AMD just tipped the Z2 Extreme chip for next year’s Steam Deck competitors

The AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme is the spot wrong the Asus ROG Ally X, Asus ROG Ally, and Lenovo Legion Go — and successful aboriginal 2025, AMD volition denote its successor, the Z2 Extreme, for aboriginal PC gaming handhelds.

That’s the connection from Digital Trends’ Jacob Roach, who heard AMD computing and graphics brag Jack Huynh accidental it’s targeting a 2025 merchandise connected an IFA signifier successful Berlin; I conscionable confirmed with AMD spokesperson Stacy MacDiarmid that the institution plans to denote it successful aboriginal 2025, though AMD’s declining to accidental immoderate much astir it today.

The lone different things we’ve heard: AMD says it’s already moving with aggregate partners, truthful the spot whitethorn already beryllium successful handheld makers’ hands. And it’s astir apt based connected AMD’s Strix Point; truthful accidental Jez Corden’s sources over astatine Windows Central.

AMD’s Huynh besides reportedly mentioned helium wants to play games similar Black Myth: Wukong for 3 hours connected a handheld alternatively of the existent 45 minutes — but it’s not wide whether that was conscionable an anecdote oregon a hint astatine what a Strix-based Z2 Extreme tin do.

I’m not yet definite however optimistic to beryllium astir Strix rather yet; portion AMD touted the accrued show of Zen 5 successful its Strix Point laptop architecture briefings, it didn’t accidental a connection astir accrued artillery life.

While a show betterment tin sometimes crook into a artillery beingness betterment by changing a spot to that end, AMD’s archetypal Z1 Extreme was mostly conscionable a tweaked mentation of the Ryzen 7840U laptop chip, 1 that truly needed tons of energy to thrive.

Handhelds similar the ROG Ally and Legion Go tin turbo up to 40 oregon 50 watts of full strategy drain to play games that hardly tally connected the Steam Deck, but that meant they afloat drained their batteries successful nether an hour. They couldn’t bushed the Steam Deck’s semi-custom spot astatine 15 watts oregon get anyplace adjacent arsenic overmuch artillery beingness successful little demanding titles.

Eventually, the AMD ROG Ally X brute-forced its mode to vastly amended artillery beingness by doubling the size of the battalion inside. But possibly AMD takes a antithetic route, and makes the Z2 Extreme a bespoke handheld chip? That’d beryllium exciting.