AMD might be moving on 3D V-Cache versions of its Ryzen 9000 CPUs faster than expected. According to a leaker on the Chiphell forums, the Ryzen 7 9800X3D, which could be among the best processors when it releases, might arrive as soon as next month.
VideoCardz dug up the news, which started on the Chiphell forums. The leaker goes by the name zhangzhonhao, but VideoCardz notes that they went under a different alias previously, and that they have a long history of leaking company road maps. The forum post claims AMD will release the Ryzen 7 9800X3D at the end of October, while the Ryzen 9 9900X3D and Ryzen 9 9950X3D will arrive later. The leaker suspects they’ll show up in early 2025 with “some new features.”
That’s not out of the question. AMD is on the record as saying that it’s working on “really cool differentiators” for its Ryzen 9000 CPUs using 3D V-Cache tech. It’s hard to say what those new features are, but the claim on Chiphell at least lines up with what AMD has said previously. In addition, AMD’s next-gen X870 chipset is arriving on September 30, which would lay the foundation for new 3D V-Cache chips.
AMD is set to hold an event on October 10 called Advancing AI. The company says the event will mainly focus on AMD’s Instinct AI accelerators and the launch of 5th-gen Epyc server CPUs. However, in its announcement, AMD says the event will also feature “networking and AI PC updates.” It seems unlikely that the gaming-focused 3D V-Cache chips will show up at the event, but if this rumor is correct, they could make an appearance.
Most people expected to see AMD release its Ryzen 9000 3D V-Cache chips at the beginning of next year, following a similar pattern that we saw with the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. However, midrange Ryzen 9000 CPUs like the Ryzen 7 9700X have struggled in gaming, with most reviews (including our own) pointing back to the Ryzen 7 7800X3D as the best option for gamers.
It’s possible that AMD wants to get the Ryzen 7 9800X3D out as quickly as possible to maintain gaming dominance, especially considering we expect to see Intel’s next-gen Arrow Lake CPUs before the end of the October. This is just a rumor for now, and you should treat it as such. If AMD is going to release the Ryzen 7 9800X3D at the end of October, however, it’ll almost certainly show up at the October 10 event.
Apple is less than a day away from launching its highly anticipated OLED MacBook Pro with a touch-sensitive screen. But it appears that the upgrade is going to cost a pretty penny. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly eyeing a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, while the 16-inch version could start at $3,399 in the US.
"At $2,899, the 14-inch model would mark the highest starting price for a new MacBook Pro model, surpassing the $2,799 Apple charged for a 17-inch version introduced in 2006," says the report. The report claims that Apple is targeting a minimum price hike of $400 for its upcoming redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.
I've spent a good amount of time digging into the spec sheet of the new M6 MacBook Pro (14-inch), and for all intents and purposes, this is a classic Apple "chip and connectivity" refresh. It's not a full redesign. The chassis, Liquid Retina XDR panel, speakers, ports, and battery, all of them carry over unchanged.
However, the M6 brings more cores, stronger on-device AI, higher memory bandwidth on the larger configs, and modern wireless. Here’s the practical rundown of what actually improved, and whether those gains are worth your money.
Two new highly requested iCloud plugins just got added to ChatGPT, giving people who rely on Apple’s Mail and Calendar services a way to search emails, check appointments, and manage their schedules directly through the chatbot.
The integration is rolling out to all ChatGPT plans, including the free tier. You can access it on the web, desktop, and iOS.