AMD Guarantees to Try to Hold GPU Costs Low In opposition to the Ravages of the RAM Scarcity

Today’s PC panorama is altering in methods few anticipated, and virtually no one wished. AMD, the eponymous Team Red, is coming into the brand new 12 months with an odd assortment of chips in tow. Maybe it’s sufficient to know there’s possible extra in retailer later this 12 months, however first AMD has to deal with the ravages of the continuing RAM scarcity.

In an interview with Gizmodo throughout CES 2026, AMD’s VP in command of Ryzen, David McAfee, talked to me in regards to the firm’s full PC gaming suite. I spoke with the exec the day after one in every of AMD’s oddest CES showcases thus far, the place it revealed just a few new chips in present households, together with the Ryzen 7 9850X3D CPU and several other extra Strix Halo APUs (accelerated processing items)—particularly the Ryzen AI Max+ 388 and 382—which have been additionally constructed for some future cell gaming system, maybe much more handheld PCs. However, these chips are nonetheless utilizing older RDNA 3.5 GPUs, that means they received’t have entry to AMD’s newest upscaling updates that would actually push cell gadgets for gaming.

AMD’s novel CPUs for light-weight laptops, the Ryzen AI 400 collection, didn’t get practically as a lot time within the limelight as Qualcomm and Intel’s competing CPUs. The Ryzen 7 9850X3D has the next clock pace, which suggests among the most hardcore players could make use of some further frames. McAfee instructed me instantly there received’t be an enormous distinction in efficiency between the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and this new, overclocked chip. Modern DirectX 12-supported video games could not see as massive a rise as some “high-framerate” esports titles or older DirectX 9 titles, he added. Everyone else will really feel secure sticking with what works, and that appears to be AMD’s intent with this newest CPU. The sophomore chip and the brand new hotness can be offered alongside one another.

AMD is pushing to maintain GPU prices low(ish)

Keeping GPU prices low appears to be AMD’s total modus operandi for the beginning of 2026. What labored final 12 months will work this 12 months, as long as the corporate can comprise the worst excesses of reminiscence worth gouging. The total PC market is struggling beneath the RAM provide crunch. Sure, it is best to be capable to purchase a brand new Ryzen 7 9850X3D when it will definitely goes on sale (we nonetheless don’t have an thought of its official worth), however will self-starters additionally endure the five hundred% markup on DDR5 RAM for the sake of a brand new PC?

AMD doesn’t have a GPU to compete towards Nvidia’s top-end GeForce RTX 5080 and RTX 5090. The greatest it could do is outcompete Team Green on efficiency per greenback. The Radeon RX 9070 and RX 9070 XT have been each nice GPUs in the event you might nab them for near their urged retail worth. The XT solely hit its fabled $600 near eight months after launch. With reminiscence costs going haywire, customers have causes to be involved that every one part costs might enhance. Last 12 months, a customer support rep for main AMD GPU maker PowerColor told Reddit users that costs might “kick up” in 2026.

“We have very strategic partnerships over many, many years with all the DRAM manufacturers to make sure that both the amount of supply that we need and the economics of what we’re able to buy from them are what we can support in our graphics business,” McAfee instructed Gizmodo. However, the Ryzen lead admitted that he can’t predict the long run. He added that AMD was making an attempt to work with the AIC (add-in card) producers to take care of costs near what AMD suggests. Considering how lengthy the RX 90-series stored above MSRP, that might not be sufficient to calm players’ nerves.

“Without the memory at the right price, building graphics cards with our add-in-board partners that hit the right price and market, that’s tough math to put together,” McAfee added. “So managing that memory ecosystem very closely is absolutely something that is a core part of what we do.”

Being cautious round multi-frame gen

While AMD is competing with Nvidia on GPUs, it’s additionally making an attempt to turn into the recent face of AI upscaling know-how. The RX 90-series launched FSR 4, a brand new mannequin of AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution know-how that enhances recreation efficiency by making lower-resolution frames seem like they’re working at the next decision. Last 12 months, AMD trotted out FSR Redstone as a mid-cycle replace to its upscaler. This replace added multi-frame interpolation, aka multi-frame era, to the social gathering. Essentially, this know-how takes a number of AI-generated frames and sticks them in between rendered frames, artificially growing the body charge.

The wider PC gaming group is way extra hesitant to undertake body era than AI upscaling. Frame gen essentially hits at a recreation’s latency, making controls really feel floatier than they need to. Redstone and Nvidia’s newest DLSS 4.5 have labored to cut back the visible glitches from AI-generated frames, however these imperfections nonetheless mar the expertise. McAfee tried to make it clear AMD was solely taking child steps into multi-frame era.

“We will proceed very cautiously and listen to the gaming community and the reaction that they have to these multi-frame gen capabilities,” McAfee mentioned. “I think a lot of gamers feel like [frame gen technology has] gone too far in some cases. And so I think that’s why you’re going to see us step very carefully as we build this out over the next several years.”

We might have to attend a short while longer earlier than we see any new PC or handheld APU sporting RDNA 4, the identical GPU structure because the RX 90 collection. Once that occurs, we might even see Redstone hit the cell market. Smaller and cheaper gadgets could make higher use of upscaling than $600 graphics playing cards, one thing McAfee agreed with.

“The value of frame interpolation and upscaling on a handheld platform is incredibly significant,” he mentioned. “So as we’re looking out at what we’re going to do in our handheld roadmap in the future, those are absolutely the conversations we’re having about… how do we deliver a really high-quality experience and make sure that all of the benefits that go along, both power, smoothness of gameplay, etc., make their way onto those handheld platforms as well?”