- AMD has announced that its Ryzen 9850X3D CPU will go on sale on January 29
- The new gaming chip is priced at $499 in the US.
- This is a slight increase in cost of around 5% over its predecessor, with a 400MHz increase in boost speed making it an attractive new option.
AMD has announced that its Ryzen 7 9850X3D processor, a chip that PC gamers are excited about as a step up from the 9800X3D, is coming out in less than a week and we have a confirmed price.
VideoCardz reports that David McAfee, corporate vice president of AMD’s customer channel business, revealed on X that “the world’s most advanced gaming processor just got faster” and that the Ryzen 9850X3D will sell for $499 in the US.
The CPU will go on sale on January 29 and prices will be in line with other regions. To put that US price into perspective, it’s just shy of a 5% increase in MSRP that was set for the 9800X3D at launch, and which is widely considered the best current gaming chip on the market.
The Ryzen 9850X3D offers an increase in boost speed to 5.6 GHz, meaning it is 400 MHz faster than its predecessor (which ran at 5.2 GHz), which is a considerable increase. Other than that, it has the same specifications as the 9800X3D.
Analysis: The price is correct, assuming no stock market problems or inflation
Some people who bought a Ryzen 9800X3D in the recent past may feel like their noses are a little out of place. Especially considering the chip has held its value (it still sells close to MSRP) and the 9850X3D doesn’t cost much more. At least not in theory, unless stock and availability issues inflate the price.
Ultimately, those who bought the 9800X3D still get a great gaming CPU for their money, and the 9850X3D is essentially a higher-end version (meaning a high-performance sample, capable of increasing top speed even further, with no other spec changes elsewhere as noted). In fact, if you got lucky with your 9800X3D, it might even be close to the 9850X3D in terms of gaming performance anyway.
So, put aside any buyer’s remorse, but that being said, the Ryzen 9850X3D is a welcome option in terms of that faster boost. And since the price isn’t as high as some rumors led us to think (some European retailers had pre-launch prices in their product listings as high as €700 (around $820, £600, or AU$1,200), this is a great launch for gamers looking for a fast CPU.
Although you always have to keep in mind that the GPU is the most important part of the equation for gaming, and the processor only comes to the fore more with certain games (or lower resolutions).
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