Unleashing Zen 5 and RDNA 3.5 Into Notebooks

Throughout the opening keynote delivered by AMD CEO Dr. Lisa Su at Computex 2024, AMD lastly lifted the lid on their highly-anticipated Zen 5 microarchitecture. The spine for the subsequent couple of years of the whole lot CPU at AMD, the corporate unveiled their plans to deliver Zen 5 within the shopper market, asserting each their next-generation cellular and desktop merchandise on the identical time. With a good schedule that may see each platforms launch inside weeks of one another, immediately AMD is taking their first step with the launch of the Ryzen AI 300 collection – codenamed Strix Level – their new Zen 5-powered cellular SoC.

The most recent and biggest from AMD, the Strix Level brings vital architectural enhancements throughout AMD’s total IP portfolio. Headlining the chip, in fact, is the corporate’s new Zen 5 CPU microarchitecture, which is taking a number of steps to enhance on CPU efficiency with out the advantages of huge clockspeed positive factors. And reflecting the trade’s present heavy emphasis on AI efficiency, Strix Level additionally consists of the newest XDNA 2-based NPU, which boasts as much as 50 TOPS of efficiency. Different enhancements embody an upgraded built-in graphics processor, with AMD shifting to the RDNA 3.5 graphics structure.

The architectural updates in Strix Level are additionally seeing AMD go for a heterogenous CPU design from the very begin, incorporating each efficiency and effectivity cores as a method of providing higher total efficiency in power-constrained gadgets. AMD first launched their compact Zen cores in the midst of the Zen 4 technology, and whereas they made it into merchandise equivalent to AMD’s small-die Phoenix 2 platform, that is the primary time AMD’s flagship cellular silicon has included them as effectively. And whereas this alteration goes to be clear from a person perspective, beneath the hood it represents an vital enchancment in CPU design. Because of this, all Ryzen AI 300 chips are going to incorporate a mixture of not solely AMD’s (principally) full-fat Zen 5 CPU cores, but additionally their compact Zen 5c cores, boosting the chips’ complete CPU core counts and efficiency in multi-threaded conditions.

For immediately’s launch, the AMD Ryzen AI 300 collection will encompass simply three SKUs: the flagship Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, with 12 CPU cores, in addition to the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 and Ryzen 9 365, with 12 and 10 cores respectively. All three SoCs mix each the common Zen 5 core with the extra compact Zen 5c cores to make up the CPU cluster, and are paired with a robust Raden 890M/880M GPU, and a XDNA 2-based NPU.

Because the successor to the Zen 4-based Phoenix/Hawk Level, the AMD Ryzen AI 300 collection is concentrating on a various and lively pocket book market that has develop into the biggest section of the PC trade total. And it’s telling that, for the primary time within the Zen period, AMD is launching their cellular chips first – if solely by days – quite than their typical desktop-first launch. It is each a mirrored image on how the PC trade has modified over time, and the way AMD has continued to iterate and enhance upon its cellular chips; that is as near mobile-first as the corporate has ever been.

Getting all the way down to enterprise, for our evaluation of the Ryzen AI 300 collection, we’re having a look at ASUS’s Zenbook S 16 (2024), a 16-inch laptop computer that is geared up with AMD’s Ryzen AI 9 HX 370. The sightly extra modest Ryzen options 4 Zen 5 CPU cores and eight Zen 5c CPU cores, in addition to AMD’s newest RDNA 3.5 Radeon 890M built-in graphics. General, the HX 370 has a configurable TDP of between 15 and 54 W, relying on the specified pocket book configuration.

Fleshing out the remainder of the Zenbook S 16, ASUS has geared up the laptop computer with a bevy of options and applied sciences becoming for a flagship Ryzen pocket book. The centerpiece of the laptop computer is a Lumina OLED 16-inch show, with a decision of as much as 2880 x 1800 and a variable 120 Hz refresh fee. In the meantime, contained in the Zenbook S 16 is 32 GB of LPDDR5 reminiscence and a 1 TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD. And whereas it is a 16-inch class pocket book, ASUS has nonetheless designed it with an emphasis on portability, resulting in the Zenbook S 16 coming in at 1.1 cm thick, and weighting 1.5 kg. That petite design additionally means ASUS has configured the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 chip inside quite conservatively: out of the field, the chip runs at a TDP of simply 17 Watts.

AMD’s Strix Level SoC Structure: A Fast Recap

Earlier than we dive into our evaluation of the ASUS Zenbook 16 S and AMD’s Ryzen 9 AI HX 370 cellular processor, we’ll shortly recap what’s new with the Strix Level SoC and AMD’s varied processor architectures. Beneath is an inventory of our complete and detailed commentary on Zen 5 and the remainder of AMD’s 2024-2025 cellular platform:

In comparison with the opposite PC SoC launches previously a number of months, AMD has had a fairly brief run-up to immediately’s launch of Strix Level. Whereas Zen 5 has been on AMD’s long-term roadmap for years, the corporate solely introduced Strix Level and the related Zen 5 CPU structure in June, barely two months in the past. So this launch has supplied a refreshingly brief ready interval earlier than we acquired to see first-hand simply what AMD’s newest platform can provide.

On the coronary heart of the AMD Ryzen AI 300 collection of SoCs (and Ryzen 9000, too) is AMD’s newest Zen 5 microarchitecture, which builds upon the success of Zen 4. Zen 5 brings an entire host of enhancements to the underlying design in comparison with its predecessor. The most recent chips additionally include some minor manufacturing enhancements as effectively, with AMD using TSMC’s N4P (4 nm) node to manufacture the Strix Level monodie.

With a mixture of full-fat Zen 5 and compact Zen 5c CPU cores, Strix Level has two core complexes (CCXs), one that includes the 4 Zen 5 cores and the opposite housing the eight smaller Zen 5c cores. In keeping with AMD, the extra compact Zen 5c cores are round 25% smaller than the common Zen 5 cores, with various ranges of L3 cache.

The AMD Zen 5 microarchitecture is designed to supply increased IPC efficiency than Zen 4, with AMD claiming a mean uplift of 16% over its predecessor for AMD’s highest-performance, full-fat Zen 5 core implementation. Zen 5 has been constructed with efficiency in thoughts however nonetheless maintains a powerful concentrate on energy effectivity, with is vital each within the cellular house and in AMD’s profitable server markets. The Zen 5c cores are particularly geared to supply (almost) the identical directions per clock (IPC) fee because the full-fat cores, however with a smaller total footprint on the die.

Nonetheless, digging into the fantastic print you will discover that the Zen 5 cores in Strix Level aren’t fairly the entire enchilada from a efficiency perspective. AMD’s cellular chips are getting a 3rd core kind that’s largely an identical to the desktop core, however eschews the 512-bit (FP512) SIMD used for extremely parallel operations. In lieu of that, each the massive (Zen 5) and little (Zen 5c) cores on Strix level get a 256-bit (FP256) SIMD. So there are some small however significant variations between the desktop and cellular chips.

AMD’s Strix Level has additionally been given an improved built-in graphics system, with Ryzen AI 300 utilizing the newest RDNA 3.5 structure. This latest iteration of AMD’s venerable RDNA graphics structure is a comparatively minor revision total versus the RDNA 3 graphics utilized in Phoenix, missing any new options, however implementing additional optimizations to enhance power effectivity, a vital component for the cellular market.

The web result’s that there was lots of work occurring behind the scenes to optimize the plumbing of the core structure. Enhancing reminiscence administration is just not particularly horny from a function perspective, for instance, however going to reminiscence is an extremely costly motion when it comes to energy consumption. So these sorts of optimizations can repay considerably in GPU and combined CPU/GPU workloads. On condition that laptops are power-constrained environments, these energy financial savings can then be invested in enhancing total efficiency, equivalent to by permitting for increased sustained clockspeeds.

RDNA 3.5 is a bit distinctive on this respect, because it’s the primary time an AMD SoC has acquired an architecturally distinct GPU of its personal, quite than only a down-ported model of AMD’s discrete GPU structure. Finally, AMD’s enhancements right here will feed again into future architectures, so this is not any type of everlasting bifurcation, nevertheless it’s one other instance of how AMD is dedicating time and assets to raised optimize their cellular {hardware}.

The Ryzen AI 300 Household

Though we’re specializing in the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 on this evaluation, AMD has one other two Ryzen AI 300 collection (Strix Level) processors. All three Ryzen AI 300 collection SoCs amalgamate Zen 5 and Zen 5c cores onto the identical die, whereas two of the chips are branded beneath AMD’s high-performance HX collection.

What’s notable proper off the bat right here is that AMD has condensed their chip stack considerably versus the Ryzen Cellular 7000/8000 generations. Whereas AMD beforehand had separate chip traces for the 15-30 Watt (U-series) and 35-54 Watt (HS-series), the Ryzen AI 300 collection compresses this all the way down to a single line of chips that may be configured to run wherever between 15 Watts and 54 Watts – AMD’s full TDP vary for mainstream chips. Consequently, the chips can conceivably be positioned in something from a ultrabook as much as a desktop substitute laptop computer. In the meantime, the default TDP for all of those chips is 28 Watts, which has been an more and more widespread energy level for skinny & gentle laptops.

And since we final talked in regards to the AMD Ryzen AI 300 series when we detailed the Zen 5 microarchitecture earlier in the month, AMD has snuck in a 3rd SKU to the Ryzen AI 300 collection: the Ryzen AI 9 HX 375. Virtually, however not fairly an identical to the previously-announced Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 SKU, the HX 375 ships with a barely sooner NPU. At 55 TOPS, this NPU is 10% sooner than the NPU discovered within the HX 370 (50 TOPS), and this marks the primary time that we have seen any PC vendor (Qualcomm included) provide SKUs with totally different NPU configurations. It is a small distinction to make sure, nevertheless it’s additionally an indication that NPUs are getting highly effective sufficient that there is room for some variation, quite than chip distributors having to ship the quickest configuration they will provide.

NPU issues apart, each the HX 375 and HX 370 function a 12 CPU core configuration, with 4x Zen 5 and 8x Zen 5c cores. Each core varieties are able to SMT, that means that these chips can have as much as 24 CPU threads in flight directly (ed: anybody bear in mind when simply 2 threads was an enormous deal?). And with their extensive TDP ranges, they’ve an equally giant clockspeed vary, with a base frequency of two.0GHz and a turbo frequency of as much as 5.1 GHz. Each chips are additionally paired with Strix Level’s full built-in graphics configuration, the Radeon 890M with 16 graphics CUs.

The third and last SoC within the stack is the Ryzen AI 9 365, which is a ten core half and consists of 4x& Zen 5 cores and 6x Zen 5c cores. The Ryzen AI 9 365 can enhance as much as 5.0 GHz, and will get a barely cut-down Radeon 880M built-in GPU, which runs with 12 CUs.

In any other case, all three Ryzen AI 300 chips provide the identical cache configuration: 24 MB of L3 cache, which is cut up as 16 MB on the Zen 5 CCX, and eight MB on the Zen 5c CCX.

The ASUS Zenbook S 16 (2024) Pocket book: A Nearer Look

One of many first notebooks introduced that might function AMD’s Ryzen AI 300 collection was the ASUS Zenbook S 16 (2024), which is a premium ultrathin 16-inch pocket book with a formidable function set. The ASUS Zenbook S 16 (UM5606WA) we acquired contains a hanging ‘Scandinavian white’ coloured chassis, which makes use of ASUS’s personal materials for the construct, which they’re calling ‘Ceraluminum.’ ASUS explains it’s a high-tech ceramic designed to be sturdy and light-weight, with the Ceraluminum being an amalgamation of ceramic and aluminum.

The ASUS Zenbook S 16 (UM5606WA) has a 16-inch ASUS Lumina OLED show with a 2880 x 1800 16:10 decision, a 120 Hz refresh fee, and a most brightness of 400 nits, or an HDR peak brightness of 500 nits. Different key specs on the 16-inch Lumina OLED touchscreen show embody a 100% DCI-P3 coloration gamut with HDR True Black 500 certification, and it additionally comes PANTONE validated for customers who need that. ASUS additionally consists of an ASUS Pen 2.0 stylus within the packaging, so customers can use the touchscreen with out getting all of it grubby or lined in fingerprints.

ASUS has achieved a lot with the keyboard on the Zenbook S 16, which has a 19.5 mm pitch between keys, which implies there’s 19.5 mm between the middle of the important thing being pressed and the subsequent key to it. ASUS has additionally opted for an array of generally used perform keys and the Microsoft Copilot+ key, which, when pressed, brings up the Microsoft Copilot+ AI assistant. The keyboard itself options backlighting, which has various ranges of white LEDs behind it; in my view, RGB would not swimsuit a sublime chassis equivalent to this. There are additionally 0.1 mm dish-shaped indentations on every key, whereas the keys themselves journey 1.1 mm upon a full keypress.

A few of the key {hardware} contained in the ASUS Zenbook S 16 (UM5606WA) on this evaluation consists of 32 GB of LPDDR5X-7500 reminiscence in a 2 x 16 GB twin channel configuration. It additionally has a single 1 TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD, though ASUS says it does assist as much as 2 TB PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 SSDs. On the ASUS web site, customers can choose between two totally different variations. This consists of the choice to go for the marginally decrease spec Ryzen AI 9 365 processor, which is a 10C/20T chip and comes with AMD’s Radeon 880M built-in graphics. Customers may also choose between 24 GB or 32 GB of LPDDR5X-7500 reminiscence, whereas customers can go for two totally different colours; this consists of Zumaia Grey or Scandinavian White. Regardless of the colour, it comes with ASUS’s Ceraluminum chassis, which is designed to be light-weight and sturdy on the go.

Alongside the highest bezel within the center is a full HD (1080p) webcam, which helps Home windows Hey (IR), nevertheless it additionally doubles up as an AiSense Digital camera, which makes use of AI with Home windows Studio Results and optimizes the scene for extra professional-looking video calls. A lot of the included software program package deal revolves round encompassing AI, and harnessing what AI on the PC can do.

Touching extra on how the Zenbook S 16 feels, it weighs 1.5 kg, or 3.31 lbs, which is not the lightest ultrathin pocket book in the marketplace, nevertheless it does feel and appear good. Being an ultraportable, it has a really cheap footprint for a 16-inch pocket book, with dimensions of 353.6 x 243.0 x 11.9 mm or 13.92 x 9.57 x 0.47 inches, which makes the Zenbook S 16 a quite modern pocket book. One space to notice is the bezels. Surrounding the 16-inch Lumina OLED panel are very skinny black bezels, with the highest bezel measuring simply 0.6 mm and simply 0.4mm on the sides, making it seem smaller.

With regards to I/O, ASUS features a myriad of choices, together with two USB 4.0 Gen 3 Sort-C ports, each of which assist show and energy supply, and a single USB 3.2 G2 Sort-A port. There’s a single HDMI 2.1 TMDS video output for customers trying to connect with a display, whereas six Harman Kardon front-facing audio system are designed for immersive sound; there’s additionally a 3.5 combo audio if customers want to go for headphones as a substitute.

As we usually see from premium ASUS notebooks and laptops, they embody a complete set of software program, with the MyASUS app appearing as a type of central hub for most of the options. This consists of deciding on between the totally different fan profiles, together with whisper mode, which lowers the ability down so the followers can chill out, thus making a quieter atmosphere. Different profiles embody the Efficiency mode, which is able to ramp the followers up when load is placed on the CPU and develop into fairly noisy; it is a trade-off between sooner efficiency and extra noise.

Customers may also customise the sound profile relying on whether or not they’re watching a film, listening to music, taking part in a sport, and so forth; this adjustments the kind of audio from the six Harman Kardon audio system, which sound nice, particularly for pocket book audio system. One other piece of software program that ASUS consists of is StoryCube, which is basically an AI-driven media hub that makes use of AI to categorize and kind pictures throughout the pocket book.

The ASUS Zenbook S 16 UM5606 appears like and appears each bit as premium as any premium pocket book comes, with many AI-integrated software program options and functions included for customers to sink their enamel into. This isn’t simply restricted to ASUS’s personal software program however to Microsoft’s Copilot+, which, seemingly in software program phrases, is the star of the present in the case of what the AI PC appears to appear like at current. The true star of the present, nonetheless, is the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 SoC, with the newest Zen 5 cores, in addition to compact Zen 5c cores, new built-in graphics that includes AMD’s RDNA 3.5 graphics structure, to not neglect the XDNA 2 NPU which is at present the highest performing NPU within the cellular house at current.

Pricing for the ASUS Zenbook S 16 UM5606 begins at $1699, which for a bit extra is across the identical value because the Apple MacBook M3 Professional; there’s lots of competitors on the value level. Everybody has their very own choice for pocket book design, type, and even the chip that powers it, however immediately is in regards to the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 with the brand new Zen 5 microarchitecture. We’re placing it up in opposition to what got here earlier than it, the Ryzen 9 7940HS, and we’re additionally throwing Intel’s present Meteor Lake-based Core Extremely 7 155H into the combo too. It is time to see how Zen 5 compares to Zen 4 within the cellular house and the way it stacks up in opposition to Intel’s personal 28 W Meteor Lake SoC. Let’s discover out, lets?