AMD Ryzen 4000 release date, laptops and specs: everything we know about AMD's next CPUs

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AMD Ryzen 4000 release date, laptops and specs: everything we know about AMD's next CPUs

Will AMD continue its winning spree?

(Image credit: Future)

 

AMD Ryzen 4000 is coming at a time when Team Red is sitting on top of the world. According to several analysts, it's selling 40% more processors than its rivals over at Intel and its processors are more popular than ever before. 

 

But it doesn't look like AMD plans to slow down any time soon. We've already got a sneak peek at AMD Ryzen 4000 processors for laptops at CES 2020, with AMD promising hugely improved performance across the board - and we might finally see AMD processors in big flagships for the first time in years. 

 

Laptops aren't the entire scene, however, and we've heard plenty of whispers about the AMD Zen 3-equipped Ryzen 4000 processors for desktop. These will be based on a 7nm+ manufacturing process and could potentially push clock speeds high enough to really make Intel hurt, especially if Team Blue stays stuck at 14nm on desktop. 

 

It is definitely an exciting time for AMD, and there's already so much information and gossip out there about the next generation of Ryzen. We gathered all the most important bits right here in this article so you can stay ahead of the Ryzen 4000 curve. And don't worry, we'll keep this article updated with all the latest news and information, so be sure to bookmark us so you can stay on top of it. 

Cut to the chase

(Image credit: AMD)

AMD Ryzen 4000 release date

Right out of the gate, we don't know when AMD will be launching its next-generation of Ryzen processors for desktop. Right now, our money is on the Zen 3-backed processors making an appearance at Computex 2020, with a more details announced at E3 2020. This is exactly the approach AMD took with its Ryzen 3rd Generation processors in 2019, but there's one crucial difference. 

 

Back at CES 2019, AMD announced Zen 2, the microarchitecture that would later be behind Ryzen 3rd Generation, Threadripper 3rd Generation and Epyc 2nd generation. We expected Team Red to follow suit by announcing Zen 3 with some vague details at CES 2020, but that didn't happen. 

 

While we might still see AMD Ryzen 4000 desktop processors make an appearance at Computex 2020 and E3, there's a firm possibility that they'll come at a later date. All we know is that Lisa Su said AMD Ryzen 4000 for desktop will be coming in 2020. We just don't know when in 2020.

 

We did get something at CES 2020, at least, when AMD CEO Lisa Su unveiled the AMD Ryzen 4000 processors for laptops. 

 

We do know that AMD Ryzen 4000 processors for laptops will be out in the very near future, and they're potentially much more interesting. There's no specific release date, which is typical for mobile processor lineups. We should start seeing laptops rocking AMD Ryzen 4000 processors by the end of Q1 2020 across both ultraportables and gaming laptops. 

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

AMD Ryzen 4000 Price

As far as the laptop chips, the prices of the processors themselves are not relevant to most people, as laptop manufacturers will absorb the price and repackage them. Still, we will probably see prices increase over last-generation AMD laptops, due to the fact that AMD's processors will be behind flagship-class laptops like the upcoming Lenovo Yoga Slim 7.

 

We'll probably see Ryzen 3 laptops starting around the $600 mark, with laptops rocking the Ryzen 7 4800H or 4800U hitting the premium market above $1,000. However, we can be a bit more specific with our speculation on the desktop lineup. 

 

AMD Ryzen 3rd Generation saw higher prices than Ryzen 2000, largely due to the introduction of Ryzen 9 processors with up to 16 cores. However, the Ryzen 7 3700X did launch at the same $329 (£319, AU$519) price point as the Ryzen 7 2700X that came before it. 

 

Due to the success of chips like the Ryzen 9 3900X and 3950X, however, we fully expect AMD to follow suit with the Ryzen 4000 lineup. For reference, we included the pricing of AMD Ryzen 3000 processors below. We expect the pricing to stay roughly the same for the next generation. 

• AMD Ryzen 9 3950X: $749 (about £590, AU$1,080)
• AMD Ryzen 9 3900X: $499 (about £390, AU$720)
• AMD Ryzen 7 3800X: $399 (about £310, AU$580)
• AMD Ryzen 7 3700X: $329 (about £260, AU$480)
• AMD Ryzen 5 3600X: $249 (about £200, AU$360)
• AMD Ryzen 5 3600: $199 (about £160, AU$290)
• AMD Ryzen 5 3400G: $149 (£139, AU$240)
• AMD Ryzen 3 3300G: $99 (£94, AU$144)

 

(Image credit: AMD)

AMD Ryzen 4000 Specs

Right now we know the most about the AMD Ryzen 4000 mobile lineup, so that's where we're going to start. These will be the first 7nm processors to make their way to laptops, and with that they bring some huge benefits. 

 

The biggest of these is, just like Ryzen 3000 desktop before it, core counts. Even with ultraportable laptops, which have previously been limited to 4 core/8 thread configurations, you're getting 8 cores and 16 threads. This is a huge improvement, and even though clock speeds are limited to 4.2GHz - or a bit higher with 25W configurations - users should see massive gains in productivity workloads.

 

 

However, what's odd is that only every other SKU has hyperthreading. For example, the AMD Ryzen 7 4700U has 8 cores and 8 threads, whereas the 4800U has 8 cores and 16 threads. Both of the announced H-Series chips for mobile have hyper-threading however, along with higher base clock speeds. 

 

 

One of the key features of this AMD Ryzen 4000 series for laptops is going to be the integrated graphics performance. Now, we haven't had a chance to test this yet, of course, but AMD is promising a boost of up to 28% over Intel's Ice Lake when it comes to graphics performance. These chips will not be in gaming laptops, however, but when you just want to get in a quick Overwatch match on your lunch break, it will make a major difference.

 

We went ahead and listed the core specs of each of the laptop processors. 

• AMD Ryzen 7 4800U: 8 cores, 16 threads | 1.8GHz base, 4.2GHz boost | 12MB cache
• AMD Ryzen 7 4700U: 8 cores, 8 threads | 2.0GHz base, 4.1GHz boost | 12MB cache
• AMD Ryzen 5 4600U: 6 cores, 12 threads | 2.1GHz base, 4.0GHz boost | 11MB cache
• AMD Ryzen 5 4500U: 6 cores, 6 threads | 2.3GHz base, 4.0GHz boost | 11MB cache
• AMD Ryzen 3 4300U: 4 cores, 4 threads | 2.7GHz base, 3.7GHz boost | 6MB cache
• AMD Ryzen 7 4800H: 8 cores, 16 threads | 2.9GHz base, 4.2GHz boost | 12MB cache
• AMD Ryzen 5 4600H: 6 cores, 12 threads | 3.0GHz base, 4.0GHz boost | 11MB cache

 

We know far less about desktop, however. Beyond the fact we know it'll be revealed in 2020, Zen 3 is largely an enigma wrapped in mystery. It will be based on a refinement of the 7nm process found in Zen 2, but any more specific information is purely in the realm of rumor. 

 

 

There are rumors that it will be based on TSMC's new 7nm EUV (extreme ultraviolet) process, similar to what's rumored to be seen in Nvidia Ampere. If this is true, the processors could be much more power efficient, which could see clock speeds see a sizable bump - which could seriously threaten Intel's chips in the gaming scene. 

 

 

Another thing that could make Intel start sweating is the rumor that with Ryzen 4000, AMD may introduce more powerful hyperthreading, with each physical core having four simultaneous processing threads, as opposed to the two found on today's silicon. This is a rumor we'd definitely take with a grain of salt, but if it's true it could even further widen the gap between AMD and Intel when it comes to multi-threaded workloads.

 

 

It's unlikely that we'll see huge core count bumps with this generation, like we did last year. Instead, AMD will probably use the EUV process to boost performance while cutting power consumption. This does mean that there likely won't be much of a reason to upgrade if you already have a Ryzen 3000 chip. 

 

Still, we won't know what AMD Ryzen 4th Generation processors will look like until we see them announced by Team Red. We'll be sure to update this article as soon as we hear more about AMD's next desktop chips and once we've been able to actually test the laptop models. 

 

 

Source: AMD Ryzen 4000 release date, laptops and specs: everything we know about AMD's next CPUs (TechRadar)