AMD’s incoming Ryzen 7000 desktop processors could launch when mid-September rolls around, if inside sources are to be believed.
This rumor comes from DigiTimes (opens in new tab) – not always the most reliable outlet in our experience, but that said, one definitely worth listening to regarding supply chain chatter – and the assertion of a middle of September release comes from sources at motherboard manufacturers. (Those companies are, of course, making the AM5 mobos with a new socket for AMD’s next-gen desktop chips).
The sources claim that the launch is pitched for that month to allow breathing room for continued sales of current-gen Ryzen 5000 CPUs, of which there is ‘excess’ stock hanging about apparently, at OEMs and presumably retailers too.
Obviously once Ryzen 7000 chips are even unveiled, and we get a glimpse of what they can really do – and that’s rumored to be a lot, in terms of this being an entirely new Zen 4 architecture – Ryzen 5000 processors are suddenly going to be in a lot less demand, as folks will be tempted to wait for the beefier line-up just around the corner.
Analysis: Raptor Lake mustn’t be out of the gate first
Take all this with a good old helping of skepticism, as ever with this kind of ‘sources said’ report, but there are several rumors which corroborate this. One of which claims a September 15 launch date for Ryzen 7000, which is bang-on the middle of September of course – though granted, it’s on shaky territory. There have been other whispers of a September launch before this, though, so the weight of rumors is growing.
It’s also interesting to hear that selling through current-gen Ryzen stock is a concern here – which suggests that in fact, AMD could get Ryzen 7000 out of the door earlier if it wanted, and the situation allowed for this.
For us, AMD really must get Ryzen 7000 out before Raptor Lake, simply because as it stands, Ryzen 5000 is feeling rather dated and has lost ground to Intel’s current Alder Lake processors – which are widely regarded as the top choice for gamers now. So Team Red can’t afford to let Raptor Lake steam into town without an answer, as it were.
Zen 4 certainly seems like it’s going to be a convincing answer, but the rumors around Intel’s 13th-gen CPUs are that they’ll pull the goods out of the bag for gaming, so all of this leads us to believe that AMD must be confident it can still beat Raptor Lake to the punch with a September launch.
If, of course, any of the speculation we’re hearing is on the mark. The latest we’ve heard is Raptor Lake is due in October, so that’d fit with this picture.
If Zen 4 processors do turn up in September, it’s likely that only a small number of models will go on sale to begin with. Those might be the Ryzen 7950X, 7900X, 7800X and 7600X, according to another leak, and that’d make sense given that those were the initial tiers of CPUs released with current-gen Ryzen chips.
