AMD Announces New 3rd Generation Processors, Threadripper 3990X, at CES 2020
Wednesday, January 29, 2020 by Tatiora | Discussion: Personal Computing
Earlier this month at CES, AMD declared that 2020 was the year for “gamers and creators.” Chief Executive Officer Dr. Lisa Su took to the stage during a press conference and announced that AMD’s 3rd generation processors for laptops have officially arrived.
According to Dr. Su, the new Ryzen 4000 series of chips based on the company’s 7nm Zen 2 architecture are the “best laptop processor(s) ever built.” By incorporating the right technology elements, AMD will fit tremendous amounts of power within a laptop form factor. These chips are AMD’s first laptop chips to make the move to Zen 2; the Ryzen 3000 series has already brought the tech to desktops, but laptops have been using an older process.
The new processor, which can fit into ultra-thin laptops, contains 8 cores and 16 threads. The new CPUs will come in both 15-watt “U-class” ultra-low power versions (for thin and light laptops), and “H-class” 45-watt laptops (for gaming and content creation). AMD promises desktop-class performance on laptop hardware with the top of the line U-series chip (Ryzen 7 4800U), which offers an 8 core, 16-thread design.
In addition to the new Ryzen 4000 series, Dr. Su also announced the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3990X Processor during her CES presentation. The performance comparison graphic covered three screens and showed nearly 5x the power of leading competitors’ products. During an interview on AMD’s “The Bring Up,” Dr. Su discussed the process behind developing the Threadripper.
“When you think about what you can do with computing -- I mean, if you think just a few years ago, 16 cores seemed like more than you ever needed, but then we did Threadripper and we went up to 34 cores,” Su said. “And we said with third gen, ‘why not? Why not go up to 64 cores,’ and it’s not just about technology for technology’s sake. It’s really about how do we put technology into the hands of power users so that they can do new and important and creative things.”
According to AMD, the first Ryzen 4000 series laptops will arrive from Acer, Lenovo, HP, Asus, Dell, and other companies starting in the first quarter of 2020. The Threadripper 3990X will release on February 7, 2020.
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Reply #2 Sunday, February 2, 2020 8:00 PM
Hmmm, not much interest here! Would've thought more people would be interested since AMD put Intel under so much pressure with some of the best CPUs to hit the market in decades. Oh well, can lead horses to water but yer can't make 'em drink.
Reply #3 Monday, February 3, 2020 1:56 AM
Well starkers, you summed it up in your first post. The 3990X is out of almost everyone's price range, mine included. 
Hence not replied.
I have a Ryzen 5 2600 at the moment. I be updating my PC later on this year though, new case and everything, so thinking of either a Ryzen 7 3700X or a Threadripper 2920X or 2950X, not decided yet but then again, I'm not in a rush.
Reply #4 Monday, February 3, 2020 7:11 AM
Yeah, the top end Ryzens are quite costly for we ordinary folk, though I'm hoping they eventually come down significantly in price, but then I've probably done my last upgrade with the ThreadRipper 2920X. At 67 it is getting just a bit too much for me, what with failing eyesight and cramp in the hands, etc, but then, if I saw a nicely priced 3rd gen version and compatible mobo, I may just be tempted to have another go.
My issue would be that the 3rd gen ThreadRippers require a whole new mobo, given 3rd gens have a different socket, which is a bit rude, in my opinion. The x399 socket isn't that old, but then, perhaps I shouldn't be too harsh.... maybe the 3rd gen versions require additional power and features that gen 2 didn't.
Besides, with the continuing issues I've had today with my machines [not the new ThreadRipper one] I don't know that I much want to see the inside of another PC any time soon. The Intel/ASUS machine I'm on now has pissed me off so many times today after it just up and shut down inexplicably. I tried all sorts of remedies to get it going again and it frustrated me every time. In the end I wiped the OS SSD on my HP 2-in-1, burned a new Windows disc and started over.
Anyway, it kept me from finishing and starting up my Threadripper beast to load Windows, which now will have to wait until tomorrow cos it's 11.05 pm, cos I'm knackered after a long, long day.
Yeah, the 2920X is probably the best price-wise, well it is at the moment, but who knows, by the time you're ready to build the 2950X may have dropped in price to where the 2920X is now.
Reply #5 Monday, February 3, 2020 11:05 AM
I remember a post that we were comparing the best processors for gaming, and starkers chimed in, and said he was going AMD(personally I have no qualms either way, other than supporting American to help our economy). Then right after that Intel admitted to knowing about a bug they knew about the last ten years. This was forcing them to slow down all their processors considerably. Even playing Galactic Civilizations my processor seems slower. Yesterday I read a couple of articles. Intel only has the high end gaming(best in the CPU's). AMD has the mid, low end gaming, and other computing needs. Sounds like their winning in performance. We were wrong, except the post was about the best gaming processor.
Reply #6 Monday, February 3, 2020 5:46 PM
Intel admitted to knowing about a bug they knew about the last ten years. This was forcing them to slow down all their processors
Or was that a marketing ploy because AMD was closing the gap, or had closed the gap between the two brands and Intel didn't want to admit it? I mean, they weren't going to come clean and say that AMD had caught up with and had actually surpassed them in some areas.
Yesterday I read a couple of articles. Intel only has the high end gaming(best in the world processors). AMD has the mid, low end gaming, and other computing needs
Thing is there, articles can be biased and leaning toward a particular manufacturer. Same applies to articles I've read regarding AMD's benchmarks and perfomances. The true test is out there in the real world, with people who can honestly compare Intel AMD equivelants. I know of one such person who has the same ThreadRipper as me, the 2920X stock, and an Intel i9 9900K stock. He tells me that the Threadripper has better performance in both gaming and daily tasks, and I tend to believe that kind of comparison to those in the media.
At the end of the day, however, it's up to the end user and his/her preferences. I have an i7 4970K on an ASUS Maximus VII Hero motherboard, as well as an AMD Ryzen 1700X on an AMD Crosshair Hero VII , and honestly, I've had more issues with the Intel build than with the Ryzen build. That's just my experience, though, and therefore I'm leaning toward the AMD build at this time. My ThreadRipper build needs some finishing touches before I boot up later today, and if everything I've read or heard is true, I shall be immensely happy with it.
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Reply #1 Wednesday, January 29, 2020 6:42 PM
Oh how I'd love one of those 3990X Threadrippers. I just got myself a Threadripper 2920X and I'm in the process of doing a rebuild with that at its core, but the next gen is so superior to anything before it, and oh how I'd love to have the bucks to acquire one. Probably never going to be in my price range, though.