AMD Ryzen 5 3400G and Ryzen 3 3200G
Gaming on a tight budget? Have a look at these.
AMD has had a lot of time in the limelight with the recent release of its Ryzen 3 series processors. It’s easy to forget though that the company made a name for itself with its so called APUs (Accelerated Processing Units) which come with integrated graphics. Here for review we have the latest generation Ryzen 3 3200G and Ryzen 5 3400G processors. These don’t make use of the latest Zen 2 architecture or 7nm like their big brothers, instead making use of the older 12nm process and the Zen+ architecture.
Moving to Zen + and 12nm means these processors can be considered evolutionary rather than revolutionary. Second generation APUs already had competitive value and performance along with class leading integrated graphics. The 3200G and 3400G are all about offering a balanced computing experience by incorporating a quad core design and integrated graphics capable of 1080p gaming.
The AMD Ryzen 5 3400G is a 4-core/8-thread AM4 model with 3.7GHz and 4.2GHz boost clocks. This is a 100MHz and 300MHz increase in base and boost clocks over the 2400G. The graphics configuration remains the same, with 11 Vega compute units clocked at 1400MHz, up from the 2400G’s 1250MHz. The TDP remains at 65W. More performance within the same power budget is always welcome.
The Ryzen 3 3200G gets a similar bump in spec. It’s still a 4-core/4-thread processor with eight Vega compute units. It comes with 3.6GHz base and 4.0GHz boost clocks along with a 1250MHz GPU clock. Compared to the 2200G, this represents a 100MHz jump in base clock, an impressive 300MHz boost clock gain and a 150MHz GPU clock speed improvement.
Both APUs come with bundled coolers. The Wraith Spire included with the 3400G is decent, while the Wraith Stealth with the 3200G is adequate, but nothing more.
As expected the integrated graphics performance of both processors simply destroys the Intel HD 630 found across most of Intel’s desktop range. Though you won’t be playing AAA titles at 4K, it’s nice to see playable 1080p, even if it’s at low settings. Less demanding games like CS:GO are perfectly playable even at maximum settings. Of course you can always add a discrete GPU later on if you choose.
CPU performance is no match for the likes of a Ryzen 5 2600X let alone the Zen 2 models but remember these cost $145 and $239. They’re perfectly suited to everyday tasks that the majority of mainstream users need them for. These are the kinds of processors that put a nail in the coffin of any and all dual core CPUs.
The Ryzen 3 3200G and 3400G deliver class leading all round performance in this price range. They’re cool running and power thrifty, and surprisingly so given the thermal characteristics of discrete Vega GPUs. At this time, there’s nothing better if you are looking to build an affordable system capable of some light gaming. They’re an evolution of the 2000 series models though, and they don’t dazzle as much as they would if they contained Zen 2 cores and/or a Navi IGP. That aside, these are terrific value processors.
CHRIS SZEWCZYK