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Intel Confirms 13th Gen and 14 Gen Core Voltage Issues Fixed with 0x12B Microcode

Intel 13th Gen and 14th Gen Core processor models based on the 8P+16E "Raptor Lake" silicon are prone to an infamous bug that caused their performance and stability to irreversibly degrade over time due to excessive voltage. This was isolated to a faulty microcode. Intel responded to this by extending the warranty of affected processor models, and releasing a slew of CPU microcode updates encapsulated into motherboard UEFI firmware updates, through PC OEMs and motherboard vendors, with the latest such microcode update being 0x12B. There's good news—Intel extensively tested affected processor models and confirmed that the 0x12B microcode fixes this issue. It is crucial that you update your motherboard BIOS (UEFI firmware) to the latest version, which contains this microcode.

The Verge recently interviewed Intel spokesperson Thomas Hannaford on this topic, who stated that the company had identified four scenarios causing processors to irreversibly degrade, and had recommended mitigations to stable processors before the degradation set in, with the latest microcode update fixing all outstanding scenarios. If a processor is unstable (i.e. degradation has set in), the firmware update is of no use, and you should just get the processor replaced under warranty. Intel extended the warranty to cover even the very first purchases of affected processor models. "Yes, we're confirming this is the cause and that it is fixed," Intel spokesperson Thomas Hannaford tells The Verge.

Crucial Discovers Flaw in AMD X670E Motherboards: Gen 5 NVMe Slots Drop to Gen 1 Speeds, Cause Boot Issues

Memory and SSD maker Crucial noticed an uptick in support requests by users claiming that their Gen 5 or Gen 4 NVMe SSDs would drop to PCIe Gen 1 speeds, besides being unable to boot into Windows after a restart. Crucial then did some digging, and localized the issue to users with motherboards based on the AMD X670E chipset, AMD's flagship Socket AM5 platform chipset. While not a function of the chipset itself, it turns out that there is a flaw in the way AMD designed the PCI-Express I/O of the X670E platform, specifically the PCIe Gen 5-capable M.2 NVMe interfaces that are attached to the CPU, causing them to drop in speeds to Gen 1. This problem isn't surfacing on the AMD B650 or the B650E, or even the X670—it is oddly specific to the X670E, despite the Gen 5 M.2 NVMe slots not being wired to the chipset.

While AMD made no public statement on the technical aspect of the flaw, if we were to guess, this could be a faulty implementation of PCIe ASPM (active state power management) at the firmware level, which reduces the speed of the PCIe link layer to reduce power. The default setting for PCIe ASPM in most motherboard UEFI setup programs tends to be "disabled," although there could be a bug in the firmware of X670E motherboards, causing it to engage, and in a buggy manner. Most UEFI BIOS setup programs tend to have two separate sets of PCIe ASPM settings—one for the CPU-attached PCIe root (which includes the x16 PEG and CPU-attached NVMe slots), and the other for downstream PCIe connectivity from the chipset.

MSI Announces its AMD X870E and X870 Chipset Motherboard Series

MSI today launched its first wave of Socket AM5 motherboards based on the new AMD X870E and AMD X870 chipsets, which come with drop-in support for the new Ryzen 9000 "Granite Ridge" processors, and new platform I/O. The company debuted products across its four key consumer motherboard brands—MEG, MPG, MAG, and PRO. Leading the pack is the flagship MEG X870E GODLIKE, followed by the performance segment MPG X870E Carbon WIFI, the mid-range MAG X870 Tomahawk WIFI, and the mainstream PRO X870-P WIFI.

The MEG X870E GODLIKE isn't just a flagship motherboard with no feature spared, but designed to be a piece of jewelry. It is shrouded almost entirely in heatsinks. Almost all its onboard I/O faces the front-end, including a 24-pin ATX, and two optional 8-pin PCIe power inputs. The two 8-pin EPS power inputs are exposed near the CPU socket area. A 27-phase VRM powers the CPU, with an active fan-heatsink solution that uses a series of aluminium fin-stack heatsinks with heat-pipes spreading heat among them. The CPU is wired to four DDR5 DIMM slots, supporting over DDR5-8000, with preparation for higher memory OC speeds that may come up in the future. Expansion slots include a PCI-Express 5.0 x16, a second x16 (electrical Gen 4), and a x4. There are four M.2 NVMe slots, three of these are Gen 5, and one Gen 4.

Gigabyte Releases 105 W TDP Ryzen 9700X and 9600X BIOS Update for its AM5 Motherboards

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, and hardware solutions, announced today the latest BIOS release to include TDP to 105 W option for AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and Ryzen 5 9600X processors, which can boost CPU performance up to 13%.⁠

The September latest BIOS version AGESA 1.2.0.1a provides a new option enabling users to raise the CPU TDP from 65 W to 105 W with just one click for Ryzen 9600X and 9700X on GIGABYTE 600 series motherboards. This new BIOS has been verified to show an approximately 13% multicore performance boost compared to default TDP 65 W by Cinebench R23 test results.

AMD to Extend Warranty Coverage to Ryzen 9600X and 9700X with 105W BIOS Mods

Motherboard manufacturers are beginning to roll out UEFI firmware updates that not just patch the Sinkclose critical vulnerability, but enable an experimental "105 W TDP mode" option as part of the processor's custom BIOS settings (CBS). The mode elevates the power limits of the Ryzen 5 9600X and Ryzen 7 9700X "Zen 5" desktop processors, with up to 13%" performance gains being reported by the motherboard vendors themselves. By default, your motherboard will run these processors at their original 65 W TDP, and you're supposed to manually enable the setting in the UEFI firmware setup program. It could either be found in the overclocking/tuning page, or the AMD CBS section.

To remove the last bit of hesitation among users go turn this setting on, AMD is working to extend its processor warranty to cover the 105 W TDP mode, reports Wccftech editor Hassan Mujtaba. Currently, the setting is being shipped with AM5 AGESA version 1.2.0.1, which includes the Sinkclose vulnerability patch, but will "officially" release it with AM5 AGESA 1.2.0.2, along with warranty coverage. Mujtaba reports that firmware updated with AGESA 1.2.0.2 are expected to begin rolling out in late-September.

Tachyum Builds Last FPGA Prototypes Batch Ahead of Tape-Out

Tachyum today announced the final build of its Prodigy FPGA emulation system in advance of chip production and general availability next year. As part of the announcement, the company is also ending its purchase program for prototype systems that was previously offered to commercial and federal customers.

These last hardware FPGA prototype units will ensure Tachyum hits its extreme-reliability test targets of more than 10 quadrillion cycles prior to tape-out and before the first Prodigy chips hit the market. Tachyum's software emulation system - and access to it - is expanding with additional availability of open-source software ported ahead of Prodigy's upstreaming.

MSI Closely Monitoring Intel 14th/13th Gen Stability Issues, To Release Firmware Updates in August

Regarding the recent Intel Core 13th/14th Gen Core desktop processor instability, MSI has worked closely with Intel to understand the situation and is closely monitoring the progress. We will provide the updated BIOS to our customers and users as soon as possible after the new microcode is released in the middle of August. Stay tuned.

Keep checking the Support section of your motherboard's product page on the MSI website for UEFI firmware updates, or use the MSI Center utility.

Intel Will Not Recall Failing 13th and 14th Gen CPUs

It's official, Intel will not issue a recall for its failing 13th and 14th gen CPUs, despite the problem being much bigger than initially thought. The company was approached by The Verge and the answers to the questions asked, are not looking great. First of all, it appears that at least all 65 W or higher base power Intel 13th and 14th gen CPUs are affected—regardless of SKU and lettering—by the so-called elevated Voltage issue. To be clear, it doesn't mean all these CPUs will start to fail and Intel claims that its microcode update will solve the issue for CPUs that haven't shown any signs of stability issues. However, Intel is not promising that the microcode update will solve the stability issues of CPUs that are experiencing problems, but rather state that "It is possible the patch will provide some instability improvements", but it's asking those with stability issues to contact customer support. The patch is on the other hand expected to solve it for new CPUs, but that doesn't help those that are already experiencing stability issues.

Intel does appear to be swapping out degraded chips, but there's no guarantee that the replacement CPUs will come with the microcode update installed, as Intel is only starting to apply it to products that are currently being produced. The company has also asked all of its OEM partners to apply the update before shipping out new products, but this isn't likely to happen until sometime in early to mid-August according to Intel. It's also unclear when BIOS/UEFI updates will be available for end users from the motherboard manufacturers, since this is the only way to install the microcode update as a consumer. Intel has not gone on record to say if it'll extend the warranty of the affected products, nor did the company provide any details about what kind of information consumers have to provide to their customer support to be able to RMA a faulty CPU. Intel will not halt sales of the affected CPUs either, which means that if you're planning to or are in the middle of building a system using said CPUs, you might want to wait with using it, until a BIOS/UEFI with the microcode update in it, is available for your motherboard. There are more details over at The Verge for those that want to read the full questions and answers, but it's clear that Intel isn't considering the issue as anything more than a regular support issue at this point in time.

Intel Statement on 13th and 14th Gen Core Instability: Faulty Microcode Causes Excessive Voltages, Fix Out Soon

Long-term reliability issues continue to plague Intel's 13th Gen and 14th Gen Core desktop processors based on the "Raptor Lake" microarchitecture, with users complaining that their processors have become unstable with heavy processing workloads, such as games. This includes the chips that have minor levels of performance tuning or overclocking. Intel had earlier isolated many of these stability issues to faulty CPU core frequency boosting algorithms, which it addressed through updates to the processor microcode that it got motherboard- and prebuilt manufacturers to distribute as UEFI firmware updates. The company has now come out with new findings of what could be causing these issues.

In a statement Intel posted on its website on Monday (22/07), the company said that it has been investigating the processors returned to it by users under warranty claims (which it has been replacing under the terms of its warranty). It has found that faulty processor microcode has been causing the processors to operate under excessive core voltages, leading to their structural degradation over time. "We have determined that elevated operating voltage is causing instability issues in some 13th/14th Gen desktop processors. Our analysis of returned processors confirms that the elevated operating voltage is stemming from a microcode algorithm resulting in incorrect voltage requests to the processor."

AMD Ryzen 9000 Zen 5 "Granite Ridge" Desktop Processors Launch Late-July

AMD's next-generation Ryzen 9000 series "Granite Ridge" desktop processors based on the "Zen 5" microarchitecture, is rumored to launch in late-July, 2024, according to multiple sources in the ChipHell tech forums. The first four SKUs in the processor series will include one each of 16-core, 12-core, 8-core, and 6-core, spanning the Ryzen 9, Ryzen 7, and Ryzen 5 series, just like the company's Ryzen 7000 series debut. The company could unveil these processors in its 2024 Computex keynote address early next month, talking about their features and performance in broad strokes, while we get technical previews in the run-up to the late-July launch.

A late-July launch of the Ryzen 9000 series "Granite Ridge" processors should also mean that the various motherboard manufacturers will showcase their upcoming motherboards based on the AMD X870 desktop chipset at Computex. Ryzen 9000 series are built in the existing Socket AM5 package, and should be compatible with existing AMD 600-series chipset motherboards. In fact, most motherboard vendors have already released UEFI firmware updates that include Ryzen 9000 series processor compatibility. Those buying a Ryzen 9000 series processor with an AMD 600-series chipset motherboard can simply take advantage of the USB BIOS Flashback feature that's available on most motherboards, including the entry-level ones.

MSI Issues Updated BIOS and Driver for the Claw Gaming Handheld to Improve Performance

MSI, a leading brand in gaming, content creation, and business and productivity laptops, is proud to announce that its gaming handheld, Claw, has achieved a significant boost in gaming performance, with an increase of up to 150% through new BIOS and GPU drivers. Moreover, the updated BIOS and GPU drivers enable the Claw to smoothly play the top 100 popular games on the Steam platform, providing an excellent mobile gaming experience.

The new E1T41IMS.106 BIOS (referred to as 106) and 31.0.101.5445 GPU driver (referred to as 5445) for the MSI Claw have significantly enhanced gaming performance according to internal tests. For instance, the performance of the well-known open-world horror game "7 Days to Die" increased by up to 150%. Other popular games such as "Monster Hunter World" and "Cyberpunk 2077" also saw performance improvements of over 50% with the new BIOS and GPU drivers, providing a smoother gaming experience.

Superior Stability by GIGABYTE BETA BIOS with Intel Baseline on Z790/B760 Motherboards

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, and hardware solutions, released the latest beta BIOS with Intel Baseline feature on Z790, B760 series motherboards for enhanced stability, regarding the feedback from Intel that high power consumption settings may cause system instability with 13/14th generation CPUs.⁠

GIGABYTE always prioritizes user experience, focusing on both performance and stability. Additionally, as a close ally of Intel, we promptly introduced the Intel Baseline feature with the latest beta BIOS. When using 13th and 14th generation K-SKU CPUs, the Intel Baseline setting will appear in the "Turbo Power Limits" option under "Advanced CPU Settings". After enabling Intel Baseline, the performance will be expected to be limited due to the power setting adjustments.

MSI First with Motherboard BIOS that Supports Ryzen 9000 "Zen 5" Processors

In yet another clear sign that we could see some action from AMD on the next-gen desktop processor front this Computex, motherboard maker MSI released its first beta UEFI firmware update that packs an AGESA microcode that reportedly supports the upcoming AMD Ryzen 9000 "Granite Ridge" processors. The "7D74v1D2 beta" firmware update for the MSI MPG B650 Carbon Wi-Fi motherboard encapsulates AGESA ComboPI 1.1.7.0 patch-A, with the description that it supports a "next-gen CPU," a reference to the Ryzen 9000 "Granite Ridge."

A successor to the Ryzen 7000 Raphael, the Ryzen 9000 Granite Ridge introduces the new "Zen 5" microarchitecture to the desktop platform, with CPU core counts remaining up to 16-core/32-thread. The new microarchitecture is expected to introduce generational increase in IPC, as well as improve performance of certain exotic workloads such as AVX-512. The processors are said to be launching alongside the new AMD 800-series motherboard chipset. If AMD is using Computex as a platform to showcase these processors, it's likely we might see the first of these motherboards as well.

CORSAIR Enters DDR5 Workstation Market with WS DDR5 RDIMM ECC Memory Kits

Corsair today announced it is entering the DDR5 Workstation market with the introduction of a range of WS DDR5 RDIMM memory kits. Engineered to offer uncompromising performance and reliability, these ECC RDIMM kits redefine the capabilities of the newest workstations, and are compatible with the latest 4th Gen Intel Xeon and AMD Ryzen Threadripper 7000 processors.

This new range of memory kits boasts capacities of up to 256 GB, setting a new standard for memory-intensive tasks such as high-resolution media editing, 3D rendering, and AI training. Rigorously tested and carefully screened, these modules surpass JEDEC specifications with tighter timings and higher frequencies, ensuring optimal performance for the most demanding workloads.

MSI Readies 6.40 GHz OC Profile for Core i9-14900KS for Select Motherboards

Select MSI motherboards from the MPG and MEG series that support Intel's Extreme Power Profile, feature a UEFI Firmware setup program option called "P-core Beyond 6 GHz+." This is a set of overclocking presets by MSI, designed to work with select Intel KS-series processors. Apparently the BIOS MSI released to support the upcoming Core i9-14900KS, comes with this option along with several settings that can get two of the eight P-cores to boost to 6.40 GHz—200 MHz higher than Intel's maximum boost frequency for the chip.

The other presets presented by this MSI BIOS option includes five choices—"6.3/5.9 GHz," "6.4/5.9 GHz," "6.2/5.8 GHz," "6.3/5.8 GHz," and the ultimate "6.4/5.8 GHz." Here, the first frequency mentioned in the setting is the maximum that the P-cores will hit using the Thermal Velocity Boost algorithm, for its two best performing cores, provided the cooling is optimal. The second frequency in the setting label is the maximum the P-cores will reach using the Turbo Boost Max 3.0 algorithm. Each of the five presets have been tested by MSI on the i9-14900KS under a cooling setup that permits the processor to achieve the top-rated speed using Thermal Velocity Boost. If the Core i9-13900KS is anything to go by, the i9-14900KS may require you to be ready with the best possible cooling setup to run the processor even at its stock speeds.

NVIDIA RTX 20-series and GTX 16-series "Turing" GPUs Get Resizable BAR Support Through NVStrapsReBAR Mod

February saw community mods bring resizable BAR support to several older platforms; and now we come across a mod that brings it to some older GPUs. The NVStrapsReBAR mod by terminatorul, which is forked out of the ReBarUEFI mod by xCurio, brings resizable BAR support to NVIDIA GeForce RTX 20-series and GTX 16-series GPUs based on the "Turing" graphics architecture. This mod is intended for power users, and can potentially brick your motherboard. NVIDIA officially implemented resizable BAR support since its RTX 30-series "Ampere" GPUs in response to AMD's Radeon RX 6000 RDNA 2 GPUs implementing the tech under the marketing name Smart Access Memory. While AMD would go on to retroactively enable the tech for even the older RX 5000 series RDNA GPUs, NVIDIA didn't do so for "Turing."

NVStrapsReBAR is a motherboard UEFI firmware mod. It modifies the way your system firmware negotiates BAR size with the GPU on boot. There are only two ways to go about modding a platform to enable resizable BAR on an unsupported platform—by modding the motherboard firmware, or the video BIOS. Signature checks by security processors in NVIDIA GPUs make the video BIOS modding route impossible for most users; thankfully motherboard firmware modding isn't as difficult. There is an extensive documentation by the author to go about using this mod. The author has tested the mod to work with "Turing" GPUs, however, it doesn't work with older NVIDIA GPUs, including "Pascal." Resizable BAR enables the CPU (software) to see video memory as a single contiguously addressable block, rather than through 256 MB apertures.

AMD to Fix Ryzen 8000G Desktop APU STAPM "Feature" via Motherboard BIOS Updates

Skin temperature-aware power management (STAPM), is a 2014 feature introduced by AMD for its mobile processors that gets the on-die power management logic to take into account not just the processor's own temperatures (measured via on-chip thermal diodes); but also the physical surface temperature of the laptop itself, by reading off temperature probes mounted on the laptop chassis. This ensures that laptops don't get uncomfortably hot for the user, and the processor could do its bit to bring temperatures down. Every desktop APU released by AMD since 2014 has been a case of mobile processor silicon being adapted for the desktop platform by simply disabling certain I/O interfaces and features irrelevant to desktops, such as battery management GPIO, LPDDR memory interfaces, image processing, sensor suite, etc. One such feature is STAPM.

Gamers Nexus discovered that when creating the Ryzen 8000G desktop APUs, AMD forgot to properly disable STAPM, and this has been impacting the processor's CPU and iGPU boosting behavior under heavy load, where temperature-triggered clock speed throttling is engaged undesirably. AMD confirmed the Gamers Nexus discovery, and stated that it can be fixed through a motherboard UEFI firmware (BIOS) update; and that it will work with its desktop motherboard partners to get these out. The highest performance delta observed by GN between an 8000G processor with STAPM and one with its STAPM disabled (probably using an AMD CBS setting); is 16%; and so those with 8000G processors may want to look out for firmware updates from their motherboard vendors.

ASUS Rolls Out AGESA 1.1.0.1 Firmware Updates for Socket AM5 Motherboards that Support Upcoming Phoenix APUs

ASUS began rolling out beta UEFI firmware updates for its Socket AM5 motherboards that contain the latest AMD AGESA 1.1.0.1 microcode. If you recall, ASRock had recently released its own firmware updates last month that feature AGESA 1.1.0.0. This would be the first widely released firmware from ASUS to support the upcoming Ryzen 8000G "Phoenix" and "Phoenix 2" desktop APUs; and the 4th AGESA release to do so. Version ComboAM5PI 1.1.0.1 contains a newer version of the system management unit (SMU) for "Phoenix" and "Phoenix 2," with SMU version 76.75.0, compared to version 76.72.0 with the older ComboAM5PI 1.1.0.0 that ASRock released in November.

The UEFI firmware updates by ASUS containing AGESA ComboAM5PI 1.1.0.1 are only being released for AMD B650/E and X670/E chipset motherboards, and only spanning the company's ROG, ROG Strix, TUF Gaming, and ProArt product lines, we haven't come across one for the Prime series, yet. It's important to reiterate here, that these are beta updates, and those with Ryzen 7000 "Raphael" processors don't stand to benefit from them, as the SMU for "Raphael" hasn't changed since ComboAM5PI 1.0.8.0. Check for the firmware updates in the Support section of the product pages of your motherboard on the ASUS website.

LogoFAIL Vulnerability Affects Almost Every PC Running Windows and Linux

Binarly's research team has discovered a collection of security vulnerabilities known as "LogoFAIL", which affects image parsing components within the UEFI firmware of a wide array of devices. These vulnerabilities are especially concerning because they are embedded within the reference code provided by Independent BIOS Vendors (IBVs), affecting not just a single vendor but a broad spectrum of devices that utilize this code. LogoFAIL is particularly dangerous because it allows attackers to bypass crucial security measures such as Secure Boot and Intel Boot Guard by executing a payload during the device's boot process. This is achieved by storing malicious images on the EFI System Partition or within unsigned sections of firmware updates. This method can compromise system security deeply without altering the runtime integrity of the bootloader or firmware, unlike other threats such as BlackLotus or BootHole.

The potential reach of LogoFAIL vulnerability is rather wide, with millions of consumer and enterprise-grade devices from various vendors, including ones like Intel, Acer, and Lenovo, being vulnerable. The exact list of affected devices is still undetermined, but the prevalence of the IBVs' code across numerous devices suggests that the impact could be widespread, with both Windows and Linux users being affected. Only PCs that don't allow any logotype displayed in the UEFI during the boot process are safe. Apple's Macs are secure as they don't allow any add-on images during boot, and some OEM prebuilt PCs, like the ones from Dell, don't allow images in the UEFI. Some makers like Lenovo, AMI, and Insyde have already published notes about cautiously uploading custom images to the UEFI and providing BIOS updates. Consumers and enterprises must check with their OEMs and IBVs for BIOS microcode updates to patch against this vulnerability.
Below, you can see the proof of concept in a YouTube video.

AMI to Enable Arm Ecosystem with Arm SystemReady SR-SIE Certified UEFI and BMC Firmware on the NVIDIA GH200

AMI is pleased to announce that it has become one of the first Independent Firmware Vendors (IFV) to receive the Arm SystemReady SR v2.4 with Security Interface Extension (SIE) v1.2 certificate for the NVIDIA GH200 P4352 Reference Platform with AMI's Aptio V System Firmware solution. This marks another noteworthy achievement for AMI's solutions as they continue to enable Arm SystemReady SR certificates on NVIDIA GH200-based platforms. "The certification allows them to bet on a wide range of software applications, infrastructure solutions, firmware, and even entire operating systems with drivers that may have never been run before on our latest silicon before with the confidence that it "just works," says Ian Finder, Principal Product Lead, Grace at NVIDIA.

As the leading UEFI and BMC firmware provider for the Arm and x86 ecosystem, AMI recognizes the significance of the Arm SystemReady certification program, ensuring that Arm-based systems and solutions "just work" out of the box with standard operating systems, hypervisors, and software. AMI is focused on delivering interoperable, scalable, and secure foundational firmware solutions to the Arm ecosystem to reduce development and maintenance costs while enhancing reliability and hardware support.

ASRock Begins Rolling Out AGESA 1.1.0.0 Firmware with Phoenix APU Support

ASRock began rolling out UEFI firmware updates for its Socket AM5 motherboards that encapsulate AMD AGESA 1.1.0.0 ComboAM5PI microcode. This would be the second release of AGESA to support AMD's upcoming Ryzen 7000G "Phoenix" and "Phoenix 2" desktop APUs that the company reportedly plans to launch later this year. The AGESA 1.1.0.0 microcode comes with the SMU version 76.72.0 for "Phoenix" and "Phoenix 2," and continues with version 84.79.223 for "Raphael" and "Raphael-X" processors.

Unlike several past generations of Ryzen branded desktop APUs that only had 2-3 processor models in the retail channel, AMD is reportedly planning a slightly bigger lineup of APUs for the Socket AM5 platform, consisting of Ryzen 3, Ryzen 5, and possibly Ryzen 7 processor models, and their Ryzen PRO variants. The Ryzen 3 and Ryzen 5 models are expected to be based on the "Phoenix 2" silicon that has a combination of two "Zen 4" and four "Zen 4c" CPU cores and an iGPU with 4 compute units; while it is rumored that at least one Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 7 processor model will be built on "Phoenix," which has up to eight "Zen 4" cores, and a large iGPU with up to 12 compute units. So far we haven't seen reports of AMD bringing Ryzen AI to the desktop platform.

AMD Introduces Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 3 Mobile Processors with "Zen 4c" Cores

AMD today launched its first client processors that feature the compact "Zen 4c" CPU cores, with the Ryzen 5 7545U and Ryzen 3 7440U mobile processors for thin-and-light notebooks. The "Zen 4c" CPU core is a compacted version of the "Zen 4" core without the subtraction of any hardware components, but rather a high density arrangement of them on the 4 nm silicon. A "Zen 4c" core is around 35% smaller in area on the die than a regular "Zen 4" core. Since none of its components is removed, the core features an identical IPC (single thread performance) to "Zen 4," as well as an identical ISA (instruction set). "Zen 4c" also supports SMT or 2 threads per core. The trade-off here is that "Zen 4c" cores are generally clocked lower than "Zen 4" cores, as they can operate at lower core voltages. This doesn't, however, make the "Zen 4c" comparable to an E-core by Intel's definition, these cores are still part of the same CPU clock speed band as the "Zen 4" cores, at least in the processors that's being launched today.

The Ryzen 5 7545U and Ryzen 3 7440U mobile processors formally debut the new 4 nm "Phoenix 2" monolithic silicon. This chip is AMD's first hybrid processor, in that it has a mixture of two regular "Zen 4" cores, and four compact "Zen 4c" cores. The six cores share an impressive 16 MB of L3 cache. All six cores feature 1 MB of dedicated L2 cache. There is no complex hardware-based scheduler involved, but a software based solution that's deployed by AMD's Chipset Software, which tells the Windows scheduler to see the "Zen 4" cores as UEFI CPPC "preferred cores," and prioritize traffic to them, as they can hold on to higher boost frequency bins. The "Phoenix 2" silicon inherits much of the on-die power-management feature-set from the "Phoenix" and "Rembrandt" chips, and so are capable of a high degree of power savings with underutilized CPU cores and iGPU compute units.

ASUS Launches New ROG, ROG Strix, and TUF Gaming Z790 Motherboards

Intel has officially pulled back the curtain on its 14th Gen Core CPUs, giving gamers, creators, enthusiasts, and everyday users a new tier of processors that elevate everything they do. We've already teased several of our Z790 motherboards purpose-built for the latest Intel Core CPUs, but now we're ready to share all the details. In total, we're releasing seven new Z790 motherboards for your consideration as you hunt for the best motherboard for your 14th Gen Intel CPU. Our cutting-edge ROG Maximus motherboard family is expanding with the ROG Maximus Z790 Dark Hero, the ROG Maximus Z790 Apex Encore, and the ROG Maximus Z790 Formula. For gamers everywhere, we're expanding our ROG Strix lineup with three new models, and fans of our TUF Gaming series will be pleased to see the TUF Gaming Z790-Pro WiFi make its debut. These new motherboards join our existing Z790 and Z690 motherboards, which also support Intel's latest and greatest chips through a simple firmware update.

There's a lot to go over with the new additions to our Z790 motherboard family: they mark the debut of our first WiFi 7 motherboards, for one, and we're increasing the number of models with onboard PCIe 5.0 M.2 slots. They offer our latest game-changing innovations like DIMM Flex, and they make the process of building a PC easier than ever with their DIY-friendly features.

GIGABYTE Releases 24GB and 48GB DIMM Support for its Socket AM5 Motherboards

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, and hardware solutions, announced today that its AMD AM5 platform with X670, B650 and A620 motherboards now support 24 GB and 48 GB DDR5 memory modules after a BIOS update. This update increases the maximum RAM support up to 192 GB across four DIMMs, and up to 96 GB across two DIMMs from the previous maximums of 128 GB and 64 GB, respectively.

By enabling support for non-binary memory on both AMD EXPO and Intel XMP platforms, GIGABYTE motherboards now offer an effortless boost in memory capacity and system performance. This translates to improved multitasking and productivity for gamers and other users with demanding RAM needs. If you want to experience the benefits of this upgrade, get your GIGABYTE motherboard today.

MSI Provides Motherboard UEFI Update for AMD's Ryzen 7000X3D Series CPUs, Adds 192 GB Memory Support

MSI has been in close contact with the AMD and has referred to their official technical guidance to provide users with a safer and more optimized hardware environment. To achieve this goal, MSI will release a new list of BIOS updates specifically for the AMD Ryzen 7000 series CPU.

According to AMD's design specifications, the Ryzen 7000X3D series CPU does not fully support overclocking or overvoltage adjustments, including CPU ratio and CPU Vcore voltage. However, AMD EXPO technology can be used to optimize memory performance by appropriately increasing the CPU SoC voltage to ensure system stability when operating at higher memory frequencies.
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