Handhelds set for big upgrade as AMD reveal Z2 chip

According to a report, AMD has confirmed that a new Z2 Extreme chip will be on its way as early as 2025.

The vast majority of handheld devices on the market, such as the Steam Deck and Ayaneo Flip DS have relied on the 7840U and 780M chip combo. AMD also provided the Z1 Extreme APU that powered the Asus ROG Ally and its successor, the Ally X.

According to a new report, AMD looks set to continue its dominance of this sector with the announcement of the Z2 Extreme chip.

The Ryzen Z1 Extreme uses Zen 4 and RDNA 3 technology. It features 8 Zen 4 cores and 12 RDNA 3 Compute Units. The new Z2 is expected to use the new Strix Point architecture, which features up to 8 Zen 5 cores, and up to 16 RDNA 3.5 Compute Units.

The Ryzen Z2 Extreme is believed to represent a considerable jump in capability for handheld gaming devices. Especially when paired with AMD’s recent focus on maintaining efficiency and keeping power consumption down.

AMD

The news on the Z2 Extreme chip comes via Digital Trends, which reported that AMD confirmed the existence of the chip during a Q&A session. AMD and Microsoft employees were said to be present during the session.

During the Q&A session, AMD announced intentions to launch the Z2 Extreme sometime in early 2025, though it declined to provide a more specific timeline.

It has not been confirmed which handheld consoles will be first to feature the Z2 series. However, likely candidates are the Asus ROG Ally 2, and the Lenovo Legion Go 2.

The current versions of these devices currently sport Z1 silicon, so the updated versions are expected to take advantage of the upgraded technology.

Further updates on upcoming hardware from AMD are expected at CES 2025 in January.