Leaker MebiuW shared a road map last year detailing AMD’s plans throughout 2021, and now a missing piece of that road map has surfaced. Before being removed, Videocardz spotted a tweet from @sepeuwmjh showing details for the upcoming Zen 4 product series. Code-named “Raphael,” the new range of processors is set to launch in early 2022 with features like DDR5 and PCIe 5.0.
Raphael follows a rumored Zen 3 refresh coming in late 2021, building on the Ryzen 5000 platform that was so successful for AMD last year. The tentative Ryzen 6000 (Zen 3+) is said to be built on TSMC’s 6nm process node, which is a revision of the 7nm process node featured in Ryzen 5000. Raphael, on the other hand, is rumored to be built on TSMC’s 5nm process, which is an entirely new design.
Ryzen 7000 (Raphael, Zen 4) brings several other changes. The leak shows that Ryzen 7000 will feature PCIe 5.0, DDR5 support, the AM5 socket, and onboard RDNA 2 graphics. AMD hasn’t included an integrated graphics chip on its mainstream processors for the last several generations, so the inclusion of an iGPU is a big deal. Raphael is rumored to launch before a separate range of 5nm APUs, suggesting that AMD is targeting Intel with integrated graphics on its mainstream platform.
A tweet from @Olrak29_ compiled the new and previous leaks to provide a full AMD roadmap through 2023. In addition to Zen 3+ and Zen 4, the road map shows a new range of APUs and Threadripper 5000 (code-named “Chagall”), which is rumored to launch later this year.
As for the legitimacy of the rumors, they’re probably accurate. The new Raphael square fits perfectly into the chopped-up road map from last year, all but confirming that the images come from the same source. The only point of contention is timing. The rumor mill has Ryzen 7000 positioned to launch in 2022, but with high demand at manufacturer TSMC and a global semiconductor shortage, it could take longer. Regardless, it’s clear AMD has something up its sleeve. We hope to learn more once CES 2022 rolls around.
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