Valve is getting first dibs at the next AMD SoC as far I’ve heard
This is huge if true, as Van Gogh (the Deck chip) was a seperate “line” than all the overly CPU-heavy laptop chips other handhelds are using at the moment.
Both sides have accidentally spilled the beans on this. AMD outed a new upcoming chip for their existing “handheld wins” (aka Steam Deck), Valve has confirmed they are already working on their next handheld, but then also said there “will be no Z2 Steam Deck” after AMD already outed their work on the next chip.
So that’s Valve getting a chip AMD has already confirmed they are working on, and no other manufacturers have mentioned or have the sales numbers to get AMD interested. That’s it right there.
Last I read, they’re in no hurry, but Valve and AMD are both ready to create a new chip like it once the tech has advanced enough that putting one together makes for a substantial boost in what you get for the same price and power envelope.
…once the tech has advanced enough that putting one together makes for a substantial boost in what you get for the same price and power envelope.
It already does.
Its more a question of economics of scale. Taping out a single custom chip is extremely expensive, like hundreds of millions of dollars before a single chip is sold.
AMD could make a custom Strix Halo SKU for Valve (think a 6-core X3D CCD, a 32-40CU GPU clocked low for efficiency) for much less. Perhaps something like that (a custom multi-die configuration of Strix Halo’s successor?) is what Valve opted for.
Yeah. But what I’m getting at is the economics may hint at what valve is planning.
Maybe AMD isn’t making a “specialized” monolithic die like Van Gogh? Perhaps Valve is simply customizing blocks of AMD’s existing product (die) stack, which is more financially plausible.
AFAIK one of the current issues with Strix Halo for a handheld would be high idle power, but maybe the next generation is better in that respect.
This is huge if true, as Van Gogh (the Deck chip) was a seperate “line” than all the overly CPU-heavy laptop chips other handhelds are using at the moment.
Both sides have accidentally spilled the beans on this. AMD outed a new upcoming chip for their existing “handheld wins” (aka Steam Deck), Valve has confirmed they are already working on their next handheld, but then also said there “will be no Z2 Steam Deck” after AMD already outed their work on the next chip.
So that’s Valve getting a chip AMD has already confirmed they are working on, and no other manufacturers have mentioned or have the sales numbers to get AMD interested. That’s it right there.
https://www.gamesradar.com/platforms/pc-gaming/valve-shuts-down-steam-deck-2-speculation-as-amd-says-its-building-chips-for-a-stronger-handheld-there-is-and-will-be-no-z2-steam-deck/
valve standalone vr headset then?
It’s absolutely true.
Last I read, they’re in no hurry, but Valve and AMD are both ready to create a new chip like it once the tech has advanced enough that putting one together makes for a substantial boost in what you get for the same price and power envelope.
It already does.
Its more a question of economics of scale. Taping out a single custom chip is extremely expensive, like hundreds of millions of dollars before a single chip is sold.
AMD could make a custom Strix Halo SKU for Valve (think a 6-core X3D CCD, a 32-40CU GPU clocked low for efficiency) for much less. Perhaps something like that (a custom multi-die configuration of Strix Halo’s successor?) is what Valve opted for.
Well yeah. But I used the word “substantial” together with the word “price”.
If the return ain’t worth it, it’s not “substantial” yet, and hence “It already does.” is a false statement.
Yeah. But what I’m getting at is the economics may hint at what valve is planning.
Maybe AMD isn’t making a “specialized” monolithic die like Van Gogh? Perhaps Valve is simply customizing blocks of AMD’s existing product (die) stack, which is more financially plausible.
AFAIK one of the current issues with Strix Halo for a handheld would be high idle power, but maybe the next generation is better in that respect.
I think they’ll do whatever makes sense.
I’m just saying Valve and AMD are on the same page about making it happen when and if it makes sense.
For now, the first steamdeck is still great.