AMD's Ryzen 9000 Zen 5 CPU Lineup Launch Delay May Be Due To A Chip Typo
AMD raised a few eyebrows last week when it announced a short delay to its desktop Ryzen 9000 series processors based on Zen 5, a decision the company said it made "out of an abundance of caution." This was followed by AMD SVP and GM Jack Huynh somewhat clarifying on X/Twitter that the unnamed cause of the delay was due to a "packaging issue," which gets the mind racing. Turns out it might just be a typo on one of the SKU's heatspreaders and retail box.
Being this close to launch, more reliable leaks come in rather fast and furious. One of the more recent ones that could be the cause of the delay was spotted by prominent leaker HXL (@9550pro), who reposted a photo from an early review at BiliBili (that's since been taken offline). It's the photo you see above, which we've taken the liberty of cleaning up and expanding the sides for easier viewing.
What we didn't alter, however, is the model inscription on the heatspreader. It identifies the chip as a Ryzen 9 9700X, a part that doesn't exist. That's because the 9700X is a Ryzen 7 processor, not Ryzen 9.
Now, it's certainly possible that the image is doctored, but Dr. Ian Cutress, a respected and notable consultant and industry analyst, led credence to the claim with a post of his own in reply some a user saying they hope AMD discloses the real reason for the delay.
"Typo on the packaging," Dr. Cutress wrote.
A chip package can mean many things, though in this case, it appears to be in reference to the actual retail packaging and heatspreader label, rather than an issue that could affect performance or stability. The timing is interesting because it comes on the heels of Intel saying it found the root cause of stability issues affecting its 14th Gen and 13th Gen Core processors—elevated operating voltages stemming from a faulty microcode algorithm, which in turn can cause permanent damage to the chip over time.
AMD's official statement on the delay left the door open to a world of possibilities.
"During final checks, we found the initial production units that were shipped to our channel partners did not meet our full quality expectations. Out of an abundance of caution and to maintain the highest quality experiences for every Ryzen user, we are working with our channel partners to replace the initial production units with fresh units. As a result, there will be a short delay in retail availability," part of the statement reads.
AMD went on to say that the Ryzen 7 9700X and Ryzen 5 9600X will go on sale on August 8th, while the Ryzen 9 9950X and Ryzen 9 9900X will hit retail on August 15th.
We understand AMD's predicament, though it would have been neat if it went ahead as planned and let some Ryzen 7 9700X models with the Ryzen 9 typo release to retail anyway—they would have been sought after by collectors. It's possible that some will still find their to way the wild anyway, though. In case, it's nice to find out (supposedly) that the short delay is nothing more serious than to address a typo.
