The AMD Ryzen 3 1200 CPU has been a value bargain for years now. It's reportedly been undergoing a transformation from its original 14nm Zen design to 12nm and the Zen+ architecture. Initial rumors of these first-gen chip makeovers showed up in December last year.
Now, as per German hardware publication ComputerBase (opens in new tab), the 12nm Zen+ Ryzen 3 1200 has hit shelves at a German retailer for €54.73 (opens in new tab) or about $60.
That's not a lot of money for a quad-core CPU, especially considering that next to the improved architecture, AMD has kept the specifications for the chip identical. It still runs at the same 3.1 GHz base clock with a boost clock of 3.4 GHz, and it maintains the same 65W TDP.
AMD Ryzen 3 1200 Specs
| Header Cell - Column 0 | AMD Ryzen 3 1200 | AMD Ryzen 3 1200 AF* |
|---|---|---|
| CPU Cores / Threads | 4 / 4 | 4 / 4 |
| Base Clock | 3.1 GHz | 3.1 GHz |
| Boost Clock | 3.4 GHz | 3.4 GHz |
| Lithography | 14 nm | 12nm |
| Architecture | Zen | Zen+ |
| Codename | Summit Ridge | Pinnacle Ridge |
| L2 Cache | 2MB | 2MB |
| L3 Cache | 8MB | 8MB |
| TDP | 65W | 65W |
* Ryzen 3 1200 AF Specs not confirmed by AMD
With all other variables equal, the Ryzen 3 1200 AF should show a tiny boost in performance over the old model, thanks to the Zen+ architecture improvements. Zen+ offers slightly improved power consumption, a tiny increase in IPC, an update to Precision Boost 2 for better Turbo, faster cache and a memory controller capable of supporting faster RAM.
If you want to know which part you're buying, be on the lookout for part number YD1200BBM4KAFBOX for the new version. The old 14nm Ryzen 3 1200 was listed as YD1200BBM4KAEBOX. The boxed version comes with the Wraith Stealth cooler included as standard.
