AMD has experienced difficulties with its official website’s specifications and details this year, including incorrect launch dates, features, and clock speeds, leading to the company issuing apologies several times. However, the recent change to the Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” laptop lineup’s specifications may not be a listing error, as AMD seems to have intentionally reduced the product’s specifications.
The official website for AMD‘s Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” series has undergone an update indicating that the upcoming laptop CPUs will have a reduction in GPU clock speeds. This latest development raises eyebrows as it could negatively impact the product’s performance. Specifically, the Ryzen 9 7940HS, Ryzen 7 7840HS, and Ryzen 5 7640HS will reduce clock speeds by -200 MHz from 3.0 GHz to 2.8 GHz. This suggests that the advertised 3.0 GHz may not be attainable straight out of the box.
However, users may still be able to manually overclock the chips beyond the stock performance to reach 3.0 GHz or higher. It is advisable to seek clarification from the manufacturer regarding the product specifications to avoid any misconceptions or false assumptions. Nonetheless, custom settings will be necessary instead of default settings.
The cause behind the decision to reduce the GPU clock speeds of the Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” CPUs is still unknown. However, the reduction suggests the product’s performance will stay within the actual speed. AMD may have made the modifications to ensure that the CPUs operate within their certified TDP levels, but this remains speculation.
The forthcoming Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” series from AMD is set to launch in different laptop configurations later this quarter. Still, the official website’s product pages for three Phoenix chips recently showed an update indicating a reduction in GPU clock speeds. AMD has not explained this decision, leaving users to speculate about the reasons behind the decrease.
Due to the lowered clock speeds, the CPUs’ performance may fall short of the previously advertised rates. One possible explanation is that the change ensured that the CPUs operated within their certified TDP levels. The Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” CPUs’ main selling point is their GPU, which features the latest RDNA 3 technology.
Despite the recent downgrades, the Phoenix CPUs are still expected to deliver impressive performance, particularly with the incorporation of RDNA 3 technology. The RDNA 3 technology offers significant improvements in performance over its predecessors, which will be particularly beneficial for gaming laptops.
The RDNA 3 technology features new hardware-based raytracing support, enabling more realistic and immersive game lighting effects. Additionally, the technology includes Variable Rate Shading (VRS), which adjusts the shading rate based on the content being rendered, allowing the CPU to allocate resources more efficiently.
Andreas Schilling from Hardwareluxx has reported that the AMD Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” CPUs will not include the PCIe Gen 5.0 functionality.
The most significant alteration to the Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” series is removing PCIe Gen 5.0 functionality. This feature was initially promised as part of the CPU lineup, but now the APUs will not include it. PCIe Gen 5.0 is the latest version of the peripheral component interconnect express (PCIe) standard, allowing faster data transfer between devices, including GPUs, storage drives, and network cards. The absence of PCIe Gen 5.0 means that users may need help to take full advantage of the latest hardware available, potentially limiting their computer’s overall performance.
This missing feature, in addition to the reduced GPU clocks, has raised concerns among consumers about whether the chip lineup will be able to deliver on the performance and features promised by AMD.
However, there has been no official statement from the company regarding the reason behind the removal of PCIe Gen 5.0 functionality or the lowered GPU clocks. This development has left many eagerly awaiting more information from AMD, including clarification on the expected performance and features of the Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” CPUs.
Later this quarter, various versions of AMD’s Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” APUs will be released for laptops. Although there have been concerns regarding the reduced GPU clock speeds and the absence of PCIe Gen 5.0 functionality, the APUs are expected to still offer their Radeon-exclusive features, such as raytracing, FSR, and RSR, when laptops featuring them become available next month. Despite the changes to the APUs’ specifications, the availability of these features is anticipated to provide users with a premium experience consistent with the brand’s promise of high performance and advanced features.