AMD’s Zen 4 Ryzen processors will be unveiled at CES 2022

AMD is apparently set to reveal the next generation of Ryzen processors based on the Zen 4 architecture at the upcoming CES 2022, which is set to happen right at the start of the year despite most companies backing out of a physical attendance. The information was confirmed by AMD CTO Mark Papermaster in an interview with Forbes (via Digital Trends), who said that “some” products will be at CES, but more will be revealed throughout the year.

It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that some of AMD’s Ryzen products will be launched at CES, since that’s typically been where AMD reveals its mobile Ryzen products. It’s also the right time for the company to respond to Intel’s launch of 12th-generation Alder Lake processors.

On that note, Intel also usually reveals some of its processors at CES, which usually includes its desktop lineup. However, Intel made an unusual move and announced its desktop CPUs first this time around, so it’s possible that we’ll see its mobile processors at CES as well.

As to what we can expect from the Zen 4-based Ryzen processors, AMD is switching to a 5nm architecture, which would reinforce its leadership over Intel as far as die size goes. Intel’s Alder Lake processors are still based on 10nm. Whether that translates to a performance edge remains to be seen, and it’s worth keeping in mind that Intel’s new hybrid architecture in Alder Lake resulted in significant performance gains in its desktop processors. Reports from earlier this year suggested Zen 4 processors could be as much as 29% faster at the same core clock speeds compared to Zen 3. Another potential upgrade for Zen 4 could be in the graphics department, with AMD reportedly using RDNA 2 cores for the integrated graphics on its processors.

AMD is also reportedly switching to an LGA-type socket for its CPUs, which Intel has been doing for a long time at this point. A land grid array (LGA) socket means the CPU pins aren’t actually on the CPU, they’re on the motherboard. That means we’re also getting new motherboard chipsets, the 600 series, which have been confirmed to support DDR5 RAM and PCIe 5.0, enabling even faster data transfers. Because of the big change in the socket type, it’s almost guaranteed you won’t be able to upgrade your CPU without upgrading the motherboard and vice versa.

While we might hear about the Zen 4 desktop processors at CES 2022, rumors suggest we may be waiting until the second half of the year for an actual launch. We’ll have to wait for official announcements, which AMD has planned for January 4th at its pre-CES live stream event.

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