CPU, APU & Chipsets

Samsung has officially unveiled the Exynos 2500 chipset, the company's latest mobile processor that's built on a second-generation 3nm Gate-All-Around (GAA) process.

The latest chipset is equipped with a 10-core CPU and a new AMD-based Xclipse GPU and ushers in improvements in AI performance, power efficiency, and camera performance. The details for the new chipset can be found on Samsung's website, and according to the listing, the Exynos 2500 CPU is a tri-cluster architecture and features the following: 1x Cortex-X925 core clocked at 3.3GHz, 2x Cortex-A520 efficiency cores at 1.8GHz, and 2x Cortex-A725 cores at 2.74GHz, and 5x Cortex-A725 cores at 2.36GHz.

As for performance gains over the previous generation, Samsung claims a 15% improvement in CPU performance. Moving on to the GPU, the Xclipse 950 GPU has been developed in collaboration with AMD and is based on RDNA 3 architecture. The new GPU ushers in a dual-shader engine that comes with improved ray tracing performance and is capable of increasing frame rates by up to 28% compared to the previous generation.

Apple is planning major collaborations with TSMC on advanced packaging, with reports that we will see TSMC's new advanced WMCM and SoIC packaging for its next-gen A20 and server chips.

In a new report from DigiTimes, we're hearing that TSMC's next-generation manufacturing process will be shifting into two new packaging forms in 2026. Apple will reportedly shift to WMCM (Wafer-Level Multi-Chip Module) packaging, while TSMC's new SoIC (System on Integrated Chips) will be used for Apple's new server chips.

The new WMCM packaging for Apple's next-gen A20 and A20 Pro chips has some serious flexibility using this new packaging technology, where Apple can add multiple dies -- including the CPU, GPU, memory, and other parts -- at wafer level, before they are sliced into individual chips. The new packaging will allow Apple to mass-manufacture more efficient SoCs.

Intel's next-generation Nova Lake-HX high-performance laptop processors have been teased in new shipping manifests, along with the new BGA 2540 socket they will be using.

In a new post on X by user @x86deadandback, who spotted a new NBD shipping manifest that included test tools for the "BGA2540-NVL-HX" which points to a new BGA 2540 socket, and the new Nova Lake-HX processors.

Intel uses the "HX" moniker for its high-performance mobile series processors, which leads us to believe Nova Lake-HX will be the successor to Arrow Lake-HX.

AMD is preparing its new mid-range Ryzen 5 9600X3D processor, which should be quite the popular gaming CPU when it launches with its 6 cores and 12 threads mixed with 3D V-Cache.

In a new post on X from @MelodicWarrior who spotted in AMD's new SI driver for the Radeon AI PRO R9700 graphics card, we're seeing that a bunch of new Ryzen 5 9600 series CPUs are in the ovens at AMD, including the new Ryzen 5 9600X3D.

AMD's new Ryzen 5 9600X3D with its 6 cores and 12 threads of Zen 5 processing power and 3D V-Cache would make it a killer mid-range X3D chip that comes in much cheaper than the most popular gaming CPU: the higher-end Ryzen 7 9800X3D. On top of its 6 cores and 12 threads, we'll see a single CCD with 2nd Gen V-Cache, offering 64MB of cache, with 32MB of 3D V-Cache, for a total of 96MB of L3 cache.

We are reporting on more and more fake AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D processors, with the latest fake 9800X3D being investigated and delidded by the good folks over at GamersNexus.

GamersNexus received an AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor from someone who purchased it from Amazon, finding multiple differences between the IHS (integrated heat spreader) and the substrate of a real 9800X3D that the user also sent. The IHS on the CPU showed some signs of being fake, so Steve tore it down for a full picture of the fake 9800X3D.

The fake 9800X3D was torn down and the IHS was heated up at 160C and when the IHS was taken off, it exposed the substrate. The IHS was reportedly protruding a little towards the substrate, giving the impression that the substrate isn't empty when seen from the side. Once the IHS was removed, it was clear that the substrate on the fake 9800X3D didn't have any chiplets at all, both the CCDs and I/O were missing completely.

AMD's next-gen consumer Zen 6 processors will reportedly have CPU clocks "well above" 6.0GHz with a leaker saying he's been told that the speeds are "so insane, no one would believe" him.

In a new video from leaker Moore's Law is Dead and his sources at AMD, the next-gen Zen 6 processors are being cooked up by additional AMD engineers from different teams, with the design team that was in charge of Zen 4 working on Zen 6.

MLID said that AMD initially pushed Zen 4 with 5.0GHz+ CPU clocks, but it launched onto the market with clock speeds upwards of 5.7GHz, and that we should expect Zen 6 with its rumored "well above" clock speeds of 6.0GHz, with something similar... a world of at least one core at 7.0GHz would be a wild one, and that's something I'm sure anyone can get behind.

AMD has officially launched its new Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9000 series "Shimada Peak" CPUs, offering up to 96 cores and 192 threads of Zen 5 processing power for HEDT systems.

AMD says its new Zen 5-based Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9000 series CPUs offer an IPC performance uplift over the Zen 4-based Ryzen Threadripper 7000 series CPUs of up to 26%. The new Threadripper PRO 9000 series processors feature the Zen 5 architecture and its full 512-bit FPU data-path, boasting significant performance uplifts in applications that use the AVX-512 instruction set.

AMD has been working hard at tweaking the IOD (I/O die) to support higher memory speeds of DDR5-6400 natively, AMD EXPO profiles, and CKD.

We are getting more and more details about Intel's next-gen Nova Lake-S desktop "Core Ultra 400" series CPUs, which will reportedly support DDR5-8000 memory natively, while also boasting 36 PCIe Gen5 lanes.

The new information on the RAM + Gen5 lanes for Nova Lake-S desktop processors is coming from leaker @jaykihn0 on X, after information was posted about the new Core Ultra 400 series CPUs featuring up to 52 cores (over twice the core count of Arrow Lake-S chips on the market today).

Intel is reportedly gearing up to provide 50% higher native RAM speed support (DDR5-6400 on Arrow Lake-S, with DDR5-8000 on Nova Lake-S and up to DDR5-10000 also supported). Intel officially supports DDR5-6400 memory through DDR5 and CUDIMM modules on the 800-series and Arrow Lake-S, but you can squeeze up to DDR5-9000+ speeds, but natively, only DDR5-6400 is supported.

Intel's next-gen Nova Lake-S desktop "Core Ultra 400" series CPU details have leaked, teasing that we can expect up to 52 CPU cores, with up to 150W TDP on the new LGA 1854 socket.

The new information on the next-gen Nova Lake-S desktop CPUs comes from leaker @Chi11eddog on X, reporting that motherboard makers are "very early" in the development of their next-gen platforms based on the new 900-series chipset and LGA 1854 socket. We can expect next-gen tech features and support for even faster DDR5 memory, with CUDIMM at the center for users who want ultimate performance out of their gaming PCs.

Intel is expected to support up to ultra-fast DDR5-10000+ memory on its new 900-series motherboards, with leaks of 7 new SKUs of Core Ultra 400 series with the flagship Core Ultra 9 SKU featuring 52 cores (16 P-Cores + 32 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores) with a 150W TDP. Compare this with the current-gen flagship Core Ultra 9 285K "Arrow Lake-S" desktop CPU which features 8 P-Cores and 16 E-Cores for a total of 24 cores (with no LP-E cores), meaning we're in for a 2.16x increase in core count, with 2 x more P-Cores and E-Cores.

AMD has a new budget gaming CPU option for gamers still on the AM4 platform, the Ryzen 5 5500X3D. This is the latest chip with the company's popular PC gaming-friendly 3D V-Cache technology, albeit the first-gen 7nm Zen 3 variant popularized by the Ryzen 7 5700X3D.

Like the Ryzen 5 5600X3D from 2023, the new Ryzen 5 5500X3D is a 6-core/12-thread CPU with a Base Clock speed of 3 GHz and a Boost Clock of a flat 4 GHz and the same 96MB of L3 Cache. It also sports the same 105W TDP rating and is based on the codenamed Vermeer architecture, as detailed in AMD's official product page for the new AM4 CPU.

According to reports, the new Ryzen 5 5500X3D is a new budget gaming CPU specifically for the Latin American market. It is the only piece of Ryzen hardware built for that specific audience. At this stage, it doesn't look like it will reach other regions.

NVIDIA is still cooking up its upcoming Arm-based AI PC processor codenamed N1 and N1X, with the new flagship N1X recently hitting Geekbench providing us with some early benchmark numbers.

We should expect NVIDIA's new N1X to be inside of next-gen desktop PC systems, while the N1 will find its way into new gaming laptops. The new Geekbench 6 results show the higher performance chip -- N1X -- pushing 3096 points in single-threaded tests, and 18837 points in multi-threaded tests.

NVIDIA's new N1X processor was tested inside of an unreleased HP 8EA3 system running Ubuntu 24 (Linux) and Geekbench 6.2.2 software, with the Arm-based CPU listed with 20 threads (matching the description of the GB10 Superchip inside of NVIDIA's new Spark systems) which has 10 x Cortex-X925 and 10 x Cortex-A725 cores. N1X can reportedly boost up to 2.81GHz, but detailed results show it boosting up to a much faster 4.05GHz.

AMD has confirmed its next-next-gen Zen 7-based EPYC "Verano" CPUs and Instinct MI500 series AI accelerators will both be launching for next-gen AI racks in 2027.

AMD held its Advancing AI event earlier today, unveiling its new Zen 6-based EPYC "Venice" CPUs with up to 256 cores and 512 threads of processing power, as well as its new Instinct MI350 series AI accelerators, on top of teasing its next-gen Instinct MI400 series AI chips that will boast 10x the performance of its just-released MI350 series, with MI400 AI chips boasting up to 432GB of next-gen HBM4 memory.

The company surprisingly introduced its next-next-gen Zen 7-based EPYC "Verano" CPUs and Instinct MI500 series AI chips, where we should expect the new EPYC "Verano" chips to use the new Zen 7 architecture (but AMD didn't confirm this part). The new EPYC Verano and Instinct MI500 series chips will power the next-gen wave of AI server racks from the company, as it will be using its just-announced EPYC Venice and Instinct MI400 series chips inside of its new Helios AI servers.

AMD has confirmed its next-gen Zen 6-based EPYC "Venice" and next-next-gen Zen 7-based EPYC "Verano" CPUs are cooking right now, with up to 256 cores on its upcoming Zen 6-based EPYC "Venice" CPU.

During its keynote today at its Advancing AI event, AMD confirmed not only its next-gen EPYC processors but also next-gen Instinct AI series GPU family lineups. AMD launched its new Instinct MI350 series today as well as teasing its next-gen Instinct MI400 series, which will boast HBM4 memory launching in 2026.

AMD's upcoming Zen 6-based EPYC "Venice" CPUs will feature two different variants: a standard Zen 6 variant and a denser Zen 6c variant, which will be featured in the SP7 and SP8 sockets, with the former aimed at higher-end solutions, and the latter at entry-level servers. The new platform will feature 16-channel and 12-channel memory support, too.

AMD hasn't even released its next-gen Zen 6 processors yet, but the leaks don't stop... and now we're getting some more concrete leaks on what to expect from Zen 7 on the desktop: up to 32 cores and 64 threads on the new AM6 socket.

In a new video posted by leaker Moore's Law is Dead, we're hearing that Zen 7 on the desktop will see 32 cores and 64 threads (with unknown clock speeds, we're still years away from release). MLID's source said that consumer Zen 7 processors will feature dual 16-core chiplets, as well as "tons" of V-Cache.

MLID's source said: "After seeing your Zen 7 leak, I thought I should also let you know that there will likely be a standard version of Zen 7 for consumers that still has L3 cache on the core chiplets (3D variant has NO L3 cache on the core chiplets). So, the current plan for consumer Zen 7 is dual 16-core chiplets that will still utilize V-Cache to increase the total L3".

AMD is edging close to 40% of server market share in Q1 2025, where the company is expected to match (or even surpass) its major competitor -- Intel -- in 2026.

In a new report from DigiTimes picked up on X by insider @Jukanlosreve, we're hearing that in Q1 2025, AMD's server market share surged to 39.4% with expectations of surpassing 40% by the end of 2025. According to supply chain sources of DigiTimes, AMD is reportedly confident it will capture 50% of the server CPU market by 2026, where it will be (more) massively competitive against Intel.

If we rewind to 2017, AMD had virtually 0% market share in the server CPU business, but after CEO Lisa Su took control, those efforts saw the company reach 25% in 2023, and then 33% in 2024. Things are looking more than excellent for AMD and the server CPU market, something that wouldn't have predicted 10 years ago.

AMD has officially expanded its family of Ryzen Z2 SoCs with the introduction of the new Ryzen Z2 A and higher-end Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme handheld chips.

A few months ago, AMD unveiled its new custom Ryzen Z2 chips for gaming handhelds with the Ryzen Z2 Extreme, Ryzen Z2, and Ryzen Z2 Go. The first two -- the Ryzen Z2 Extreme and Ryzen Z2 -- are based on the Zen 5 and Zen 4 architectures, while the Ryzen Z2 Go is a Lenovo gaming handheld exclusive, and based on the Zen 3+ architecture.

But now, AMD has expanded the family of gaming handheld SoCs with the new Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme virtually identical to the Ryzen Z2 Extreme, but the new Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme has a dedicated NPU for AI workloads on a gaming handheld (because we all want and need that).

Intel has had a turbulent few years, with the company actively trying to course correct through new measures, cutting staff, and cancelling any new product launch that won't double its money. For Intel, any new product that can't guarantee at least a 50% gross margin will not be assigned any engineers or development time.

Intel Products CEO Michelle Johnston Holthaus recently said this during Bank of America's global technology conference. It's a risk-averse policy for a company that has struggled to succeed in recent years, with Michelle Johnston Holthaus saying it's "something that we probably should have had before, but we have it now."

"A product doesn't move forward, (and) you actually don't get engineers assigned to it if it's not 50% or higher gross margins," she adds. According to reports, the move is being spearheaded by Intel's new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, who replaced former CEO Pat Gelsinger in March 2025.

NVIDIA and MediaTek's new Arm-based AI PC processor might be closer to release than we think, where it might have avoided an announcement at Computex 2025, the new APU will be released this year and it should appear inside of a new Alienware gaming laptop.

We've been hearing about NVIDIA x MediaTek and its new AI PC processor, which will offer up Arm-based CPU cores mixed with GeForce RTX series GPU cores, ready to take the fight to AMD and Intel and their respective Copilot+ AI laptops. In a new post by Taiwan Economic Daily, we're to expect NVIDIA and MediaTek to launch a new dedicated APU for new gaming laptops, with the first appearance being inside one of Dell's upcoming Alienware gaming laptops.

Originally, we heard it would be a desktop-based AI PC processor... but it looks like plans have changed, where the new chip will be an APU that would be unleashed in Q4 2025 or in Q1 2026. We should expect the new APU to feature Arm-based CPU cores, and Blackwell-based GPU cores making for a big shift in the APU market.

There have been reports of Ryzen 9000 desktop CPUs failing, most notably the current gaming chip champ, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. In several cases, the common denominator was that the affected CPUs were all paired with ASRock motherboards. The company is now updating its firmware and BIOS for its boards to mitigate the risk of more Ryzen 9000 Series CPUs failing.

This video by Tech Yes City went through the latest BIOS update from ASRock (version 3.25), which changes Precision Boost Overdrive (PBO) settings, namely lowering power and voltage-related settings to rectify the issue. In a follow-up video by Gamers Nexus, ASRock sat down with the channel to confirm that the problem was motherboard-related and not due to AMD's Ryzen chip design.

In the video, ASRock apologizes and notes that it will cover all shipping and related costs for damaged hardware. However, it notes that it has yet to see a damaged motherboard, as the damage is limited to CPUs.

While Intel's Nova Lake desktop chips are rumored to be ushering in a new socket when they arrive in 2026 - groan - you may be able to take a little solace from the latest speculation that at least your cooler might be good to go with this range of CPUs.

Yes, the theory is that Intel is set to shift to a different socket, LGA1954, with Nova Lake. Arrow Lake currently uses LGA1851, and of course Arrow Lake Refresh, if it exists and pitches up this year at all, as some rumors suggest, will doubtless use that socket too.

However, as Tom's Hardware noticed, Ruby Rapids on X has highlighted a shipping manifest from NBD (see above, and add salt appropriately) that shows us the LGA1954 socket has the same dimensions as LGA1851 (45 x 37.5mm).