Skip to main content Tom's Guide Tom's Guide Search Tom's Guide View Profile Newsletters Best Picks Entertainment Nintendo Switch 2 Tariff tracker Best Mattress Wordle Today AMD Ryzen AI Max is getting me excited for the future of gaming handhelds — here's why Darragh Murphy 20 April 2025 Integrated graphics done right? When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Future) Handheld PC gaming is approaching its next generational leap, and I'm willing to bet that AMD Ryzen AI Max is involved. With the Nintendo Switch 2 currently making waves, Asus joining in on the first Xbox handheld and SteamOS crossing over to the Lenovo Legion Go S (eventually), portable gaming is seeing a revolution in 2025. But what truly excites me? The prospect of a single chip that can power upcoming devices. You may have already caught me talking about how I'll be giving handheld gaming PCs a chance this year, but with what I've seen AMD's latest AI-powered chips doing, such as its "Strix Halo" Ryzen AI Max processors, I have even more excitement around what these CPUs with discrete graphics can offer. Namely, graphics power on smaller, thinner devices. You may like AMD FSR 4 could be coming to gaming handhelds — why that's potentially a big deal Nintendo Switch 2 proves one thing — it's time for Nvidia to make a PC gaming handheld To wrap my head around what AMD Ryzen AI Max can achieve, I sat down with AMD Senior Fellow, Mahesh Subramony, to chat all about the evolution of AMD Ryzen AI. And, as you might expect, he's quite the AMD fan. What can AMD Ryzen AI Max do? (Image credit: Future) "From a graphics standpoint, I think we are shifting away from the the traditional ways. of gigabytes and gigabytes per second," Subramony says. "it is difficult to add more and more silicon and memory, more and more expensive to go and get those significant jumps that you expect to see coming out of graphics." "For even small GPUs as well as large GPUs, AI assisted graphics performance starts becoming really important," he adds. "And so in the future, you're going to see us employ that and it's already happening right now, but employ that in ways in which you can get a better experience in terms of resolution or frames rates." While AMD continues to release other processors, including its AMD Ryzen 8000 series and Ryzen AI 300, it's the Ryzen AI Max processors that are on my radar, especially when it comes to bringing improved power and better efficiency for more portable devices — like laptops, tablets and heck, why not PC gaming handhelds? Swipe to scroll horizontally Cores/Threads Graphics Cores Max Boost Clock Graphics Model AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 Up to 5.1 GHz Radeon 8060S AMD Ryzen AI Max 390 Up to 5 GHz Radeon 8050S AMD Ryzen AI Max 385 Up to 5 GHz Radeon 8050S Now, as we've seen with recent gaming handhelds like the MSI Claw 8 AI+, other chips (such as the the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V CPU) are doing a fine job at delivering brilliant gaming performance to handhelds. But here's something else to consider: the Asus ROG Flow Z13 (2025) we've tested came with an AMD Ryzen AI Max 390 (up to a Ryzen AI Max+ 395), and it's on the same level of gaming performance as an RTX 4060 gaming laptop — and even beat an RTX 4070-equipped laptop. I mean, look at the specs of these chips; 16 CPU cores with 40 graphics cores is nothing to sneeze at. This isn't even the highest level of integrated graphics AMD has to offer, and it's already delivering commendable gaming chops. That's thanks to AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) for frame generation and resolution scaling, but there's also Fluid Motion Frames 2 (AFMF 2) that's designed to increase frame rates on AMD Ryzen AI 300 processors. Along with Variable Graphics Memory (VGM), a new feature in these processors that allows users to "convert up to 75% of the system RAM to 'dedicated' graphics memory or vRAM," AMD's AI-equipped processors can do quite a lot for smaller, more portable systems but still deliver that performance gamers are after. Yes, we've see AMD Ryzen Z2 Go and Ryzen Z1 Extreme on the best PC handhelds, but surely bringing Ryzen AI Max chips could offer even greater gains, right? Will AMD Ryzen AI Max come to gaming handhelds? (Image credit: AMD) One of my burning questions during my talk with Subramony was how AMD planned to push its Ryzen AI Max CPUs even further, especially in smaller devices other than laptops or tablets, and there may be room for portable PC gaming. "I think that is something we always do," Subramony said. "In fact, one of the devices we launched with Strix Halo was the ROG Flow. It was a tablet, right? In order to be able to have a machine that has 16 cores, it's probably more powerful than our first-generation Threadripper with a graphics engine that's on par with some of the discrete cards that are out there, all in a tablet form factor. "So I think we are aware of mobility and the flexibility we can do with a machine as powerful as that. So, form factor is important. Ergonomics is important. 'Thin and light' is important. And to be capable of doing more while delivering those. "Those form factors are going to be key for us as well, and [Strix] Halo has some unique advantages where you don't have two different cooling solutions. You have a single chip. "So there are savings on building on the board that allow a developer to be able to do something better and a little easier. I'm not saying it's impossible to do it with a discrete solution, but by bringing all of that together under an umbrella, it helps them design these machines and form factors that you would not have had before." Nothing concrete, of course. But all that gives me hope for more integrated graphics in devices, and if it happens to come to handheld consoles, I'm all for it. Price is a big factor, though (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Of course, none of this comes cheap. As I've seen with Nvidia's RTX 50-series GPUs and their rising prices, not to mention tariffs, technology is getting more expensive. "I will not sugarcoat it," Subramony said. "Advanced technology costs more and you have to innovate to make sure you stay within the box. I mean, gen after gen, we keep increasing the performance and adding new cores and adding capabilities while staying within the same socket infrastructure. It requires quite a lot." "But there are challenges and you know we're working through it, but always, always mindful of where the right price points are for the consumer." Despite having a single chip without the need for a discrete GPU, that doesn't mean the cost of an AMD Ryzen AI Max-powered product would come at a bargain price. But, at the very least, it would take a few pennies off, and if I know anything about AMD, they offer great value for money — the AMD Radeon 9070 series GPUs (from $549) are case in point. Regardless, the future of portable gaming is looking up, and as the ROG Flow Z13 has already shown, AMD's Ryzen AI Max chips are making it all possible. Now, seeing them (or something of the like) in a gaming handheld? That's a future I'm here for. More from Tom's Guide I played games for 24 hours on Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 Ti — here’s why DLSS 4 makes it a single-player dream I review MacBooks for a living, and I install this app on every one — here's why I want to love PC gaming handhelds — but there are brutal truths no one wants to admit Back to Gaming Laptops Intel Core i7 Intel Core i9 Storage Size Screen Size Refurbished Showing 10 of 24 deals MSI Cyborg 15 (15.6-inch 512GB) $874.49View Deal Alienware x14 R2 Gaming Laptop $1,499View Deal MSI Cyborg 15 (15.6-inch 1TB) $1,313.40View Deal MSI Cyborg 15 $1,099.99View Deal Alienware x14 R2 Gaming Laptop (14-inch 1TB) $1,399.99View Deal Alienware x14 R2 Gaming Laptop (17.3-inch 2TB) $2,399.99View Deal MSI Cyborg 15 $1,374.99View Deal MSI Cyborg 15 $1,412.99View Deal MSI Cyborg 15 $1,522.99View Deal MSI Cyborg 15 (15.6-inch 1TB) $1,587.99View Deal Sign up to get the BEST of Tom's Guide direct to your inbox. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. Darragh Murphy Social Links Navigation Computing Editor Darragh is Tom’s Guide’s Computing Editor and is fascinated by all things bizarre in tech. His work can be seen in Laptop Mag, Mashable, Android Police, Shortlist Dubai, Proton, theBit.nz, ReviewsFire and more. When he's not checking out the latest devices and all things computing, he can be found going for dreaded long runs, watching terrible shark movies and trying to find time to game You must confirm your public display name before commenting Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name. AMD FSR 4 could be coming to gaming handhelds — why that's potentially a big deal Nintendo Switch 2 proves one thing — it's time for Nvidia to make a PC gaming handheld AMD Strix Halo APU benchmark leak is getting me excited for the future of laptops — here's why Lenovo’s Legion Go 2 is my most anticipated gaming handheld of 2025 — but this one thing has me worried RTX 50-series gaming laptops — here's why I think they'll be worth the upgrade Asus Xbox handheld — 5 features that would get me to buy it at launch Latest in Computing 9 MacBook keyboard shortcuts you need to know first The Nvidia RTX 5060 Ti has a secret weapon — and it's DLSS 4 Instagram Blend lets you mix Reels with friends — here's how it works Walmart outage — latest updates and current status on this online disruption I found the perfect monitor for my RTX 5060 Ti — and it’s a QHD OLED dream that won’t break the bank Bitdefender Antivirus review Latest in Opinion I tried an under-desk elliptical for a week — and it transformed my work day The Trump administration wants Apple to build iPhones in the U.S. — here's why that will be hard to pull off 'Sinners' takes one of my favorite horror movies and turns it into a masterpiece Apple brings recipes to News Plus in iOS 18.4 — here's what one foodie thinks The Nvidia RTX 5060 Ti has a secret weapon — and it's DLSS 4 I just found the one heartwarming movie I’ll be watching every Easter — and it’s 92% on Rotten Tomatoes LATEST ARTICLES The Pitt season 2 : Everything we know so far I just found out I’ve been emptying my vacuum canister all wrong — here’s how I should have been doing it 7 tips and tricks to make your LG TV even better Six years later and the Bose 700 are still the best noise-cancelling headphones I’ve ever tested 5 shows like 'The Americas' to stream for Earth Day Tom's Guide is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site. Terms and conditions Contact Future's experts Privacy policy Cookies policy Accessibility Statement Advertise with us Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, Please login or signup to comment Please wait...