A cheaper Ryzen AI 300 laptop CPU is introduced by AMD as PC sales are slowed by tariffs.

CPU manufacturers appear to be moving downward into less expensive alternatives, increasing their market share, whether as a result of tariffs or other factors. The newest example is AMD’s most current offering, the Ryzen AI 5 330, which is the most affordable model in the Ryzen AI 300 series and is intended for Copilot+ laptops.

With four cores and eight threads, AMD’s Ryzen AI 5 330 operates at 2.0 GHz and can reach a turbo frequency of 4.5 GHz.

With just two processors—the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 and the Ryzen AI 9 365—AMD’s Ryzen AI 300 series (Strix Point) was introduced in June 2024. (A third component, the Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, which debuted in July 2025, has the same specifications except for a marginally better NPU.) The Ryzen AI 7 350 (8 cores/16 threads, 5.0GHz turbo) and the Ryzen AI 5 340 (6 cores/12 threads, 4.8GHz turbo) are two of AMD’s new lower-end Ryzens that were introduced in January.

AMD isn’t disclosing the prices of each of these chips because they are all made for notebooks. Despite AMD’s recent announcement of the Ryzen AI 5 330, laptops with this processor won’t be available for purchase for some time. In a message to reporters, AMD stated that “systems powered by the Ryzen AI 5 330 processor will be available from OEMs, including Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, and MSI, and arriving in the market in the coming months.”

The Ryzen AI 5 330 will offer a TDP of 15 to 28 watts, just like the other Ryzen AI 300 processors. The GPU, which has two graphics processors and is referred described as a “Radeon 820M,” is the true differentiator. Like other members of the family, the NPU power that is essential to AI operations is rated for 50 TOPS.

Over the past few months, other CPU competitors have moved lower. The most basic Snapdragon X series for PCs costing $600 or less was introduced by Qualcomm at CES 2025, following the release of the Snapdragon X Elite with its less expensive Plus series for PCs priced at $700. It is generally anticipated that Qualcomm will introduce its upgraded CPU platform this fall, and it may continue to offer the older chips as less expensive substitutes.

All of this is taking place in the middle of continuous, fungible tariff laws that have started to limit PC sales and demand. As usual, using less expensive alternatives is the safest method to increase demand. “How low can you go?” is the question.