AMD has officially unveiled its new Ryzen Z2 series of chips, designed specifically for handheld gaming PCs. Announced at CES 2025, the Ryzen Z2 lineup aims to address the surging demand for portable gaming power. While specific devices featuring these chips are yet to be revealed, AMD confirmed that partners like Lenovo (Legion Go), Asus (ROG Ally), and Valve (Steam Deck) are expected to integrate the new processors into their upcoming handhelds.
Ryzen Z2 Lineup: A Closer Look
The Ryzen Z2 family comprises three distinct models: the Ryzen Z2, the Ryzen Z2 Extreme, and the new Ryzen Z2 Go. Both the Ryzen Z2 and the Z2 Extreme boast 8 cores and 16 threads, a significant upgrade in cache to 24MB compared to the previous generation’s 16MB. However, the Z2 Extreme stands out with its 16 graphics cores, surpassing the 12 cores found in the base Z2 model, and a higher power draw of up to 35 watts. This improvement addresses previous concerns about the performance gap between the base and Extreme models in the Z1 generation.
Specs for AMDAMD Ryzen Z2 Chip Specifications
The newcomer, the Ryzen Z2 Go, features a more streamlined configuration with 4 cores, 8 threads, a lower boost clock speed, and 10MB of cache. This chip is likely targeted towards a more budget-conscious market, potentially opening doors for more affordable Windows-based handheld gaming devices. While AMD hasn’t released specific performance metrics, the specifications suggest the Z2 Go will offer a different performance level compared to the Z2 and Z2 Extreme.
Performance and Battery Life: Unanswered Questions
Despite AMD’s claims of “console-class” performance, concrete performance figures for the Ryzen Z2 series remain undisclosed. While the new chips retain the RDNA 3 architecture from the Z1 series, the increased graphics core count in the Z2 Extreme (up from 12 compute units in the Z1 Extreme) leaves the actual performance uplift unclear. Similarly, AMD has remained tight-lipped about battery life expectations, only hinting at “hours and hours” of gameplay on a single charge. Actual battery performance will depend on individual handheld designs and optimization, as seen with the varying battery life between the Steam Deck and Steam Deck OLED, both powered by the same AMD chip. Nevertheless, it seems battery life improvements were a key focus in the development of the Z2 series.
Availability and Future Devices
While specific devices featuring the Ryzen Z2 chips are still under wraps, AMD expects them to launch throughout the first quarter of 2025. With the chips now officially announced, further details about upcoming handhelds incorporating these processors are likely to emerge during CES 2025 and in the following weeks.
