AMD Launches Mendocino APUs: Zen 2-based Ryzen and Athlon 7020 Series with RDNA 2 Graphics
by Gavin Bonshor on September 20, 2022 3:00 PM ESTEven though the main focus this month has been on AMD's upcoming launch of its Ryzen 7000 desktop series processors based on the Zen 4 architecture, AMD is also in the process of launching its 7020 series of processors designed for entry-level mobile, codenamed Mendocino. It has launched four new SKUs for mobile, including two Ryzen series models and two Athlon variants, all based on its Zen 2 architecture.
As we learned in May, AMD's Zen 2 based 'Mendocino' APUs are designed as part of its lower-end mobile processor stack for entry-level thin notebook and laptop solutions. The affordable APUs incorporate up to 4 Zen 2 CPU cores, as well as AMD's integrated Radeon 610M graphics, all with a maximum TDP of 15W.
Focusing specifically on the AMD 7020 series APUs announced today, the top SKU is the Ryzen 5 7520U. Using AMD's new Ryzen Mobile CPU numbering system, the 7520U is a model year 2023 chip under the Ryzen 5 series banner using its Zen 2 core architecture. The U suffix technically means 15-28W, but in this case AMD has confirmed that all of the current chips have a max TDP of 15W.
The AMD Ryzen 5 7520U benefits from a 2.8 GHz base frequency across its four cores, with a 1T boost frequency of up to 4.3 GHz. It also includes a total of 6MB of cache, split between 4MB of L3 and 2MB of L2 (512KB per core).
AMD Ryzen 7020 Series (Mendocino) Lineup | ||||||
SKU | Cores/Threads | CPU Frequency (Base) |
CPU Frequency (1T Boost) |
Cache | iGPU | TDP |
Ryzen 5 7520U | 4C / 8T | 2.8 GHz | 4.3 GHz | 2MB L2 + 4MB L3 | Radeon 610M | 15 W |
Ryzen 3 7320U | 4C / 8T | 2.4 GHz | 4.1 GHz | 2MB L2 + 4MB L3 | Radeon 610M | 15 W |
Athlon Gold 7220U | 2C / 4T | 2.4 GHz | 3.7 GHz | 1MB L2 + 4MB L3 | Radeon 610M | 15 W |
Athlon Silver 7120U | 2C / 2T | 2.4 GHz | 3.5 GHz | 1MB L2 + 2MB L3 | Radeon 610M | 15 W |
Moving down the stack is the Ryzen 3 7320U, which has four cores and eight threads but a base core clock speed of 2.4 GHz and a single core boost frequency of up to 4.1 GHz. Like the Ryzen 5 7520U, it also benefits from a combined cache of 6 MB across its L2/L3 cache structure.
Looking at the Athlon-branded 7020 series chips, the Athlon Gold 7220U offers two cores and four threads, with a base frequency of 2.4 GHz, a single core boost frequency of up to 3.7 GHz, and 5 MB of shared L2/L3 cache. The Athlon Silver 7120U is pretty much the Athlon Gold 7220U, but it has a slightly lower 1T boost frequency of 3.5 GHz, no simultaneous multithreading (SMT) support, and half as much L3 cache (for a total of 3MB instead of 5MB)
AMD Radeon 610M with two graphics cores for performance at the entry-level
All of today's announced AMD's Zen 2 Ryzen and Athlon 7020 series will support up to 32 GB of LPDDR5 memory in a dual-channel (64-bit) configuration, and feature two graphics cores/CUs based on its RNDA 2 technology, which AMD is branding the Radeon 610M integrated graphics chip. All four mobile APUs will also include a TDP of up to 15 W.
At the time of writing, AMD hasn't revealed specific pricing aside from a total laptop price range of between $399 and $699. However, it has announced that its AMD Ryzen 7020 Series Ecosystem partners are Acer, HP, Lenovo, and Microsoft, with notebooks featuring these chips expected to start appearing on retail shelves sometime in Q4 2022.
Source: AMD
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beginner99 - Wednesday, September 21, 2022 - link
ELI5 why this is bad?TheinsanegamerN - Wednesday, September 21, 2022 - link
Pluton has direct network access and allows Microsoft to enforce signage on software and drivers. It's a privacy and totalitarian control nightmare.nandnandnand - Tuesday, September 20, 2022 - link
If we're charitable and say that the quad-core models are the only ones that will be in the $400 to $700 price range, maybe the dual-cores will end up at $100 to $200 where they belong, after price cuts.I just love the marketing showing a Ryzen 3 7320U with 4 GB of RAM. Let's pay $400 for that, lol.
beginner99 - Wednesday, September 21, 2022 - link
Yeah price will affect greatly if this product is good or bad and I lean towards bad. $400 for the 4-core with 8 gb of ram in a small form factor would be a nice machine for traveling, surfing and office work. But I'm sure OEMs will be too greedy to offer something decent.Dante Verizon - Tuesday, September 20, 2022 - link
https://www.amazon.com/Processor-Accessories-HP-15...See how many better options we have in this price range... what reasons would anyone have to buy anything based on Medocino instead of a ryzen 5 ? In my opinion this is just a high-margin product (small and cheap die) to please the manufacturers.
If it had at least 4CU, I could call it decent/ok at least, but with 2CU that's a step backwards and a joke. Even the TG/AlderLake pentium has 48EU...
TallestJon96 - Tuesday, September 20, 2022 - link
Is this the steam deck APU turned around for laptops?nandnandnand - Tuesday, September 20, 2022 - link
It's similar, but it has a smaller die size from dropping 6 CUs and maybe other stuff.Now imagine paying $700 for it.
shing3232 - Tuesday, September 20, 2022 - link
I would think this is for chromebooknandnandnand - Thursday, September 22, 2022 - link
Doesn't make it a good price. Mendocino is a chip that's smaller, cheaper, and less powerful than Van Gogh in the $400 Steam Deck.shing3232 - Tuesday, September 20, 2022 - link
steam deck APU is 163mm,Mendocino is 100~mm.