AMD suggests that DDR5 scalping might delay Ryzen 6000 desktop APU launch on AM5

Like many of the stuff based on silicon, the new DDR5 memory standard has also fallen victim to the global chip shortage. As a result of the crisis, massive scalping is going on at online marketplaces like eBay, and companies like Asus are forced to work around them by creating interesting products like this DDR5 to DDR4 adapter for Alder Lake motherboards.

In relation to these high prices, AMD has also issued an early caution that its upcoming Ryzen 6000 desktop APUs featuring integrated RDNA 2 graphics could also be delayed as a result. While the company didn't outright confirm this, it is definitely a throwing caution to the wind scenario that if the high DDR5 prices continue to persist, the possibility of RDNA 2 desktop Rembrandt APUs being delayed is real.

In an interview with Tom's Hardware, AMD's Corporate VP and GM of the Client Channel business, David McAfee said:

One of the dynamics that we do think about a great deal is how and when to introduce that AM5 ecosystem and ensure that the DDR5 supply, as well as pricing of DDR5 memory, is mature and something that's easily attainable for an end-user

And so there may be other forces beyond the product itself that slow down or meter the introduction of APUs into that AM5 socket.

AMD briefly talked about its upcoming Socket AM5 and next-gen Zen 4-based Ryzen 7000 CPUs at CES 2022 (images below). It also launched the mobile RDNA 2 Ryzen 6000 Rembrandt parts at the event.

AM5 will be a massive departure for AMD as it will be the first AMD mainstream CPU socket to use a land-grid array (LGA) design. And alongside DDR5, Socket AM5 will also introduce PCIe 5.0 for AMD desktop systems, something Intel has already done with its Alder Lake-S CPUs.

Source: Tom's Hardware

AMD suggests that DDR5 scalping might delay Ryzen 6000 desktop APU launch on AM5