TSMC's Japanese facilities are set to fabricate "mature-technology chips" (28 nm and 22 nm) once construction at the site concludes next year—this $8.6 billion fab on Kyushu Island is proving to be a promising prospect for company leadership back in Taiwan. A Reuters report suggests that more ambitious plans are afoot for Japan as a key production base—two anonymous insiders claim that problems encountered at the Arizona plant have caused a shift in focus onto other global TSMC sites.

There is potential for further expansion and upgrades in Kikuyo, Kumamoto Prefecture—TSMC has reportedly taken an "increasingly optimistic view" of Japan's work culture, relatively cheap-to-build facility and a co-operative government. A smooth ramp-up of the first fabrication facility is the primary goal in 2024, but adjusted plans could add more capacity. The insiders think that a second site is also a possibility, with consideration for more advanced chip making.

DigiTimes Asia has picked up on some intriguing insider information—their source claims that Apple could be pivoting hardware development in the direction of lower-cost portable personal computer solutions. Their current "budget-friendly" champ is the M1 SoC-equipped MacBook Air (of 2020 vintage), starting at $999 for mortals—education incentives can lower that entry price down to $899. The gigantic American multinational technology company debuted a 15‑inch MacBook Air M2 model this year, but sales figures have allegedly not met projected targets. The DigiTimes report indicates that Apple engineers are preparing new hardware for a different market segment—education was mentioned earlier—Google and its partners remain dominant here with cost effective Chromebooks.

Apple's iPad family offers some "wallet friendly" alternatives for students, but industry experts note that ChromeOS-based laptops are easier to use for educational tasks and iPads: "cannot compete with Chromebooks on price." An all-new lower tier MacBook lineup—sitting below their Air range—is supposedly already in development, with a launch window projected for the second half of 2024 (lead time is said to be around nine months). A more competitive retail price is achievable due to the use of "cheaper material for the laptop's metal outer shell, and cheaper mechanical components."

AMD's Zen 4 high-end desktop (HEDT) family could be closing in on a launch window—AsRock's European office has registered a number of motherboards with the EEC, and KOMACHI_ENSAKA spotted a model sporting a TRX50 chipset sitting in the middle of mainstream gaming Lightning and Riptide offerings. The "TRX50 WS" seems to be the first sighting of an AMD Threadripper 7000 "Storm Peak" series workstation board. TRX50 is presumably the logical successor to Team Red's existing TRX40 platform—the latter supports third generation (Zen 3) Ryzen Threadripper 5000 "Chagall" processors. AMD has not publicly published any details regarding next-gen Threadripper and Threadripper Pro product lineups, but several leaks have pointed to the new HEDT platform arriving within the second half of 2023.

A mid-August Geekbench database entry outed the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 7995WX—this 96 core/192 thread CPU scored 2095 points in single-core tests, and 81408 multi-core points—these results have it positioned as one of the fastest processors submitted to Geekbench. The test system was running Geekbench v5.5 for Linux (Ubuntu 22.04 LTS). It is speculated that four (or more) models could be released with differing core counts: 16, 32, 64 and 96—please refer to the VideoCardz authored chart (below). Past rumors have SP5 and SP6 socket types linked to the "Storm Peak" family, with the introduction of DDR5 memory standard to Threadripper.

PerformanceDatabases has uncovered details relating to an alleged engineering sample of AMD's Ryzen 8000 "Strix Point" APU—likely insider sourced CPU-Z screengrabs from early last month revealed that the upcoming Zen 5-based laptop chip (in their words): "is built on a 4 nm Process and features the Big.Little CPU architecture with 4 Performance Cores and 8 Efficiency Cores. Both the P and E-Cores support hyper-threading. On the P-Core and E-Core, the L1 Data cache is 48 KB, while the L1 instruction cache is 32 KB. Each P Core boasts 1 MB of cache, and with E-Cores, it looks like there are 4 in a group, sharing 1 MB of L2 Cache. This setup is quite similar to Intel's design. Keep in mind, it's still in the engineering sample (ES) stage, so there's more to come. We'll keep you posted on any further updates!"

Another "AMD Strix - Internal GPU" example emerged late last week, this time in the form of a leaked HWInfo64 screen grab with some information completely covered up—the visible parts seems to point to this "Strix Point" APU featuring a core configuration as seen in the earlier leak, along with 1024 unified shaders. We can presume that the sampled Zen 5-based mobile APU possessing 16 RDNA 3.5 compute units (16 × 64 = 1024). Other details include a 45 W TDP rating, and the socket type being FP8 (as utilized by current Ryzen 7040U and 7040H(S) mobile SoCs). The 512 MB GDDR6 memory configuration is very likely an error—according to HWInfo64, the tested system was fitted with 32 GB of LPDDR5 memory. "Strix Point" looks to be the logical successor (in 2024) to AMD's current "Phoenix" lineup of mobile processors, as featured in gaming handhelds and laptops. PC hardware enthusiasts are expressing excitement about the upcoming APU series wielding impressive iGPU performance, with the potential to rival modern discrete mobile solutions.

ITHome has picked up on interesting retail activity in China, where AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT graphics cards are deeply discounted. This seems to correspond to a possible discontinuation of Team Red's Navi 23 XT GPU—a Board Channel source stated: "AMD factory has stopped production of a certain GPU. At the present time, shipments from all AIB brands have stopped with inventory being cleared. AMD has stopped production for the Radeon RX 6650 XT, and nearly all brands will have their inventory cleared by the end of September." Board partners in China appear to running sales promotions, with cards reduced from an original MSRP of 3099 RMB ($425) down to as low as 1739 RMB (~$240), although these adjusted prices are mostly hovering around the 2000 RMB (~$275) mark.

AMD recently declared that its Radeon RX 7000 desktop lineup is now complete, following the unveiling of mid-range RX 7800 XT and RX 7700 XT cards at last week's Gamescom trade fair in Cologne, Germany. Their low-to-mid tier Radeon RX 7600 card, based on the Navi 33 XL GPU, is the sole successor to multiple RDNA 2 predecessors (RX 6600, 6600 XT & 6650 XT). AMD and its board partners are likely prioritizing larger scale RDNA 3 production, so the latest batch of GPU industry insider information is not all that surprising. Tom's Hardware points out that: "there is hardly any point for AMD to continue production of Navi 23. The company's RDNA 3-based Navi 33 GPU integrates 13.3 billion transistors, has 2048 SPs, and performs better than its direct predecessor. Meanwhile, it has a smaller die size (204 mm² vs 237 mm²) and is made on TSMC's N6 process technology (as opposed to N7 in the case of Navi 23), so it may well be cheaper to produce."

Lenovo's Legion Go handheld gaming system was uncovered by Windows Report over a week ago following a series of minor leaks emerging throughout the summer. Key points of discovery included an AMD Ryzen Z1 APU, detachable Joy-Con-esque controllers and Windows 11 being the operating system of choice. The news site has today divulged even more details, thanks to a trusted anonymous source sending in an official product press release. It seems that Lenovo is planning to unveil the Go and matching accessories (AR glasses & headphones) at next month's IFA 2023 trade fair in Berlin. The handheld gaming device could launch in early October, with the base model starting at $799 (MSRP).

According to the leaked document, Lenovo's Legion Go is specced with an 8.8 inch, 2560 x 1600 pixel 144 Hz refresh rate IPS LCD touchscreen display—its maximum brightness is allegedly rated at 500 nits. AMD's Ryzen Z1 Extreme APU—that debuted with the ASUS ROG Ally—appears to run the show. The leak also indicates that 16 GB of LPDDR5X-7500 memory is soldered to the Go's mainboard, alongside a user-replaceable PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 2242 SSD. The document infers that Lenovo is prepping variants with 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB SSD storage configurations.

AMD is aiming to launch its Ryzen 8000 desktop CPUs, codenamed "Granite Ridge," at some point next year. The next generation Zen 5 core microarchitecture is expected to arrive alongside (Navi) RDNA 3.5 iGPU cores according to the last batch of Team Red product roadmaps. Today, hardware tipsters Olrak29_ and Kepler_L2 have made claims on social media that part of the Ryzen 7000 CPU legacy will continue with the succeeding desktop processor lineup—we already know that Granite Ridge will exist as a Socket AM5 package, but today's leak proposes that these next-gen chips are lined up to utilize the same IO die as sported by AMD's current Zen 4 desktop family.

These new rumors suggest that the "reused" Ryzen 7000 IOD (I/O Die) chiplet will grant the familiar allocation of 28 PCIe Gen 5 lanes, memory controllers, USB functions, plus RDNA 2 iGPU cores. Wccftech points out that: "...interestingly, AMD lists the Ryzen 7000 "desktop" CPUs with Navi 3.0 support whereas the Radeon 710M iGPU in fact is based on the RDNA 2 graphics core. The next-gen lineup was mentioned to support the newest RDNA 3.5 GPU core which will be coming to the Strix APU family next year but that isn't the case either." The article proposes that "RDNA 3.5 GPU cores on the AM5 platform" could arrive with the advent of upcoming Ryzen APUs—namely 6 nm Rembrandt (6000G) and 4 nm Phoenix (7000G) desktop solutions.

PlayStation 5-related rumors have been flowing over the past week—Zuby_Tech was reportedly the main source responsible for leaking out Project Q footage, but the tipster has turned to his attention to an alleged new version of the host system. Yesterday's tweet makes reference to a refreshed PlayStation 5 model—the "CFI-1300 series"—with a revised 5 nm APU. The late-2020 launch model (CFI-1200) sported a 7 nm chipset, while 2022's die shrink granted the CFI-1202 series with a 6 nm SoC.

The tipster thinks that Sony will be dropping the PS5's liquid metal cooling system for its next iteration, thanks to a central 5 nm part offering greater efficiency and reduced thermal output. Previous reports have predicted that this refreshed "modular model" is marked for a late 2023 release window. Sony has been running a summer price reduction campaign—could this marketing incentive be clearing the way—i.e selling off older stock—in anticipation of the refreshed model's arrival? "CFI-1300" should not be confused with the heavily rumored PlayStation 5 Pro variant—Insider Gaming's Tom Henderson has reiterated multiple times that this major hardware upgrade is still a long way off from launching.

AMD's Chinese office has announced that company representatives will be present at this year's ChinaJoy event—their Weibo social media account confirmed that: "from July 28th to July 31st, 2023, in Hall E6 of Shanghai New International Expo Center, super hardcore and mega cool AMD hardware will be on the scene, bringing you a fast and fun gaming experience. We are looking forward to meeting you!" ITHome thinks that the timing of this announcement points to a possible official unveiling of the Radeon RX 7900 GRE (Golden Rabbit Edition) on the showroom floor.

The publication has cited a tip provided by the one and only momomo_us—the Chinese market exclusive Golden Rabbit Edition will be released tomorrow, which lines up with ChinaJoy 2023's kick off time. Recent leaks have revealed that the 84 Compute Units + 16 GB configured graphics card is a new SKU, sitting below the RX 7900 XT in Team Red's Radeon RDNA 3 hierarchy. It seems to be "built on the mysterious Navi 31 + Navi 32 hybrid GPU." Additionally, ITHome reports that AMD has partnered up with ASUS, and will be exhibiting ROG Moba 7 Plus series laptops (sporting Ryzen Dragon Range APUs) at the Shanghai event.

Apple introduced its 15‑inch MacBook Air at June's WWDC23 event—the giant multinational technology had taken feedback from its customer base, and followed through by rolling out a larger version of the existing M2-based 13-inch model. That appeasement could be a wasted effort, given the latest rumors emerging from Asia. DigiTimes has gathered information from sources within Apple's supply chain—they claim that "the 15-inch MacBook Air...reportedly didn't meet customer demand expectations. There are even calls for the supply chain to put shipments on hold."

The 15-inch MacBook Air's shipment volume for July is reportedly 50% short of the company's original projection, with a broad downturn in the global notebook market factoring in as a reason for sluggish sales. The model's $1299 starting price appears to be quite reasonable at first glance, but the entry point only gives you a spec consisting of non-upgradable 8 GB (unified) RAM and 256 GB solid state storage. A discerning buyer is semi-forced to shell out closer to $2000 for a more competitive configuration, comparable to the closest Window 11 slimline laptops. The high asking prices, on top of a mixed reception around launch time have done the 15-inch MacBook Air few favors. Apple enthusiasts are probably saving up and waiting for the arrival of upcoming M3 chipset-equipped models. DigiTimes reckons that an "upcoming announcement" regarding a next-gen MacBook Pro is due very soon.

According to a short article released by ITHome, Machenike, a popular Chinese PC hardware company displayed several interesting Intel CPU-based systems at the Bilibili World exhibition (in Shanghai). The manufacturer confirmed (to the reporter) that their next generation hardware will be hitting the market within the next three months, which coincides with the rumored launch of Intel 14th Gen Core Raptor Lake-Refresh desktop K-series SKUs.

Exhibited material implied that Machenike's upcoming PCs—arriving in the form of a "LIGHT-05" desktop tower, mini models and laptops—could be among the first batch of systems to support PCIe Gen 5 storage (as standard). Potential buyers could be attracted to next-gen machines offering access to faster NVMe SSD, on top of rumored higher core counts provided by the Raptor Lake Refresh. ITHome believes that a number of the mini-PCs at Machenike's booth were already running on Raptor Lake Refresh or (Core rebrand) Meteor Lake processors.

Activision is reportedly putting Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 through its paces as an alpha test, and is struggling with the containment of leaks. DCMA takedowns have done little to stop the flow, and the publisher has started teasing the much anticipated 2023 CoD release. Licensing partners seem to be taking a lax attitude with regards to NDAs—new Monster Energy promotional material has been photographed in the wild. Revised energy drink brand packaging features a prominent series character—Captain Price—with the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III logo emblazoned atop the famous protagonist.

Monster Energy has a documented history of offering XP and accessory codes as part of video game tie-in offers, so that legacy is all but confirmed for continuation with this year's alleged mainline CoD entry. Sledgehammer Games is reportedly the main development house working on CoD:MWIII, and various news outlets have claimed that a November launch window is being targeted by the game's publisher. Activision has taken a good humored approach when dealing with the latest leak—their @CallofDuty social media account's response stated: "Whew. Mondays. Anyone have an energy drink they can spare?"

Insider Gaming's Tom Henderson has picked up some interesting insider knowledge about the long rumored PlayStation 5 Pro gaming console—his (side hustle) Key to Gaming article theorizes that a project codenamed "Trinity" has been in-progress since early 2022. Sony is apparently sticking to its tradition of using Matrix themed codenames for internal hardware projects—PlayStation 4 Pro was referred to as "Neo," and PlayStation VR's alias was "Morpheus." His inside sources claim that Sony has been showing off Trinity prototype units to game development studios, with refreshed dev kits lined up for the "majority" of interested parties by November 2023.

Henderson's sources provided scant info about Trinity's specs and performance goals: "Although the Pro's specs were difficult to pin down, (admittedly) due to my lack of technological prowess, sources have stated that Trinity with have 30 WGP and 18000mts memory. As for the consoles performance targets and as to be expected, the PlayStation 5 Pro will be targeting improved and consistent FPS at 4K resolution, a new "performance mode" for 8K resolution, and accelerated ray tracing. Whether or not a PlayStation 5 Pro console is desired enough in the current market remains to be seen, but as of writing, the PlayStation 5 Pro is in development and is targeting a November 2024 release date." The leaked information has been interpreted several ways by different outlets—mostly focusing on the improved AMD RDNA-powered GPU. I have included Zuba_Tech's updated spec sheet (see below), which seems to be a bit on the fanciful side of things (proposing 72 CUs). Others have theorized that the revised GPU could offer twice the performance of the base PS5 model's Oberon RDNA 2-based GPU (36 CUs).

AMD's CEO Lisa Su is reported to be visiting a number of companies in Taiwan this week—one of her objectives seems to be getting next generation AM5 desktop platforms prepped with USB4 support. Hardware news site MyDrivers believes that Asmedia played host to Team Red's leader at some point—this is a significant development given that this Taiwanese company specializes in making motherboard chipsets and USB controllers, although Su has allegedly met with other competing firms. Asmedia is reported to be a market leader in terms of implementing the latest USB4 tech, with certification awarded by the USB-IF Association.

Prior leaks have implied that the two companies are already involved with each other on a separate project—their collective goal being Thunderbolt 4 support on next-gen AMD platforms. The timing of this trip to Taiwan suggests that forthcoming AM5 motherboards offering USB4 support could be lined up for launch next year, alongside the "Zen 5" Ryzen 8000 CPU series. Boards based on current gen A620, B650 and X670 chipsets could be refreshed with the latest USB connectivity standard.

As we get closer to a possible late summer/early autumn release window for mid-range AMD Radeon RX 7000-series gaming graphics cards, more leaks have emerged from sources in Asia. Benchlife believes that "in addition to Radeon RX 7900 GRE, AMD and its AIB partners are also preparing two Navi 32 chip graphics cards such as Radeon RX 7800 XT and Radeon RX 7700 XT, which are expected to be available in early September." Previous leaks have indicated that a September launch is planned, albeit with the RX 7800 XT SKU being based on a heavily modified Navi 31 GPU.

Two non-XT units have recently emerged via leaked benchmark results, so there could be a good number of options lined up for a third quarter 2023 launch. Jon Peddle Research (JPR) has added their two cents, by reconfirming that Team Red could be showcasing mid-range models at a late summer trade fair: "AMD is rumored to announce two new 7000-series AIBs at Gamescom in late August. The leaks suggest that AMD is behind NVIDIA in terms of AIBs and has open slots in its SKU lineup. The leaked benchmark data (see below) indicates that the RX 7800 and RX 7700 may compete with the RTX 4070 and RTX 4060 Ti, respectively." JPR proposes that AMD is preparing at least two mid-range models for launch, although this could increase to five. If a mysterious fifth candidate does exist outside of the oft mentioned RX 7700, RX 7700 XT, RX 7800 and RX 7800 XT SKUs, where would it be placed in the hierarchy? We can exclude the RX 7900 16 GB GRE GPU since it seems to be a Chinese market exclusive, with performance estimated to be just below RX 7900 XT standards.

A flurry of DMCA take down notices, on Activision's part, have brought even more attention to an alleged Call of Duty internal alpha test. Leakers have been talking about Modern Warfare III being the likely candidate for a new CoD release this year, following a planned premium expansion for MW II morphing into a full-fledged sequel. Activision has been busy scrubbing the internet clean of screenshots sourced from the alleged "Hailström" test build, but issued copyright strike messages contain references to the next entry in the series. Targeted tipsters have been warned about activity that has resulted in: "leaked content from unreleased video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" appearing on social media and other gaming community hubs.

The publisher has semi-acknowledged that the cat is out of the bag, and yesterday addressed the fan base with a simple query: "Let's get this out of the way...Should MW II Operators, Weapons and Bundles carry forward into Call of Duty 2023?" This official tweet was shared by the Sledgehammer Games account—this Activision-owned studio is rumored to be the primary development house working on Modern Warfare III, with other Call of Duty-oriented outfits providing additional support. Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021) was Sledgehammer's third fully developed entry in the blockbuster (and highly contested) series.

A set of intriguing 3DMark Time Spy benchmark results have been released by hardware leaker All_The_Watts!!—these are alleged to have been produced by prototype Radeon RX 7700 and Radeon RX 7800 graphics cards (rumored to be based on variants of the Navi 32 GPU). The current RDNA 3 lineup of mainstream GPUs is severely lacking in middle ground representation, but Team Red is reported to be working on a number of models to fill in the gap. We expect a number of leaks to emerge as we get closer to a rumored product reveal scheduled for late August (to coincide with Gamescon).

The recently released 3DMark Time Spy scores reveal that the alleged Radeon RX 7700 candidate scored 15,465 points, while the RX 7800 achieved 18,197 points—both running on an unspecified test system. The results (refer to the Tom's Hardware-produced chart placed below) are not going to generate a lot of excitement at this stage when compared to predecessors and some of the competition—evaluation samples are not really expected to be optimized to a great degree. We hope to see finalized products with decent drivers putting in a good appearance and performing better later on this year.

A reference to an unreleased Radeon RX 7900 GRE GPU specced with 16 GB of VRAM appeared on distributed computing platforms last month. The unusual GRE acronym was a little bit puzzling, but ITHome has recently discovered that this could be the successor to an older GME (Golden Mouse Edition) card. AMD's Radeon RX 590 GME design was released back in March of 2020 to celebrate the year of the Rat or Mouse.

The Chinese zodiac sign for 2023 is the rabbit, hence AMD preparing a Golden Rabbit Edition (GRE) for that territory. ITHome proposes that this Radeon RX 7900 non-XT model could field a cut-down version of Team Red's Navi 31 GPU—with its Compute Unit count possibly reduced slightly below the standard 84 CUs, while an allocation of 16 GB of GDDR6 video memory gets coupled to a 256-bit interface (down from the XT's 20 GB and 320-bit). The short report does not provide any release date information or detailed specifications/features, but we can assume that the GRE is highly likely to arrive within the year it is intended to commemorate.

As reported by Phoronix—references to GFX1150 & GFX1151 targets have been added to the AMDGPU LLVM backend/compiler, which seems to indicate that these are upcoming AMD APU models. AMD engineers have made to reference to GFX1150 as "Strix1" (full codename: Strix Point) in the past according to several sites, but the recent leak has GFX1151 mentioned for the first time.

Previous reports suggest that Team Red could be developing two Strix/Zen 5/RDNA 3.5 APUs with AI engine enhancements for laptops—a discovery of two separate GFX targets suggests that we are likely looking at different 12-core and 16-core models. The former is said to be a monolithic design with a TDP going up to 54 W. The 16-core "Strix Halo" (also known as "Starlak") is a very different type of product with leaks suggesting that it will have a maximum TDP of 120 W, and be based on a chiplet design. Zen 5 processor products are expected to arrive in the second half of 2024—with Granite Ridge filling in the desktop platform segment.

NVIDIA could be adjusting its enterprise-grade GPU production strategies for the Chinese market, according to an article published by MyDriver—despite major sanctions placed on semiconductor imports, Team Green is doing plenty of business with tech firms operating in the region thanks to an uptick in AI-related activities. NVIDIA offers two market specific accelerator models that have been cut down to conform to rules and regulations—the more powerful and expensive (250K RMB/~$35K) H800 is an adaptation of the western H100 GPU, while the A800 is a legal market alternative to the older A100.

The report proposes that NVIDIA is considering plans to reduce factory output of the A800 (sold for 100K RMB/~$14K per unit), so clients will be semi-forced into purchasing the higher-end H800 model instead (if they require a significant number of GPUs). The A800 seems to be the more popular choice for the majority of companies at the moment, with the heavy hitters—Alibaba, Baidu, Tencent, Jitwei and ByteDance—flexing their spending muscles and splurging on mixed shipments of the two accelerators. By limiting supplies of the lesser A800, Team Green could be generating more profit by prioritizing the more expensive (and readily available) model.

YouTuber RedGamingTech has put together a list of leaked Intel 14th Gen Core SKUs—they claim that this information was compiled from various tipsters and inside sources. Raptor Lake Refresh is perhaps not a very exciting prospect—i.e. a mild upgrade—for current owners of 13th Gen Core CPUs on the LGA 1700 platform, but upcoming mid-range SKUs could offer a nice performance uplift for those still on 12th Gen silicon (or older) thanks to higher core counts. According to RedGamingTech's list, the refreshed Core i7 series (14700, -K &-F) sports 20 cores and 28 threads, while Core i5 14600 SKUs are rumored to feature 16 cores and 24 threads. Prospective budget-conscious customers are likely to be enthused by Core i3 SKUs getting a refresh with new 6-core/12-thread configs.

Several big players in the industry have (reportedly) presented themselves as potential anchor investors in Ltd. Japan's SoftBank Group Corp, the owner of the British semiconductor and software design company is preparing an initial public offering (IPO) in the USA, with a likely kick-off date in September. The Financial Times has today claimed that NVIDIA was invited (by Softbank) to actively negotiate with Arm leadership with the aim to join a group of prospective IPO anchor investors. Citing insider sources who have been briefed about ongoing deliberations—Team Green could be proposing an investment of roughly $35 billion to $40 billion.

The report suggests that SoftBank would prefer an offer closer to $70 - 80 billion—it seems that more haggling is on the cards. NVIDIA is a longtime partner and client of Arm, with the former attempting to buyout the latter over a year ago—but their agreement was terminated due to "significant regulatory challenges" in regions including the US, UK and China. At the time, the scuppered deal's estimated value was widely reported being $66 billion.

Chinese tech tipster Golden Pig Upgrade has turned its attention to Intel's Meteor Lake processor series—they believe that hardware partners are putting qualification samples (QS) through the ringer. The short Bilibili social media post proposes that these laptop-oriented prototypes sport six high-performance Redwood Cove cores running at 4.80 GHz, eight energy-efficient Crestmont cores, as well as two low-power Crestmont cores. Apparently the unit's TDP can be adjusted—starting at 20 W, and going up to 65 W. Golden Pig Upgrade was also informed about a Core Ultra 9 model capable of hitting 5.0 GHz (or greater) maximum CPU clocks.

The qualification sample's integrated graphics processing unit is reportedly based on the Xe-LPG architecture—some experts reckon that this could offer performance (4.5 FP32 TFLOPS) comparable to Arc A380 or A370M discrete solutions. The sampled iGPU could feature up to 128 execution units (so equivalent to 1024 stream processors, as well as 8 Xe clusters)—insider sources allege that units can boost to a maximum of 2.2 GHz. It will be interesting to observe how this will stack up against AMD's Radeon 780M iGPU—which is theoretically in a similar ballpark (4.3 FP32 TFLOPS).

The AMD Ryzen 5 7500F CPU has been popping up via various leaks—with no official announcements made despite photos, basic specifications and benchmark results appearing online. Tom's Hardware could not extract a comment directly from Team Red, so it pivoted to inside sources instead to find out more about the mysterious Zen 4 iGPU-less processor. The news site discovered that this model is very likely going to be a Chinese market exclusive—insiders reckon that it will be released closer to the end of this month. Retailers and e-tailers in the region are getting first dibs, with the Ryzen 5 7500F also made available to SIs (system integrators), so pre-built computers featuring this AM5 CPU could be released soon after.

Tom's Hardware believes that the: "Ryzen 5 7500F is very similar to the Ryzen 5 7600 and will operate with a 65 W TDP, and thus have slightly lower boost clock speeds than the 7600." It suspects that a recently published benchmark showing that single-core performance edges past the Ryzen 5 7600X (105 W TDP) is not all that accurate—these results should be "taken with a grain of salt." According to their verified sources, the Ryzen 5 7500F should "perform slightly slower than the regular 65 W Ryzen 5 7600 (non-X)." The article presents some hope that AMD is simply market testing the CPU prior to a possible USA rollout, but insiders indicate that company plans have the Ryzen 5 7500F marked for launch in China only.

Golden Pig Upgrade, a Chinese PC hardware content creator, has issued more Intel-related insider info via their Bilibili page. Their short post claims that the Intel 14th Gen Core-HX series (aka enthusiast grade laptop Raptor Lake Refresh SKUs) will be based on 8P+16E die configurations, said to replace all previously reported 8P+8E and 6P+0E setups. This improved HX lineup could provide a nice upgrade over equivalent 13th Gen Core units, with larger L2 cache allocations and increased core counts.

A few examples are mentioned—the upcoming Core i7-14650HX sports an 8P+8E configuration, granting two extra performance cores when compared to the current gen equivalent 13650HX (6P+8E). The Core i5-14500HX could stick with the same configuration (6P+8E) as seen on the older 13500HX, but Golden Pig Upgrade believes that the former will be upgraded with a larger pool of L2 cache. Previous leaks have already pointed out higher-end 14th Gen Core i9 SKUs being based on the 8P+16E die configuration, with the possible offering of higher clocks and support for faster memory speeds. The Raptor Lake Refresh desktop lineup is expected to debut around mid-October, but insider information regarding HX has not yet pinpointed a firm launch period for high-end 14th Gen Core laptop/mobile SKUs.