MSI has just cryptically mentioned that the latest updates for its AMD motherboards add support for a mysterious “future CPU,” implying that a new AMD Ryzen gaming CPU is about to be unleashed. There’s already plenty of speculation about the new chip from various quarters. Some say it could herald the introduction of AMD’s first Zen 5 CPUs with proper integrated Radeon GPUs, likely to be called the Ryzen 9000G range, but others disagree.
There’s definitely a gap in the market for a new AMD desktop CPU with gaming-capable integrated graphics. We currently list the AMD Ryzen 5 8600G as the best gaming CPU in this bracket at the moment, but that chip is now well over a year old, and it uses AMD’s last-gen Zen 4 CPU architecture.
Comparatively, the new AMD Strix Halo platform has transformed integrated graphics on the laptop side. It not only uses the latest Zen 5 CPU architecture, but also features up to 40 AMD RDNA 3.5 compute units. While we’re unlikely to see that many compute units in the desktop chip, we’re definitely due an upgrade to the latest tech.
Tech leaker Kepler_L2 has stated that the future CPU is likely to be “Strix/Gorgon Point AM5” in a post on X (formerly Twitter), meaning that the new CPU range sees AMD moving its latest laptop tech with Zen 5 CPUs and RDNA 3.5 GPUs to the desktop. Given that AMD has historically always put a “G” on the end of its product names to denote these types of CPUs, this is likely to be called the Ryzen 9000G range.
However, others disagree, including Hassan Mujtaba from Wccftech, who states that the new CPU is “Not 9000G, something else” with an eyes emoji. Personally, I’d really like to see AMD bring out another update to its acclaimed X3D range, perhaps with a six-core AMD Ryzen 5 9600X3D, bringing down the cost of buying one of the latest gaming CPUs with 3D V-cache.
The hint comes as MSI updates its AMD motherboards to AGESA 1.2.0.3e, and if you have an AMD motherboard that needs updating, then check out our guide on how to flash your BIOS. If you’re thinking of upgrading, you can also check out our guide to the best gaming motherboard, which includes the MSI X870E Carbon WiFi as our top Socket AM5 pick.
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