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What is AMD Zen 4? The chipmaker’s latest architecture explained
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PC gaming enthusiasts will know there are a lot of buzzwords in the industry, but some can represent real advancements. AMD Zen 4 represents the company’s latest and greatest CPU architecture. Here are the basics.
AMD is on a bit of a tear right now, with its new Zen 4-based handheld gaming chips just being announced. TheRyzen Z1series is set to debut on theAsus ROG Ally. But Zen 4 has been around for some time now, hitting devices in 2022.
The new architecture was another step forward for AMD, improving efficiency and performance of the red brand’s processors. The technology is now present across both desktop and laptopCPUs. We’re here to break down all the key details of Zen 4. This is what you need to know.
What is Zen 4?
Zen 4 is the name of AMD’s latest CPU architecture, present on the company’sRyzen 7000series of processors. The new microarchitecture aims to improve efficiency and performance, utilising TSMC’s 5nm process compared with the 7nm node used on the previous Zen 3+ architecture.
AMD Zen 4 launched on September 27th 2022, with the newRyzen 9 7950X,9 7900X,7 7700Xand5 7600Xdesktop CPUs hitting the shelves. The series features up to 16 cores and 32 threads. The top-of-the-range AMD Ryzen 9 7950X offered a single-core improvement of up to 29%, up to 15% improvement in gaming performance and up to 27% better performance-per-watt when compared with its Zen 3-flavoured Ryzen 9 5950X predecessor. For processing speed, that adds up to 4.5GHz (5.7GHz boost).
The introduction of the Zen 4 architecture also came with a new Socket AM5 platform, with AMD touting support for this socket through 2025.
In January 2023, AMD revealed laptop CPUs featuring Zen 4 architecture, with the high-end Ryzen 7045 series and Ryzen 7040 chips sporting the new technology. The rest of the Ryzen 7000 mobile CPU range sticks with the previous microarchitecture.
Zen 4 is set to spread to handheld machines with the AMD Ryzen Z1 series, including the Z1 and Z1 Extreme. The chips will first appear on the Asus ROG Ally.
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Adam is the Computing Editor of Trusted Reviews. He joined as a staff writer in 2019 after graduating from Newcastle University with an MA in Multimedia Journalism. After spending two years at WIRED,…
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Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.
Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
