AMD's Ryzen 7 9800X3D Sells Out Everywhere But Don't Worry, Scalpers Have Your Back
Go ahead and pat yourself on the back if you managed to procure an AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D before retailers ran out of stock. As expected, the 9800X3D, which we deemed to be an "ideal CPU for PC gamers" in our review, is proving immensely popular. Oh, but don't worry—even though initial inventories have been depleted, scalpers are more than happy to fill the void while retailers hit the restock button.
By and large, the 9800X3D is the processor that gamers have been waiting for, and it's finally here. It's the first Ryzen 9000 series chip to sport a pile of 3D V-Cache, and just as we saw with previous generation iterations, the extra L3 cache has a notable impact on gaming performance. However, that alone is not the sole selling point.
What AMD did this time around is relocate the 3D V-Cache to below the processor. AMD's second-generation 3D V-Cache die is physically bigger to match the core complex die (CCD) and is bonded to the bottom, which in turn gives the CPU cores direct access to cooling. This allowed AMD to not only increase the clock speeds compared to the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, but also allow for full overclocking. That's a first for a 3D V-Cache processor.
So in short, the 9800X3D is based on AMD's newest CPU architecture (Zen 5) and everything that comes with it, the clocks are faster than the last go-round, and the 3D V-Cache has been re-engineered to allow for overclocking. What's not to like?
Not much, as early sales indicate. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D is currently sold out at places like Amazon and Best Buy, and ever other reputable retailer that we looked at. You can, however, still place an order at Amazon, though the earliest shipment estimate is December 22 (via expedited delivery), and December 24-26 for standard delivery.
Amazon's shipment details may provide a clue as to when you can expect the next wave of inventory restocks at large. Alternatively, your friendly neighborhood scalper will be more than happy to sell you a Ryzen 7 9800X3D...at a slight markup, of course. And by "slight," we mean GTFO of here with that nonsense.
If sorting by sold listings—those that actually ended with a buyer committing to buy—we see prices hovering around $650-$675ish, and some skipping past the $700 mark. Depending on how quickly (or slowly) retailers are able to replenish stock, it's possible that scalpers will get even more greedy. Current listings (not yet sold) show prices as high as $999. The MSRP is $479.
Let us be clear—as much as we like the Ryzen 7 9800X3D, we do NOT recommend paying scalper pricing. We don't condone rewarding scalpers, but above and beyond that, there will be inventory restocks. It's just a matter of when.
