Articles about AMD

After the successful launch of its new Ryzen processors last week, AMD has announced the first details of its upcoming Naples CPUs intended for servers and data centers.

These processors were designed around the same Zen architecture as Ryzen though they will be a great deal more powerful. AMD has described them as having "superior" memory bandwidth and some models will even feature up to 32 cores in order to handle a more demanding workload.

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AMD recently released its all-new Ryzen 7 desktop processors, and many folks are excited. Well, I am sure Intel isn't too happy, actually. Why? AMD's new chips are comparable from a performance standpoint, but at lower prices. Believe it or not, with this new AM4 platform, this is AMD's fist time embracing DDR4 memory.

If you want powerful and compatible RAM for a new Ryzen build, there are many choices. With that said, there is one popular brand of memory that many gamers enjoy nowadays -- G.SKILL. Today, the company announces two new RAM kits -- Flare X and FORTIS. They can be had in various speeds and capacities, with the Flare X being offered with frequencies up to 3,466MHz!

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Whenever I build a computer, I often look to AMD processors first. It is partly from tradition -- I have long preferred the company's processors, but that is hardly a reason to buy something. Actually, I turn to AMD because its chips are both powerful and affordable. For gaming in particular, there is a lot of value to be had from the company's CPUs.

For a while now, Intel has been selling better-performing chips than AMD's, albeit often more expensive. Many AMD fans, such as myself, have long been waiting for more competitive offerings. Well, folks, the time has finally come. Today, AMD announces the release date and pricing for the Ryzen 7 desktop processors. Intel should look out, as these chips, in some situations, can outperform its Core i7 processors! More importantly, AMD can do it at a more competitive price.

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It used to be that if you wanted a powerful gaming PC, you would need a monstrous tower with many loud fans. Nowadays, you can build a Mini-ITX system that offers impressive specifications in a tiny package.

What if you want something even smaller? Zotac has a new VR-Ready mini PC that is shockingly tiny. Inside the diminutive 'MAGNUS ERX480' barebones box is an Intel Skylake Core i5-6400T and an AMD Radeon RX480 (4GB GDDR5 256-bit). It supports DDR4 RAM (1866 or 2133) up to to 32GB and an M.2 connector for storage. For convenience, it can also be had with both RAM and storage installed from the factory. You can choose to have Windows 10 pre-installed too.

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When Apple released its cylindrical Mac Pro, I was in awe. Not only was it beautiful, but it wasn't form over function. Actually, a cylinder is a wise design choice, as it can aid in cooling when done correctly. Surprisingly, Windows PC manufacturers took a while to start really embracing the design.

Recently, for instance, HP announced the Wave -- a tube-like PC with integrated 360 degree Bang and Olufsen speaker. Now, Samsung is following HP with the ArtPC Pulse. It too features a 360 degree speaker in its design, but by the arguably superior Harman/Kardon. Where Samsung's offering greatly differs, however, is gaming. It has a respectable AMD RX460 GPU. As you can imagine, the drop-dead gorgeous ArtPC Pulse will not come cheap.

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If you are a fan of Linux-based desktop operating systems, you probably have done this before -- buy a Windows PC and replace the pre-installed OS with your favorite distro. While this can be a fine practice, there are some problems with it. Of course, you may experience issues with drivers -- especially Wi-Fi cards. Even worse, if you ever need support, the manufacturer might turn you away when it finds out you loaded Ubuntu, Fedora, or something else.

A smart alternative is to buy a computer from a company that cares about Linux, such as System76. That company sells beautiful laptops and desktops running Ubuntu. But what if you prefer Linux Mint? The Mint team has previously partnered with manufacturers to produce desktops running its distro. Today, the all-new Mintbox Mini Pro goes on sale.

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AMD makes very cost-effective and powerful processors. Even though some of its chips are a bit long in the tooth, gamers in particular can leverage them for a powerful machine without breaking the bank. Unfortunately, its AM3+ platform is lacking in some modern technology, such as DDR4 and PCIe 3.0. While DDR3 RAM is arguably still good enough, PCIe 2.0 is a bottleneck for modern NVMe SSDs.

Luckily, consumers won't have to wait long to get a desktop PC powered by AMD's latest 7th generation APU -- codenamed 'Bristol Ridge'. Windows 10 OEMs (Lenovo and HP only, for now) are finally shipping these AM4 machines, which feature DDR4 memory, PCIe 3.0, and more. Of course, as APUs, the systems will have solid graphic performance without the need for a dedicated graphics card. This paves the way for the even more-powerful Zen CPUs from AMD.

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We have a lot of news coming out of AMD’s kitchen, including new GPUs, an open-source rendering engine, and a new solution for large dataset applications.

First in line is the Radeon Pro WX Series of professional graphics cards, aimed at modern content creation and engineering. It is based on the Polaris architecture, and AMD says it was built with open-source software in mind. The new cards are "designed for creative professionals and those pushing the boundaries of science, technology and engineering".

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When NVIDIA announced the GTX 1080, the PC gaming community was largely in awe, and rightfully so. Its performance was impressive, and many folks wanted it. The problem? It has an MSRP of $600. At that price, the card -- while amazing -- is simply unobtainable for many. In fact, many high-end cards which are needed for a premium VR experience are too expensive for ordinary folks on a budget.

AMD was not satisfied with VR being a luxury reserved for those with deep pockets. Instead of focusing on raw performance regardless of price, the company set its sights on delivering VR to the everyman. Today, AMD's vision is realized, thanks to the all-new Polaris-based Radeon RX 480 graphics card, which starts at a shocking $199. It offers performance that is comparable to some $500 cards. PC gaming market, you have officially been disrupted!

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PC gaming is a huge deal nowadays. Not only are consumers playing these computer games themselves, but watching other people stream them on services like Twitch and YouTube Gaming. While prior generations of humans enjoyed watching "classic" sports such as baseball, basketball and football, modern millennials -- some of whom like the aforementioned sports too -- are increasingly spectating e-Sports. In other words, video games are beyond mainstream -- they are no longer just a hobby, and certainly not just for kids.

Today, HP announces that it is refreshing its "OMEN" gaming brand. These gaming PCs have the normal elegance of high-end HP computers, while also blending in youthful -- yet tasteful -- styling to appeal to gamers and millennials. Even if a consumer isn't necessarily a hardcore gamer, these OMEN branded desktops, laptops, and monitors are drop-dead gorgeous, and should appeal to all PC enthusiasts. The beauty is not skin deep, however, as HP has equipped these machines with high-end specs too.

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Many gamers on a budget choose AMD FX processors for their builds. Not only are they affordable, but very capable too. With up to eight cores, and easy overclocking, you can squeeze a lot of performance out of them without breaking the bank.

When using an FX processor, it is not uncommon for builders to choose an aftermarket cooler for better cooling or reduced noise. Of course this will add to the overall cost. Today, however, consumers selecting the FX 8350 and FX 6350 may want to forgo the additional cooler purchase. Why? AMD is now bundling its already-legendary Wraith cooler with them. Yes, the formidable silent cooler is being included in the box!

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Since I am not a hardcore gamer, when I build my computers, I do not put a huge focus on raw graphics power. Don't get me wrong, having a top-of-the-line GPU would be great, but just isn't worth the money for me. With that said, I don't want anemic hardware either -- I aim for balanced value.

If you are a casual gamer on a budget, AMD's APUs are a godsend. For a paltry amount of money, you get a CPU and GPU in one (with an upgrade path). Not only do you save money, but get respectable performance too. Today, AMD announces its fastest APU ever, the Wraith-cooled A10-7890K. For those that prefer buying a dedicated graphics card, the company also reveals its 'fastest multi-core Athlon' ever, the X4 880K CPU.

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We seem to have hit something of a ceiling when it comes to the raw speed of processors; things are now progressing rather more slowing than they have been. Attention has now turned to other areas, such as the number of cores. Dual-core, quad-core, and octo-core CPUs are now quite common, but AMD's upcoming processor -- codenamed 'Zen' -- will feature no fewer than 32 cores.

We already knew that Zen would have 'a lot' of cores, but a CERN engineer has now revealed not only how high this figure is, but more details of the processor. But this is not a true 32-core processor -- AMD is using a little trickery to up the numbers.

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As a system builder, I am constantly looking for new hardware and good value. While Intel makes a fine processor, I often find myself choosing AMD solutions for builds. Why? The company makes great bang-for-your-buck processors and graphics chips. Its APUs are a phenomenal value, while its traditional CPUs are powerhouses. Gamers in particular should take a look at its offerings.

Today, AMD officially unveils two new processors -- the A10-7860K APU and Athlon X4 845 CPU. The latter is particularly notable as it is the first-ever CPU to feature the 'Excavator' architecture. To keep temperatures on these new chips low, AMD has revealed new coolers too.

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Chip maker AMD has complained that the popular benchmarking tool SYSmark is biased toward rival Intel. The company says that the software focuses far too much on CPU activity and that this is not reflective of real-world computer use.

In a stern video, John Hampton and Tony Salinas from AMD compare SYSmark benchmark with results from Futuremark's PCMark 8 as well as scripts devised in-house. Comparing an Intel Core i5 with a 'comparable' AMD FX chip, SYSmark was found to report a much greater performance difference -- in Intel's favor. AMD describes this as "quite astonishing and not realistic".

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