AMD’s next-gen Zen 5 processors are already in mass production, or so we’re told by the rumor mill.
This nugget of information was revealed by a well-known leaker on X (formerly Twitter), Kepler, after they were asked a question about whether these ‘Granite Ridge’ desktop chips were already in production.
YeahJanuary 15, 2024
As you can see, Kepler replied to say yes, they are (via Wccftech). Take that, of course, with a wheelbarrow full of seasoning, especially seeing as there’s no elaboration beyond the one-word answer.
Zen 5 processors could be Ryzen 8000, or AMD may skip that and go straight to Ryzen 9000 (leaving the Ryzen 8000 series as just the APUs – all-in-one chips with peppy integrated graphics – that were revealed at CES 2024 last week).
Whatever the name ends up being, we know that these processors will be supported by current AM5 chipset motherboards, and indeed that support should run for quite some time yet.
Analysis: Breathing room in the battle against Arrow Lake
Zen 5 processors being in mass production doesn’t mean they are just around the corner. If we look back at Ryzen 7000 CPUs, rumors about mass production were floating around in March 2022, before the desktop chips were released in September – so the first rumblings came some six months ahead of time.
That means Zen 5 (Ryzen 8000 or 9000) CPUs might just turn up in July, or just after, and this aligns with what we’ve heard more recently on the rumor mill about a likely Q3 launch timeframe (July to September). Historically, it’s more likely to be later in the quarter, than midyear (July), and the other factor to bear in mind is that AMD isn’t exactly going to feel rushed by Intel’s (theoretical) progress with its next-gen processors.
Rumor has it that Intel’s Arrow Lake won’t turn up until late in 2024, so AMD has plenty of breathing room in that respect. In short, Team Red has that maneuvering space to wait until it has plenty of production running and stock built up before launching Zen 5, so folks aren’t disappointed by inventory shortages and the like.
All of this is very much in theory, but suffice it to say that mass production kicking off is in line with everything else we’ve been hearing (including early mentions of the Ryzen 900 series, a tiny clue – again add skepticism – that this may be the name for Zen 5 desktop CPUs). Roll on the battle of the next-gen chips as they attempt to dominate our selection of the best processors.
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