AMD Phoenix2 CPU die shot featuring Zen4/Zen4c architectures has emerged

Low-cost AMD Phoenix CPU has been pictured up close

AMD Phoenix2 die shot, Source: HXL

AMD has maintained a low profile when it comes to their smaller Phoenix2 chip. Without the aid of rumors, CPU images, and tech enthusiasts scouring the AMD specs website for details, it might seem as though the company never acknowledged the existence of such a chip. Nevertheless, Phoenix2 is an interesting fusion of Zen4 and Zen4c architectures, possibly marking AMD’s first venture into a hybrid design of this sort for consumers.

The compact Phoenix processor has been launched alongside its more substantial counterpart, the Phoenix1 CPU, with eight Zen4 cores. This silicon has found extensive utilization among laptop manufacturers, handheld gaming device producers, and even Mini-PC companies. As it turns out, AMD had been preparing two Phoenix chips, with the latter exhibiting some noticeable distinctions that have only now been confirmed through the release of the initial die shot of the processor, which has just surfaced on a Chinese website.

AMD Zen4 vs. Zen4c, Source: AMD

AMD has now deployed Phoenix 2 for its entry-level Ryzen 3 7440U and Ryzen 5 7540U, though some are designed to utilize both Phoenix1 and 2 dies, depending on availability.

The image shared by HXL on Twitter portrays a die for the Phoenix CPU, boasting 2 Zen4 and 4 Zen4c cores, forming a 6-core, 12-thread configuration. It’s worth noting that, unlike Intel’s hybrid designs with the Cove/Mont series, AMD’s ZenC (dense) architecture still supports hyperthreading (SMT).

Nevertheless, there have been some modifications to the cache sizes (Zen4 has 4MB L3 cache while Zen4c has 2MB) and other aspects, such as a different GPU configuration. This monolithic design offers up to 4 RDNA3 Compute Units, a significant reduction compared to the full Phoenix chip with 12 cores.

Furthermore, it has now been confirmed that Ryzen Z1 non-Extreme, which is yet to be released, does, in fact, feature Phoenix2 silicon. Although, this SoC has yet to be released by any handheld gaming console maker.

Source: HXL