AMD’s most popular CPU is right around the corner

AMD may soon expand its Zen 5 processor range with the Ryzen 5 9600. Typically, these budget-oriented CPUs find their homes in many PCs, gaming and otherwise, so this could be an interesting offering. How will it rank among some of the best processors? Here’s what we know so far.

The information comes from X (Twitter) leaker Hoang Anh Phu, who sent out a message indicating that the AMD Ryzen 5 9600 will be available in late January. This tracks, because AMD is set to host a keynote during CES 2025 in early January, so a release date later that same month makes sense.

R5 9️⃣6️⃣0️⃣0️⃣
Late Jan

— Hoang Anh Phu (@AnhPhuH) December 18, 2024

What can we expect from the Ryzen 5 9600, if and when it does make an appearance? The Twitter tipster responded to VideoCardz that they do not think there would be a change in thermal design power (TDP) for non-X models, and that’s an interesting implication for the Ryzen 5 9600 in particular. The Ryzen 5 9600X initially launched with a TDP of 65 watts, but AMD later unlocked it, allowing users to tweak it up to 105W. The same applies to the Ryzen 7 9700X.

Does that mean that the non-X version will also have a TDP of up to 105 watts? That remains to be seen, but that would be more than its last-gen predecessor, as the Ryzen 5 7600 was locked to 65 watts, while the 7600X offered 105W.

There’s also the question of clock speeds. The 7600 and the 7600X had a pretty big difference in base frequency, which could also happen here, but if there’s a higher TDP, we might also see higher clocks. Keep in mind that this is speculation, so it’s hard to say what’s really going to happen.

Most of all, I’m curious about the price. The 7600X launched with a $300 price tag, and the 7600 followed at $230. Meanwhile, the 9600X was cheaper from the get-go, with AMD pricing it at $280. Could we see the Ryzen 5 9600 sold at $220, or maybe even less? It might also be paired with a Wraith cooler, which adds to the savings.

Aside from the Ryzen 5 9600, AMD is likely to announce more X3D processors, such as the Ryzen 9 9950X3D and the Ryzen 9 9900X3D. We’re also expecting to hear more about next-gen RDNA 4 graphics cards. We’ll find out more in less than three weeks during CES 2025.