AMD's Upcoming Ryzen AI APUs: Krackan Point and Strix Halo Set to Shake Up the Laptop Market

AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 "Krackan" APU Point Benchmarked On PassMark, Reveals 8-Core/16-Thread Configuration

The 8-core "AMD Krackan Point" APU is based on the Zen 5 architecture but is aimed at the affordable laptop segment, harnessing the power of this architecture at a low budget while offering decently powerful integrated graphics. The anticipated AMD's affordable Zen 5 mobile chips, aka Krackan Point, are pretty close to the official launch. Even though we didn't hear much about it from AMD, leaks have consistently confirmed the presence of such APUs. We have reported about these SKUs in the past few weeks, and today, we witnessed one such leak, revealing the raw power of one of those SKUs and the specifications as well. This is the "AMD Ryzen AI 7 350," an 8-core/16-thread APU based on the Zen 5 architecture. It's perhaps the most powerful in the lineup, with a 4x Zen 5 and 4x Zen 5c core configuration and Radeon 860M graphics, which was revealed in the PassMark chart. The table clearly shows this is a "laptop"-specific chip with a 2.0 GHz base clock and up to a 5.0 GHz boost clock. Hence, it's not going to compete with the existing Strix Point lineup, which was launched for the premium laptop segment. The Krackan Point CPUs will cater to the demands of gamers on a budget, offering decent computing power at under $1000. This particular processor was also previously listed on an ASUS Vivobook laptop, which will launch after the Krackan Point hits the market. As far as its performance is concerned, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 is about 3.6% faster in single-core performance than the Ryzen 7 8845HS (A Zen 4 chip) but lacks enough power to beat it in multi-threaded performance. These are still early benchmarks, so we will wait for more such tests before concluding the actual winner. Nonetheless, what's more important is its iGPU performance, which isn't known yet.

AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 "Krackan" APU Spotted, Features 8 Cores & Over 5 GHz Boost Clock

The AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 "Krackan" APU has been spotted at Geekbench. It features 8 cores and is faster than the 8845HS. The AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 is an 8-core/16-thread APU from the Krackan Point family & offers a decent performance uplift AMD is about to introduce new hardware at CES 2025, including the anticipated Strix Halo, AMD Radeon RX 8000 series, and the budget Krackan Point mobile APU series. We have seen some of the early engineering samples of Krackan Point in recent leaks, but the latest one reveals more specifications and theoretical performance. An 8-core CPU was benchmarked on Geekbench 6.3, revealing the specs and strength of this Krackan Point APU, which has the OPN code "100-000000713-40_Y". An Acer Swift SFG16-61 laptop was tested in single and multi-threaded operations and resulted in 2677 points in single-core and 11742 points in multi-core tests. At this point, this shouldn't be surprising or feel amazing as Krackan Point is an affordable Zen 5 lineup with up to 8 cores and 16 threads. This is unlike Strix Point, which goes up to 12 cores and 24 threads and brings powerful specifications like higher clocks, cache, and strong iGPUs. On the contrary, the Krackan Point is made for budget and mainstream laptops and mobile devices for the masses. This particular CPU is probably the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 as we reported previously, which will bring a combination of 4x Zen 5 and 4x Zen 5c cores. It will feature RDNA 3.5-based graphics and will have a TDP range of 15-45W, similar to the predecessors of the Hawk Point series. Compared to the Zen 4-based Ryzen 7 8845HS, the Ryzen AI 7 350 delivered around 14% higher single-core performance but was on par with it when it came to multicore strength. Nonetheless, the Geekbench scores can be accurate at times, particularly the multi-core ones, and we will need more benchmarks to confirm their ranking. As previously rumored, the Ryzen AI 7 350 indeed brings 16 MB of L3 cache and a boost clock of over 5GHz. Then there is a 6-core Krackan Point APU AMD is supposedly preparing, featuring a 3x Zen 5 + 3x Zen 5c configuration, which was spotted previously on Geekbench as well. Expect the CPUs to be unveiled at CES along with RDNA 4-based discrete GPUs and the high-performance Strix Halo series.

AMD to release the Krackan at CES -- CPU rivals Intel Lunar Lake in new benchmarks, Ryzen AI 7 350 takes on the Core Ultra 7 258V

AMD (per VideoCardz) is expected to reveal its budget Krackan Point and flagship Strix Halo offerings next month at CES 2025. In addition to a previous leak, at least in the CPU department, another Krackan Point APU has surfaced at Geekbench, competing against Intel's Lunar Lake Core Ultra 7 258V. The leaked benchmark features a Krackan Point Engineering Sample with the OPN Code "100-000000713-40_Y" - likely the Ryzen AI 7 350. The APU was spotted on Acer's upcoming Swift Go 16 laptop variant, which is set to arrive next year. The CPU packs eight cores, split across two clusters of four Zen 5 and four Zen 5c cores alongside a base and max frequency of 2 GHz and 5.05 GHz. Like all octa-core APUs from AMD, the Ryzen AI 7 350 features 16MB of L3 cache and eight MB of L2 cache. The Ryzen AI 7 350's single-core and multi-core scores of 2677 and 11742 place it in Lunar Lake territory, edging out the Core Ultra 7 258V. It does lose to Strix Point by some margin, but the latter has 50% more cores and threads and a larger power envelope. Compared to Hawk Point, the Ryzen AI 7 350 is 5% faster in single-core performance but surprisingly loses in multi-core, possibly due to early silicon/software. Krackan Point (shorthand: KRK) is a cost-effective alternative to AMD's Strix Point APUs under the Ryzen AI 300 moniker. These APUs are rumored to employ up to eight cores in a hybrid configuration (four Zen 5 + four Zen 5c) with up to 16MB of L3 cache. The iGPU (Integrated GPU) solution drops to just eight RDNA 3.5 Compute Units (Radeon 880M) - down from the 16 CUs on Strix Point. There has been some discussion regarding a possible dual-CCX layout with separate ring buses and L3 caches for each core type, but that has yet to be seen. Competition against Lunar Lake will be stiff, but Krackan Point will generally target the mainstream segment, with rumors that Copilot+ laptops will start at $799. Per our exhaustive testing, the Arc 140V (Lunar Lake) lands faster than the Radeon 890M (Strix Point); expect this delta to widen with Krackan Point.

AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 Strix Halo APU Benchmarks Surpass Ryzen 9 7945HX3D in Geekbench

In recent Geekbench benchmarks, AMD's Ryzen AI Max+ 395 Strix Halo APU demonstrated significant performance improvements, achieving 2,849 points in single-core and 20,708 points in multicore tests. These scores surpass those of AMD's existing top-tier mobile processor, the Ryzen 9 7945HX3D, which records approximately 16,900 points in multicore performance. However, in single-core tests, the Ryzen 9 7945HX3D slightly outperforms the Max+ 395 APU, attaining around 2,900 points. The Ryzen AI Max+ 395 is part of AMD's anticipated Strix Halo series, which builds upon the foundation laid by the earlier Strix Point APUs. Unlike Strix Point, which utilizes a hybrid core architecture combining Zen 5 and Zen 5c cores, the Strix Halo APUs exclusively employ Zen 5 cores, offering a more uniform performance profile. This design choice is aimed at enhancing computational efficiency and supporting integrated graphics capabilities that may eliminate the need for separate graphics hardware in certain use cases. Testing was conducted using the ROG Flow Z13 laptop, indicating that the APU is currently undergoing evaluation and that final consumer products may exhibit further performance enhancements. In comparison, Apple's M4 Max SoC achieves higher benchmarks with 3,800 points in single-core and 25,000 points in multicore tests. As CES 2025 approaches, the Ryzen AI Max+ series is expected to be officially unveiled and made available to the market, offering an alternative for users seeking high-performance mobile processors. Source: Videocardz

The AMD Ryzen AI Max finally emerges in a gaming 2-in-1

In brief: Reports have long indicated that AMD is developing a super-sized spin-off of its upcoming Strix Point APU series. Details have been scarce until recently, but a new leaked benchmark confirms a prior report suggesting that Asus's upcoming gaming 2-in-1 will feature the high-end APU. A recent Geekbench entry has revealed that the 2025 edition of the Asus ROG Flow Z13 hybrid laptop will include a Ryzen AI Max APU, also known as Strix Halo. AMD is expected to unveil the new flagship laptop processor and other products at CES in January. The new Asus device features the most powerful configuration from AMD's upcoming Ryzen Max series: the Max+ 395 with a Radeon 8060S integrated GPU. With a clock speed of 3GHz, the 16-core, 32-thread APU posted a 2,894 single-core score and a 20,708 multi-core score, comparing favorably against prior Z13 models featuring high-end Alder Lake and Raptor Lake CPUs. Meanwhile, the new device's 76,961 OpenCL GPU score closely resembles laptops featuring mobile RTX 4050 and 4060 dedicated GPUs. A Vulkan benchmark from a test model earlier this month posted a similarly impressive result. Ryzen AI Max is a high-end counterpart to AMD's Ryzen AI 300 series, which is set to power a new generation of laptops and handheld gaming consoles. While the Ryzen AI 9 370, expected to serve as the basis for the Z2 Extreme handheld gaming processor, features 12 RDNA 3.5 compute units, the Ryzen AI Max+ 395 boosts the number to 40. The new ROG Flow Z13 initially appeared in a design profile leak in August when a leaker claimed that the CPU would draw up to 30W and the iGPU up to 80W, necessitating an overhaul of the cooling system. AMD is also expected to introduce lower-tier Ryzen AI Max chips such as the Max 385 and Max 380 at CES. Furthermore, RDNA 4 will likely make its first official appearance at the trade show, competing with Nvidia's upcoming RTX 5000 series and Intel's new Arc Battlemage. RDNA 4 aims to dramatically enhance ray tracing performance over RDNA 3 and mark AMD's first implementation of AI-based upscaling. Meanwhile, rumors and leaks have indicated that Intel is developing a response to Strix Halo, labeled Arrow Lake Halo. The enthusiast mobile APUs would target high-end laptop workstations.