At CES 2019, AMD highlighted some historic leaps in computing, gaming and visualisation technologies expected this year based on a combination of 7nm technology and advanced computing and graphics designs.
During her CES 2019 keynote presentation, AMD President and CEO Dr Lisa Su announced the world’s first 7nm gaming graphics processing unit (GPU), AMD Radeon VII; detailed the world’s fastest processor for ultrathin laptops1, 2nd Gen AMD RyzenTM Mobile processors; and provided the first public demonstration of the upcoming 7nm 3rd Gen AMD RyzenTM desktop processor.
Su’s keynote focused on solving the world’s toughest and most interesting challenges through high-performance computing and graphics innovation. From bringing a storyteller’s vision to life through digital characters, to helping communities come together through a shared love of gaming, to solving some of our toughest challenges in the realms of education, healthcare, climate change and energy solutions, AMD sees incredible opportunities to apply more powerful computing technologies to solve some of society’s toughest problems.
“This is an incredible time to be in technology as the industry pushes the envelope on high-performance computing to solve the biggest challenges we face together,” says Su. “At AMD, we made big bets several years ago to accelerate the pace of innovation for high-performance computing, and 2019 will be an inflection point for the industry as we bring these new products to market. From our 7nm RadeonTM graphics chips to our next-generation 7nm AMD Ryzen and AMD EYPC processors, it’s going to be an exciting year for AMD and the industry.”
AMD Gaming Graphics Updates
Reinforcing its commitment to next-generation gaming leadership, AMD announced the world’s first 7nm gaming GPU, AMD Radeon VII, designed to deliver better performance and experiences for the latest AAA, esports and virtual reality (VR) titles, demanding 3D rendering and video editing applications, and next-generation compute workloads.
The AMD Radeon VII graphics card provides 2x the memory2 and 2.1x the memory bandwidth3, up to 29% higher gaming performance on average and up to 36% higher performance5 on average in content creation applications compared to the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 graphics card, enabling maximum settings for extreme framerates at the highest resolutions. It also provides seamless, high-refresh HDR gaming6 at 1080p, ultrawide 1440p and 4K, and powers the next-generation photo and visual creation applications on razor sharp, vibrant 8K monitors.
Built to enable performance and extreme gaming, and drive the most demanding 3D rendering, video editing and compute applications, key features of the AMD Radeon VII graphics card include:
* Exceptional capabilities: The Radeon VII graphics card is built upon 7nm process technology, delivering higher gaming performance than the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 graphics card3. Equipped with 60 compute units/3840 stream processors running at up to 1.8GHz and 16GB of ultra-fast HBM2 memory (second-generation High-Bandwidth Memory), the Radeon VII graphics card enables high-performance gaming and ultra-high quality visuals. Ground-breaking 1 TB/s memory bandwidth and a 4,096-bit memory interface paves the way for ultra-high resolution textures, hyper-realistic settings and life-like characters.
* Enabling real-time 3D and compute applications: The Radeon VII graphics card delivers the performance required for demanding 3D rendering and video editing applications, and next-generation compute workloads. It provides up to 27% higher performance in the popular open source 3D creation application Blender, up to 27% higher performance in the professional video editing, colour correction and visual effects application DaVinci Resolve 15, and up to 62% higher performance in the OpenCL LuxMark compute benchmark9 compared to the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 graphics card
* Extreme gaming performance: The AMD Radeon VII graphics card delivers exceptional performance in DirectX 12- and Vulkan(r)based games, including up to 35% higher performance in Battlefield V, and up to 42% higher performance in Strange Brigade, compared to the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 graphics card. It also delivers up to 25% higher performance in the popular esports title, Fortnite.
* Smooth gaming with Radeon FreeSync: With the high speeds of today’s graphics cards, framerates often exceed the monitor refresh rate, causing stuttering and tearing. With AMD Radeon FreeSync technology, the popular, standards-based adaptive sync technology supported by more than 550 gaming monitors, gamers can experience smooth gameplay at every level. In addition, AMD Radeon FreeSync 2 HDR technology6 offers more than 2X better brightness and color volume compared to sRGB.
* Unparalleled experiences with AMD Radeon software: AMD Radeon Software features Day-0 game driver support and up-to-the minute game optimizations for performance enhancements. Gamers can effortlessly capture, stream and share their memorable moments and clutch victories with Radeon ReLive; monitor performance and PC system info, and socialize with the AMD Link application; and fine-tune a range of settings to fit their needs with Radeon WattMan technology.
AMD desktop updates
For the several thousand keynote attendees and the record-size CES keynote livestream audience, AMD performed the first public demonstrations of the upcoming 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen desktop processor.
The 3rd Gen AMD RyzenTM processor is based on the new AMD “Zen 2” x86 core built using world-leading 7nm process technology. It is expected to deliver new levels of performance7 and will be the world’s first PC platform to support PCIe 4.0 connectivity. The new AMD Ryzen processors will offer better gaming, creating and streaming experiences than ever before with a faster and quieter PC.
The 3rd Gen RyzenTM desktop processor is planned for introduction in mid-2019.
AMD server updates
The AMD EPYC datacentre processor had a tremendous first year, winning in the biggest cloud environments, and amassing more than 50 EPYC-based platforms shipping from leading server providers.
Su showed the world’s first 7nm datacenter CPU, codenamed “Rome,”10 based on the “Zen 2” x86 core.
She revealed the real-world power of the next generation of AMD EPYCTM by demonstrating a step-function increase in datacenter processor performance using the scientific application NAMD, which simulates large bio-molecular systems. The demonstration compared a single pre-production EPYC “Rome” processor to two high-end Intel Xeon Platinum 8180 processors, and the single next-generation EPYC processor delivered approximately 15% higher performance.
By using EPYCTM-based systems, AMD is helping scientists to advance their research and get closer to finding the next big solutions.
The AMD EPYCTM “Rome” processor is on track to start shipping in mid-2019.
AMD mobile computing updates
AMD launched the 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen Mobile processor with Radeon Vega Graphics, delivering the world’s fastest processor for ultrathin laptops.
With up to 12 hours of general productivity and 10 hours of video playback battery life, 4K HDR video capability and Microsoft Modern PC features, the 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen Mobile processors deliver the ultimate entertainment experience for the modern laptop buyer.
A record number of AMD Ryzen-based notebooks powered by the 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen Mobile processor with Radeon Vega Graphics are expected to be available in 2019 from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Huawei, Lenovo and Samsung.