AMD Unveils Next-Gen Laptop Chips Using Last-Gen Architecture

AMD has unveiled its latest Ryzen 8000 series processors, designed specifically for high-performance gaming laptops. The lineup is spearheaded by the powerful Ryzen 9 8945HX, which, along with its siblings, is built on the Zen 4 architecture, a carryover from the previous generation. While this might seem like a step back compared to the newer Zen 5 architecture used in the Ryzen AI 300 series, these processors are poised to offer robust performance in gaming laptops.

The Ryzen 9 8945HX is a beast with 16 cores and 32 threads, capable of boosting up to 5.4GHz. At the other end of the spectrum, the Ryzen 7 8745HX comes with 8 cores, 16 threads, and a boost clock of 5.1GHz. These specs closely mirror their predecessors, such as the Ryzen 9 7945HX, which also features 16 cores and a 5.4GHz boost clock with 80MB of cache.

These new processors are expected to pair well with the fastest graphics chips available in high-end gaming laptops. My recent review of the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile showed it struggling with the lower-power AMD Ryzen AI HX 370, a chip based on the newer Zen 5 architecture. However, the Ryzen 9 8945HX, with its configurable TDP ranging from 55W to 75W, should provide a significant performance boost. Although a Zen 5 chip with the same power budget would have offered even greater improvements, the Ryzen 8000 series still promises to enhance gaming experiences.

If you've been holding out for the latest from AMD to upgrade your gaming laptop, you won't have to wait long. The Ryzen 8000 series processors are set to appear in high-end gaming laptops in the coming months. Below, I've detailed the specs for the new chips to give you a clearer picture of what to expect:

AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX Specs

• CPU Cores: 16
• Threads: 32
• Boost Clock: 5.4GHz
• Integrated GPU: AMD Radeon 610M
• GPU Cores: 2
• Configurable TDP: 55W – 75W
• Total Cache: 80MB

AMD Ryzen 9 8940HX Specs

• CPU Cores: 16
• Threads: 32
• Boost Clock: 5.3GHz
• Integrated GPU: AMD Radeon 610M
• GPU Cores: 2
• Configurable TDP: 55W – 75W
• Total Cache: 80MB

AMD Ryzen 7 8840HX Specs

• CPU Cores: 12
• Threads: 24
• Boost Clock: 5.1GHz
• Integrated GPU: AMD Radeon 610M
• GPU Cores: 2
• Configurable TDP: 45W – 75W
• Total Cache: 76MB

AMD Ryzen 7 8745HX Specs

• CPU Cores: 8
• Threads: 16
• Boost Clock: 5.1GHz
• Integrated GPU: AMD Radeon 610M
• GPU Cores: 2
• Configurable TDP: 45W – 75W
• Total Cache: 40MB