There has been big news in the mobile market as the Ryzen 4000 Renoir notebook CPU series has finally been launched.
AMD has released its 7nm Zen 2 CPUs which will bring faster performance for laptop users. AMD aims for this series to offer the best performance of any laptop CPU and they might have just achieved that.
A lot of information has been released over the past few days, so we’re going to combine a lot of it here and cover a few things you need to know about AMD’s new Ryzen 4000 series of laptop processors.
The H/HS Models In This Series
The new AMD Ryzen family consists of two processor segments – the H series and the U series.
The H series CPUs are aimed at high-performance laptops. Each of these will have a TDP of 45W except for other variants which will be labeled HS with a TDP of 35W.
The H series consists of:
- AMD Ryzen 5 4600H/HS – 6 cores and 12 threads
- AMD Ryzen 7 4800H/HS – 8 cores and 16 threads
- AMD Ryzen 9 4900H/HS – 8 cores and 16 threads
These models will be going up against Intel’s new 14nm CPUs which are set to be released during the first week of April.
AMD Ryzen 5 4600H/HS CPU Details
Starting at the bottom, there’s the AMD Ryzen 5 4600H/HS which has 6 cores and 12 threads. Both the H and HS variants come with the same base clock speeds of 3.0 GHz and a boost clock speed of 4.0 GHz. The CPUs will also have 11 MB of cache and 6 CUs that clock at 1500 MHz.
This chip will be going head to head with Intel’s Core i5 10550H and the Core i5 10500H.
AMD Ryzen 7 4800H/HS Details
The second chip in the H series is the Ryzen 7 4800H/HS. This processor has 8 cores and 16 threads with 12 MB of cache.
The H variant has a base clock of 2.9 GHz and a boost clock of up to 4.2 GHz. The HS variant has a higher base clock of 3.0 GHz and the same boost clock of 4.2 GHz. Both chips come with Vega 8 graphics that clock at 1600 MHz.
The main Intel competition for this chip is the Core i7 10875H and the Core i7 10750H.
AMD Ryzen 9 4900H/HS Details
This is the flagship CPU in this range. The Ryzen 9 4900H/HS comes with 8 cores and 16 threads, with 12 MB of cache. The H version has a base clock of 3.30 GHz and the boost clock can reach 4.40 GHz. However, the HS version has a base clock of 3.0 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, working at a TDP of 35W.
Both of the above chips come with AMD’s 7nm Vega GPU with 8 CUs or 512 stream processors which clock at 1750 MHz.
The main competition this is going against is the Intel Core i9 10980HK and the Intel Core i9 10880H.
AMD Ryzen 4000U Series
While the H series is for high-performing laptops, the U series is designed more for ultrathin laptops and gaming laptops.
When it comes to the U series, AMD has launched several different models including:
- AMD Ryzen 3 4300U
- AMD Ryzen 5 4500U
- AMD Ryzen 5 4600U
- AMD Ryzen 7 4700U
- AMD Ryzen 7 4800U
- AMD Ryzen 9 4900U
All of these models have a TDP of 15W but with varying levels of power and clock speeds.
First in the series is the Ryzen 3 4300U which has 4 cores and 4 threads with a base clock of 2.7 GHz and a boost clock of 3.7 GHz.
The Ryzen 5 4500U has 6 cores and 6 threads with a base clock of 2.3 GHz and a boost of 4.0 GHz. This makes it pretty similar to the Ryzen 5 4600U which has 12 threads instead of 6 and a base clock of 2.1 GHz but the same clock speed of 4.0 GHz.
With the Ryzen 7 models, the Ryzen 7 4700U has 8 cores and 8 threads with a base clock of 2.0 GHz but a boost clock of up to 4.1 GHz. The next one up, the Ryzen 7 4800U has the same amount of cores but has a total of 16 threads. While the base clock for this processor is slightly lower at 1.8 GHz, the boost clock goes slightly higher, up to 4.2 GHz.
Finally, the top of the U series is the Ryzen 9 4900U which offers 8 cores and 16 threads but the clock speeds are unclear at the moment.
Updated Vega Graphics
AMD has also managed to step up their integrated Vega graphics by increasing the performance by 59% per graphic computing unit.
This improvement was made through AMD’s 7nm Vega architecture which enables a 25% higher graphics clock.
SmartShift And System Temperature Tracking (STT)
To boost the overall clock performance across the line AMD has made use of STT v2 which places diodes on hotspots of the chassis to calculate temperatures. This recorded temperature is then sent to the SoC of the CPU and GPU boost decisions.
The duration of boost can be increased by 4x once the temperature of the chassis is accurately calculated.
AMD’s SmartShift technology also optimizes the TDP between the CPU and GPU by shifting power between the two according to need. SmartShift automatically recognizes when the CPU or GPU is overloaded and will shift power intuitively to boost the clock speed.
AMD says this results in 10% higher frame rates during gaming sessions and 12% faster content creation.
What Laptops Can We Expect To Feature These New CPUs?
The laptop that everyone is currently talking about at the moment is the ASUS Zephyrus G14 which will feature the flagship Ryzen 9 4900HS processor. It has already been reported that this processor and laptop can beat the performance of the MacBook Pro – which is fitted with Intel’s Core i9 9980HK.
Other laptops on offer include the ASUS ROG Zephyrus G15 which will use a Ryzen 7 4800HS CPU, the ASUS TUG Gaming A15 laptop which will run the Ryzen 7 4800H and the MSI Bravo 15 which will run either the Ryzen 7 4800H or the Ryzen 5 4600H.
There are other models using the U series such as the Acer Swift 3 which will run AMD’s Ryzen 7 4700U and the Acer Aspire 5 which will use the Ryzen 5 4500U CPU.
With quite a few options out there to purchase in the coming weeks and months, there should be something to suit a range of different budgets.
Better Performance Than Intel?
Of course, whenever AMD releases a huge series or model, the first question a lot of us have is how does it compare to Intel?
While it could be too early to say without more testing, and we’ll know more once Intel releases their 10th Gen Comet Lake H CPUs, the competition from AMD is impressive.
So far, it looks like AMD processors offer more cores and threads and according to a recent benchmark, the Ryzen 7 4800HS is scoring higher than the CPU in the latest MacBook Pros. The CPU in the MacBook Pro is – you guessed it – an Intel CPU, the Intel Core i99980HK to be more specific.
According to a CineBench R20 score, the Ryzen 9 4900HS scores 11.9% higher than Intel’s Core i9 processor, even when the i9 has a TDP of 90W.
Final Word
It’s fair to say that Intel has a lot to worry about at the moment. Overall, it looks like AMD are not only outperforming them but are also offering their CPUs for lower prices. If that proves to be the case in the next few weeks as more prices are released, it will be a no-brainer for many people looking to upgrade their CPU to go with an AMD offering.
However, this could all cause Intel to simply lower their prices in order to compete, which could be good news for Intel fans out there. If we hear any more details about the AMD Ryzen 4000 processors in the meantime, we will keep you updated.