AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme benchmark leak hints at speed boost for Steam Deck rivals

The AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme is set to be the chip to power a host of upcoming flagship gaming handhelds, with anticipation sky high for the extra power it could bring to these devices. A hint of that power has just been revealed, thanks to a new AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme benchmark leak.

The leak comes as the likes of the ROG Xbox Ally and Lenovo Legion 2 are confirmed to be using the new CPU, in a move that is sure to mean our best gaming handheld guide will look very different over the coming months, as those devices are released. For now, though, we have just a small glimpse of what AMD's new chip can do.

This AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme benchmark leak comes via Geekbench, a benchmarking app that will often upload results of benchmark runs to its online browser. As you can see via this link, a new entry on this browser shows an MSI Claw A8 BZ2EM device using the new AMD CPU, having completed a test run. It's possible the software has been spoofed and that this isn't in fact an AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme, but we've not encountered this happening with previous Geekbench leaks.

As well as noting the name of the chip, the entry also lists many of its specs. We've long known these AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme specs, so there are no revelations here, but these show its inclusion of eight CPU cores able to manage two application threads each. A base clock speed of 2GHz is also listed along with a "maximum frequency" of 4,436MHz, which is actually slightly lower than the 5.3GHz top speed listed on AMD's website. The long-previously-leaked codename of the chip is also noted as Strix Point.

Most important of all, though, is the test result of this benchmark run. Sadly, Geekbench only tests CPU performance, so we don't get to see the graphics processing power of the 16-core RDNA 3.5 GPU that's also housed in this chip. However, we can see that the move from AMD's Zen 4 CPU architecture used on Z1 Extreme to its new Zen 5 architecture has netted some notable increases in CPU performance.

In the single-threaded/single-core test, the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme scores 2,748 points, which compares to around 2,250 points for the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme when housed in an Asus ROG Ally. That's a 22% increase, and with gaming largely still being biased towards single-thread performance, that could have big implications for frame rates.

Meanwhile, in the multi-threaded test, the increase is less notable. The AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme scores 12,182 points, compared to around 11,000 points for the Z1 Extreme, which is a roughly 11% increase.

Of course, peak speed - especially CPU speed - is only so important for a gaming handheld, with the power of the GPU and the power efficiency of the whole machine also a huge factor. What will really be exciting is if the Z2 Extreme can match its CPU speed increase with a GPU speed increase, all while allowing for even longer battery life.

We'll be sure to find out a lot more in the coming weeks as we get ever closer to the launch of these devices. After all, the Lenovo Legion Go 2 is rumored to be launching as soon as September.

While we wait for those devices to arrive, why not check out our Asus ROG Ally X review and our AOKZOE A1X review to get a full understanding of what is currently the pinnacle of gaming handheld performance.

Also, if you've got any questions about what handheld to buy right now, or anything else gaming PC hardware related, you can join our community Discord server to ask us directly. You can also follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides.