At CES 2021, AMD has given a hint of what we can expect from Epyc processors based on Zen 3, called Milan. The company promises that the processors could be up to 68 percent faster than Intel’s competing products.
AMD has not yet shared any specifics. The company compared a 32-core processor with the Intel Xeon Gold 6258R, which has 28 cores. Both processors ran a weather simulation, which the AMD processor completed 46 percent than the Intel one. Anandtech calculated this based on an animation shown during the presentation. AMD itself claims that the chip would be up to 68 percent faster than its Intel counterpart. It is not clear on what AMD bases these claims.
Probable specifications
Based on existing products and information about already available desktop processors, assumptions can be made. The Epyc processors based on Zen 2 were available with up to 64 cores, making it likely that a similar model will also be available with Zen 3. Also, the same 19 percent IPC improvement measured on the Ryzen desktop processors can be expected with Epyc. Presumably, the new processors will still fit the same sockets and feature 128 PCIe 4.0 lanes.
Tip: ‘Intel to produce first 10nm server chips this quarter’
Threadripper PRO
AMD also shared information about its new Threadripper PRO processors for prosumers. The 3995WX, 3975WX and 3955WX will be equipped with 64, 32 and 16 cores respectively. However, these processors are still based on the Zen 2 architecture. In contrast to the existing Threadripper processors, the processors offer twice as many PCIe lanes (128) and have additional security features.
New mobile processors
Finally, AMD has unveiled a series of new mobile processors. The Zen 3 architecture is now also available in laptops, with 6 or 8 cores and TDPs between 15 and 45 watts. This concerns the 5000 series. The company has also re-released several Zen 2 processors under the 5000 line with slightly increased clock speeds compared to their predecessors in the 4000 series.