AMD Ryzen 8000G Zen4 APU series launch January 31, Ryzen 7 8700G competes with desktop GeForce GTX 1650 in gaming

AMD is launching Ryzen 8000G desktop APU series on January 31st

AMD is officially introducing its long-awaited update to Ryzen APU series. 

The AM5 socket is set to receive an update with the introduction of the new Ryzen CPUs, marking the debut of the first 8000 desktop series. Despite the nomenclature suggesting a next-generation CPU series, these processors are, in fact, Zen4/RDNA3 mobile silicon presented in a new form factor – as modern desktop APU series. These APUs seamlessly integrate AMD’s latest CPU and GPU architectures, specifically Zen4/Zen4c and RDNA3 graphics.

Formally designated as AMD’s initial processors for the AM5 socket, the Ryzen 8000G series comes equipped with a built-in XDNA1 Ryzen AI accelerator. This claim is applicable to the 8-core Ryzen 7 8700G and 6-core Ryzen 5 8600G models, as they exclusively utilize the larger silicon. In contrast, the 6-core 8500G and 4-core 8300G employ a smaller Phoenix die, omitting the Ryzen AI processor from their configuration. The latter also come with Zen4c cores and 8300G will not be available as DIY part, only through OEMs and system integrators.

In terms of specifications, all SKUs boast a default TDP of 65W and are packaged with integrated RDNA3 graphics, either Radeon 780M (12CU), Radeon 760M (8CU) or Radeon 740M (4CU).

Ryzen 8000G series, Source: AMD

AMD is drawing a comparison between its 8700G and 8600G models and Intel’s Core i7-14700K, which features a built-in GPU based on the Xe-LP architecture. The integrated GPU in the Intel CPU is equipped with UHD Graphics 770, features 32 Execution Units, and it is less powerful than the Xe-LPG architecture found in new Core Ultra 100 “Meteor Lake” series. Intel has not yet released or officially announced a desktop series with Alchemist integrated graphics, making such a comparison relevant.

In practical terms, the Ryzen 8600G is expected to outperform the i7-14700K by a factor ranging from 1.0 times to 3.4 times in 1080p low-detail gaming. The 8700G is also expected to deliver superior performance, with estimates ranging from 1.1 to 4.0 times higher than the i7-14700K.

Ryzen 8700G/8600G vs i7-14700K, Source: AMD

In a more practical scenario, AMD is comparing its 8700G APU with a system powered by a Core i5-13400F, coupled with a GeForce GTX 1650 desktop graphics card. AMD claims that their solution can deliver gaming performance ranging from 0.89 times to 1.31 times that of the competition, while productivity benchmarks show an improvement of 1.1 times to 4.6 times. AMD’s advantage is that there is no need for discrete graphics and the whole package will require less power. How much exactly will be revealed when reviews are posted.

Radeon 780M vs GTX 1650, Source: AMD

AMD confirms Ryzen 7 8700G will retail at $329, Ryzen 5 8600G will cost $229 and Ryzen 5 8500G will be a $179 desktop APU. The 8300G is not launching through the DIY market; hence it has no official pricing. All SKUs except 8300G will become available on January 31.