Recently, AMD provided detailed insights into its Ryzen AI 300 APUs, specifically the Krackan Point and Strix Point families, with the 8-core models designated for the "PRO" versions. The Krackan Point APUs, featuring 8 CPU and 8 GPU cores, are aimed at the mid-range market. In contrast, the Strix Point 8-core model, exclusive to Ryzen AI 300 PRO APUs, comes with 12 GPU cores.
Due to AMD's plethora of SKUs, the company's naming conventions can be somewhat perplexing. Previously, the industry found it challenging to discern the positioning of AMD's latest Ryzen AI 300 APUs. Initial performance benchmarks of the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 APU on Geekbench led to speculation that it would be the flagship product of the Krackan Point series. However, recent disclosures from @GoldenPigUpgradePack reveal that the Ryzen AI 7 APUs are part of the Krackan Point series, excluding the "PRO" model.
To elaborate, AMD's Krackan Point APUs will feature up to 8 CPU and 8 GPU cores, topping the Ryzen AI 7 series. Consequently, 8-core APUs like the Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360, which include 12 compute units, likely belong to the "Strix Pro" sequence rather than the Krackan series. Furthermore, another leak indicates that AMD's Strix Pro lineup will extend to the Ryzen AI 9 HX Pro 375 APU, a model exclusively for HP, which also gains exclusive access to the Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, boasting the market's fastest "55 TOPS" NPU.
The Krackan Point APUs are designed to cater to the price-performance-focused segments of the market, including handheld devices and OEM machines. This series aims to streamline the naming conventions for mid-range APUs, enhancing integration efficiency for manufacturers. Reports suggest the Krackan Point series will come in 8-core configurations, combining 4 Zen 5 and 4 Zen 5c cores, 8 compute units (RDNA 3.5), and up to 50 AI TOPS of compute power.
Expected Features of AMD Ryzen AI HX Krackan Point:
It's evident that the existing "Ryzen AI 300" APUs serve as AMD's preliminary offerings for the mobile sector. With the forthcoming Krackan Point and Strix Halo APUs, AMD is set to showcase its full spectrum of capabilities, not just in performance but also in integration and user-friendliness for both consumers and manufacturers.
Though the naming conventions might initially appear confusing, they reflect a transitional phase necessitated by emerging AI technologies, advanced core designs, a burgeoning handheld market, and the need to produce suitable hardware for various segments. Similarly, Intel has revised its naming system, moving away from its historical numeric format. In time, we may all grow accustomed to these changes. AMD's Strix Halo and Krackan Point SKUs are anticipated to debut next year, most likely at CES in 2025.
