established a joint consortium seeking to make their x86 processors and their future extensions more compatible instead of using the differences and exclusive features as (anti)competitive advantages. In autumn they settled on several extensions to be made standard: AVX10/AVX-512, APX, ChkTag, FRED, and also the ACE matrix extension for AI compute, about which very little had been known until now. Read more “x86 ACE Instructions: AMD Zen 7 core’s AI acceleration detailed”
The launch of AMD’s next‑generation desktop processors (Zen 6 architecture) is apparently still many months away. It is therefore surprising that a new feature is coming to AM5 motherboards at the current time: AMD has introduced EXPO 1.2, a new generation of DDR5 memory overclocking profiles for the AM5 platform. EXPO 1.2 adds several previously missing capabilities, especially initial support for higher‑speed CUDIMM modules. Read more “EXPO 1.2 brings support for CUDIMM memory to the AMD platform”
While little is known about AMD’s Zen 6 CPUs, quite a lot has been leaking about Intel’s competing Nova Lake CPUs. Nova Lake could be an interesting and innovative generation thanks to new cores bringing back AVX‑512 and introducing APX for the first time. And they will be boosted by another new technology: FRED, which is already present in Panther Lake CPUs, and as it turns out, it brings notable benefits in certain applications. Read more “Performance boost for Intel CPUs: Impact of FRED measured”
AMD’s AM4 platform is often praised for its long life and upgradability. But if you have a gaming PC with an AM4 motherboard, your ideal upgrade would be the Ryzen 7 5800X3D with 3D V‑Cache, which is long out of production, with many who wanted it having missed the chance to get one which undermines the theoretical upgradability in practice. However, luck may still smile on you—AMD is reportedly considering bringing this CPU back to market. Read more “Ryzen 7 5800X3D will come back to commemorate 10 years of AM4”
Since Alder Lake (12th‑gen Core), Intel has been using a rectangular desktop CPU socket—first LGA 1700, now LGA 1851, and at the turn of the year the LGA 1954 platform for Nova Lake is expected. These sockets, however, have been associated with complaints about CPU bending caused by the mounting mechanism and cooler pressure. With Nova Lake, Intel is preparing a solution, though it may not be available on all motherboards. Read more “Nova Lake to feature new 2L-ILM socket to prevent CPU bending”
Last year’s Nvidia GeForce RTX 5000 and AMD Radeon RX 9000 GPU launches were widely criticised for “fake MSRP.” That refers to situations where companies announce an attractive price that creates a good first impression and earns praise in reviews, only for the cards to immediately become more expensive or never actually appear at the advertised price. It now looks like something similar may be happening with Intel’s new processors. Read more “Arrow Lake Refresh CPU pricing considerably higher than announced”
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