AMD’s working on “Renoir-X” to counter Intel’s next-gen i3 CPUs
AMD’s giving the low-end CPU market some much-needed attention
In recent years, AMD has done little to cater to the low-end CPU market, with AMD’s lowest-end Zen 3 desktop processor being their Ryzen 5 5600G. Sadly, the sub-£200 CPU market is being ignored by AMD, making it an area where Intel has an advantage.
Thanks to processors like the Intel i5-10400F and i5-11400F, Intel already has an advantage over AMD in the low-cost gaming CPU market. Beyond that, AMD has not released any desktop Ryzen 3 processors since their Ryzen 3 3100 and 3300X processors.
According to new rumours from Enthusiastic Citizen over at Chiphell, AMD plans to launch new Renoir-X series processors to counter Intel’s upcoming 12th Generation i3 processors. These processors are presumably Renoir series AM4 processors that lack Renoir’s integrated Vega-based GPU.
At this time, the specifications of AMD’s rumoured Renoir-X processors are unknown. That said, these new processors are likely to become new Ryzen 3 series CPUs, adding a new low-end option to AMD’s Ryzen line up.
Enthusiastic Citizen’s other comments regarding AMD line up with our expectations for CES 2022, with AMD announcing new Zen 3 based AM4 processors with their 3D V-Cache technology.
Later in 2022, AMD is also expected to start discussing their first AM5 processors, their Raphael series processors, their Zen 4 architecture and their planned X670 and B550 motherboards. AMD’s AM5 motherboard platform will support DDR5 memory exclusively, which will be a problem for AMD if DRAM manufacturers cannot build enough DDR5 memory to meet demand.
On the Intel side, it looks like a new HEDT socket from Intel is planned called LGA4677, replacing X299 with a new generation of HEDT processors that support DDR5 memory and utilise Sapphire Rapids CPU cores. These processors are designed to counter AMD’s Threadripper CPU line up.
With Renoir-X being a Zen 2 based product offering from AMD, it is hard to see how useful its addition will be to AMD’s AM4 product line. Renoir has less L3 Cache and AMD’s existing Zen 2 based Ryzen 3 3300X, and that alone makes Renoir X unattractive to gamers. That said, Renoir-X could deliver 6-core Ryzen 3 series CPUs, which would be an interesting addition to AMD’s product stack.
You can join the discussion on AMD’s rumoured Renoir X series processors on the OC3D Forums.