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[Topher]

AI Summary:

### Summary of Digital Foundry's Best Hardware of 2025 Roundup

Digital Foundry's 2025 hardware roundup covered a wide range of gaming and PC hardware, focusing on handheld gaming devices, CPUs, GPUs, and expectations for 2026. The discussion highlighted significant advancements, remaining challenges, and notable products that shaped the year.

---

### Handheld Gaming Devices

- **GPD Win 5 with Strix Halo chip**
- Remarkable for integrating a large 400 mm² Strix Halo silicon into a compact handheld smaller than the Switch 2 and Steam Deck.
- Features a 7-inch 1080p VRR LCD panel.
- Innovative external battery design: a detachable 80Wh battery that clips on or connects via cable.
- Power modes:
- At 30W (battery), delivers nearly 70% of PlayStation 5 (PS5) performance at 1440p low settings.
- Tethered with a 200W laptop power supply, can run up to ~75W, achieving about 93.5% of PS5 performance.
- Performance is impressive but accompanied by fan noise above 30W.
- Supports VRR, providing smooth gameplay and near indistinguishable frame pacing compared to PS5.
- Represents a **generational leap** in handheld tech due to different chip architecture and process node.

- **Xbox ROG Ally X and Xbox Liix**
- Microsoft's handheld collaboration with Asus.
- Hardware praised for ergonomics, button feel, and rumble.
- Software (Windows-based Xbox full-screen experience) criticized for bugs, inconsistent sleep/wake behavior, and stuttering.
- Users often resort to installing alternative OS like Basite for better experience.
- Performance strong but software experience hinders the device's potential.
- Xbox Liix at 35W delivers 51% of PS5 performance and about 54% of GPD Win 5 performance, highlighting a performance gap in mainstream handhelds.

- **Lenovo Legion Go S (Steam OS edition)**
- Regarded as the best handheld (outside Steam Deck and Switch 2) by the team.
- Features:
- 8-inch VRR 120Hz display.
- Z1 Extreme chip, competitive with Z2 Extreme at higher wattages.
- Steam OS with full Valve support, offering a seamless out-of-the-box experience.
- 32GB RAM (vs. 24GB in others).
- Downsides include a relatively small 55Wh battery and complicated component upgrades.
- Recommended for users wanting a high-quality PC handheld experience without the complexity of Windows.

- **MSI Claw 8 AI Plus**
- Equipped with Intel Luna Lake chipset and 32GB RAM.
- Performance sits between Z1 Extreme and Z2 Extreme AMD chips.
- Lacks a good ML-based upscaler, limiting potential image quality improvements.

- **Nintendo Switch 2**
- Uses an 8nm/10nm hybrid SoC with **DLSS "tiny" (lightweight)** upscaling, enabling efficient 4K and 1440p upscales.
- Screen: 120Hz LCD with VRR but suffers from poor response times and dim visuals.
- Battery smaller than PC handhelds but offers around two hours of gameplay on demanding titles at under 10W power consumption.
- Ergonomics criticized for small controls; requires third-party grips for comfort.
- Unique strength as a platform: exclusive games, docking, optimized OS, and ecosystem support.
- DLSS quality is preferred over AMD's FSR2 by the team for handheld visuals.
- Seen as the **most important handheld launch of the year** despite hardware compromises.

---

### CPUs of 2025

- **AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D** (highlighted as the best CPU of the year)
- Based on the 7950X with 3D V-Cache on one CCD.
- Excels in gaming and productivity, matching or outperforming the Ryzen 9 7900X3D and even outperforming Intel's 14900K in some games like Baldur's Gate 3 (+43%).
- Significant gaming boosts over non-3D cache counterparts: +48% in Baldur's Gate 3, +32% in Dragon's Dogma 2, +35% in Flight Simulator 2020.
- Offers a balanced solution for gamers and content creators.
- The X3D line revitalized AMD's AM4/AM5 platforms, removing previous gaming performance compromises.
- Some speculation about adding 3D cache to a second CCD remains *Not specified/Uncertain* on impact.

- **Intel's 285K**
- Released in 2025 but considered disappointing, underperforming compared to predecessors.

- Emerging CPUs to watch for in 2026:
- Intel's Panther Lake (expected 50% performance improvement over Luna Lake).
- AMD Zen 6 (2nm process).
- Intel's upcoming Nova Lake with rumored 52 cores.

---

### GPUs of 2025

- **Nvidia Blackwell Series**
- RTX 5090: 25-35% faster than RTX 4090, top-tier "Halo" product with frame generation technology.
- RTX 5080: 10-15% faster than 4080 Super but criticized for limited VRAM (12GB) and lack of a 4090 replacement in the lineup.
- RTX 5070 Ti considered the sweet spot with 16GB VRAM.
- Early driver issues negatively impacted reception but improved over time.
- Architectural improvements (dual integer math, doubled ray triangle intersections) show limited real-world impact so far.
- Frame generation (MFG) adds latency concerns more noticeable on lower-end GPUs.
- Pricing has normalized to MSRP, making mid-range cards more accessible.
- No major refreshes expected in early 2026.

- **AMD RDNA 4 Series**
- Key models: RX 1960 XT, RX 1970, RX 1970 XT.
- Introduced FSR4, an effective super-resolution alternative to Nvidia's DLSS.
- 1970 XT offers competitive performance, generally cheaper than Nvidia's 5070 Ti.
- Improved ray tracing performance and efficiency over RDNA 3.
- Criticized for limited mobile/laptop presence and incomplete software rollout (Redstone ray regeneration).
- No ultra high-end RDNA 4 product launched, limiting AMD's presence in the high-end GPU market.
- AMD's legacy support weaker compared to Nvidia, raising concerns for future driver and feature updates.
- The RX 1960 XT 16GB model is praised for price/performance and VRAM capacity.

- **Intel GPUs**
- Intel's A770 16GB was well-received in the mid-range but the company lacks a high-end GPU contender.
- Panther Lake GPUs expected in 2026 may improve Intel's competitiveness, especially in laptops and handhelds.

---

### Expectations for 2026

- **CPUs**
- Intel's Panther Lake and Nova Lake (multi-chip designs with 18A and other processes).
- AMD Zen 6 on 2nm process, potentially offering significant gains.

- **GPUs**
- No new RDNA4 GPUs expected; RDNA5 anticipated around 2027.
- Nvidia may continue iterating on DLSS and frame generation technologies, possibly improving latency and performance.

- **Handhelds**
- New Steam OS handhelds like Lenovo Legion Go S Steam OS edition gaining attention.
- Intel's Panther Lake and AMD's APUs for handhelds expected to be refreshed but likely incremental.

- **Monitors**
- Anticipation of improvements in OLED brightness and motion blur reduction.
- Rumors of 1000Hz refresh rate monitors following last year's 750Hz demos.

- **Industry Challenges**
- Memory shortages and price hikes expected to impact product launches and consumer pricing.
- OpenAI's purchase of significant memory wafers could tighten supply, potentially affecting PC and gaming hardware affordability.

- **Consoles**
- Microsoft may announce next-gen Xbox in 2026 with a launch around 2027.

---

### Key Insights

- **Strix Halo in handhelds is a breakthrough**, proving high-end gaming performance can be delivered in compact form factors, though with trade-offs in power and noise.
- **Steam OS handhelds (Lenovo Legion Go S) offer a seamless PC gaming experience**, contrasting with Windows-based devices suffering from software instability.
- **Switch 2 remains the most influential handheld platform due to its ecosystem and exclusive content, despite hardware compromises.**
- **AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D sets a new standard for combined gaming and productivity CPUs in 2025.**
- **Nvidia's Blackwell series leads in GPU performance, but generational improvements and efficiency gains are modest outside the flagship RTX 5090.**
- **AMD's RDNA 4 makes solid strides but lacks high-end options and mobile presence, impacting competitiveness.**
- **Memory market pressure poses a major risk for hardware pricing and availability in 2026.**
- **2026 promises exciting CPU advances, but GPU innovations and handheld refreshes are expected to be more incremental.**

---

This roundup reflects a year of evolutionary improvements, with standout innovations in handheld gaming hardware and CPU design, while GPU advancements and ecosystem stability remain mixed. The coming year will test how manufacturers navigate supply constraints while delivering new technology.

 

[Mister Wolf]

The Switch 2 not outputting VRR is a huge black eye on the hardware. As bad as the Steam Deck not having internal VRR.

 

[Topher]

Kind of shitty formatting in that summary. I used Notegpt.io. Is there a better option not named adamsapple ?

 

[BennyBlanco]

Ayn Thor deserves a shoutout. It's so good.

 

[Mr Moose]

The AI is high as fuck.

 

[bender]

Switch 2 is a beast!

 

[VGA-Games]

I really like the Nintendo Switch 2

 

[OverHeat]

9950X3D is the goat 9800x3D peasant

 

[nemiroff]

Kind of shitty formatting in that summary. I used Notegpt.io. Is there a better option not named adamsapple ?

That was markdown formatted text. But it's easy to "fix" it: Instead of using the copy button below the summary, simply select and copy text from the summary window itself and paste that.

 

[subzero83]

Its amazing seeing DF glaze such low effort hardware that is the switch 2, just cause it made by nintendo. 2020 Ps5 7nm tsmc2025 switch 2 8nm samsung=10nm lowest quality screen possible crap buttons, triggers, and analogs with Very small battery. if this was made by any other company DF would rip it apart.

 

[blacktout]

Its amazing seeing DF glaze such low effort hardware that is the switch 2, just cause it made by nintendo. 2020 Ps5 7nm tsmc2025 switch 2 8nm samsung=10nm lowest quality screen possible crap buttons, triggers, and analogs with Very small battery. if this was made by any other company DF would rip it apart.

So, are we taking bets on whose alt this is?

 

[kevboard]

Its amazing seeing DF glaze such low effort hardware that is the switch 2, just cause it made by nintendo. 2020 Ps5 7nm tsmc2025 switch 2 8nm samsung=10nm lowest quality screen possible crap buttons, triggers, and analogs with Very small battery. if this was made by any other company DF would rip it apart.

all that this shows is how far ahead Nvidia is of any other GPU manufacturer out there.
their 2020 hardware shits all over AMD's 2025 hardware.

2020 architecture, old ass process node, and still about 2x more efficient than the direct competitor lol.

BTW. they have been called Switch 2 haters all year because Nintendo fanboy retard accounts on youtube and twitter get sand in their vaginas every time they compare it to the PS4 (even tho it's by far the closest comparison point)

 

[adamsapple]

Kind of shitty formatting in that summary. I used Notegpt.io. Is there a better option not named adamsapple ?

AI slop can't match the grit of watching a video at 2.0x and transcribing frantically.

 

[subzero83]

all that this shows is how far ahead Nvidia is of any other GPU manufacturer out there.
their 2020 hardware shits all over AMD's 2025 hardware.

2020 architecture, old ass process node, and still about 2x more efficient than the direct competitor lol.

BTW. they have been called Switch 2 haters all year because Nintendo fanboy retard accounts on youtube and twitter get sand in their vaginas every time they compare it to the PS4 (even tho it's by far the closest comparison point)

Yea but despite having the Nvidia advantage nintendo found a way to gimp the machine enough where SD gives you better performance in many games in HH mode so why praise it?

Yes and they were accurate about switch 2 being ps4 level hardware for sure. yet with recent comparisons they downplay all the down grades on switch 2 version vs series s and say is comparable which is border line insane for a channel that zooms in to show a difference. assassins creed shadows for example they say IQ is similar when to series s version basically looks the same as ps5 at 60fps.




Tell how can you trust DF when they say IQ is similar in AC shadows when anyone with working eyes can see series s is much sharper.

 

[kevboard]

Yea but despite having the Nvidia advantage nintendo found a way to gimp the machine enough where SD gives you better performance in many games in HH mode so why praise it?

Yes and they were accurate about switch 2 being ps4 level hardware for sure. yet with recent comparisons they downplay all the down grades on switch 2 version vs series s and say is comparable which is border line insane for a channel that zooms in to show a difference. assassins creed shadows for example they say IQ is similar when to series s version basically looks the same as ps5 at 60fps.




Tell how can you trust DF when they say IQ is similar in AC shadows when anyone with working eyes can see series s is much sharper.

they clearly said it only looks close to the Series S during slow movement or on still shots. fast movement looks cleaner on Series S due to its higher internal res and due to it's TAAU being more temporally stable than "Tiny DLSS"

they also pointed out that the Switch 2 version has additional settings reductions compared to Series S. lower quality water shader, lower quality cloth simulation, SSR entirely removed (I see that as an upgrade, but it saves performance lol), lower quality SSAO, lower foliage setting, lower draw distance, some environmental animations completely removed, no RTGI innthe hideout, and lower shadow draw distance.
all while having worse performance than Series S, and bad framepacing

direct quote from DF:
"the cutbacks are clearly evident"

all these cutbacks are made to keep the internal resolution high enough to look decent on a TV.

so boiling every single observation they made down to that single observation that the game has similar image quality to the Series S in specific scenarios is hilarious.
it shows fanboy like behaviour to say the least.

essentially what you did is the other side of the same coin of those aforementioned Nintendo fanboy accounts.
those fanboys use that one part, the sometimes similar image quality, to then claim DF said it's almost on Series S level, while completely ignoring all the downgrades needed to get that image quality.

 

[subzero83]

they clearly said it only looks close to the Series S during slow movement or on still shots. fast movement looks cleaner on Series S due to its higher internal res and due to it's TAAU being more temporally stable than "Tiny DLSS"

they also pointed out that the Switch 2 version has additional settings reductions compared to Series S. lower quality water shader, lower quality cloth simulation, lower quality SSAO, lower foliage setting, lower draw distance, some environmental animations completely removed, and lower shadow draw distance.

direct quote from DF:
"the cutbacks are clearly evident"

all these cutbacks are made to keep the internal resolution high enough to look decent on a TV.

so boiling every single observation they made down to that single observation that the game has similar image quality to the Series S in specific scenarios is hilarious.
it shows fanboy like behaviour to say the least.

essentially what you did is the other side of the coin of those aforementioned Nintendo fanboy accounts.

The video i linked is 1440p/60fps, maybe click on it? like if you watch the video which is the best comparison available you can see the IQ difference is huge

yes he mentions the cut backs but says they looks very similar and does not give clear win to series in IQ which is border line insane. they do the same for star wars they downplay all down grades and focus on a few reflections that are missing even though they are lower resolution and looks like a different asset. sorry but this would not be happening if the switch2 wasn't so popular. in star wars they miss the lighting out doors doesn't even look the same, with grass reacting to light differently

 

[damidu]

Its amazing seeing DF glaze such low effort hardware that is the switch 2, just cause it made by nintendo. 2020 Ps5 7nm tsmc2025 switch 2 8nm samsung=10nm lowest quality screen possible crap buttons, triggers, and analogs with Very small battery. if this was made by any other company DF would rip it apart.

they dont want to ruffle the feathers of the nintendo cultists too much, which is understandable.
psychos were hounding john left and right when he dared to slightly criticize the dogshit screen.

 

[Deerock71]

Dim visuals on the Switch 2 screen is straight-up bullshit.

 

[kevboard]

The video i linked is 1440p/60fps, maybe click on it? like if you watch the video which is the best comparison available you can see the IQ difference is huge

yes he mentions the cut backs but says they looks very similar and does not give clear win to series in IQ which is border line insane. they do the same for star wars they downplay all down grades and focus on a few reflections that are missing even though they are lower resolution and looks like a different asset. sorry but this would not be happening if the switch2 wasn't so popular.

oh, I see. You're one of those who don't understand what DF says, and then get angry at what they misunderstood.

those missing reflections come down to a lack of care by the devs. they gave those surfaces the wrong material settings in the Series S port. (the series S is a low priority platform that often gets the short end of the stick)

they also didn't focus on it.
they list a whole slew of downgrades compared to Series S in the same video. including showing that the Switch 2 has reduced details in RT reflections compared to Series S.

again, you do the same shit fanboy accounts do, just that you use it to claim the opposite position.

they have a list of 20 downgrades, but 1 element that looks surprisingly close or even slightly better, and then you boil everything down to that singular element to make your claim.

fanboys do it to claim the Switch 2 is on par with Series S, and you do it to claim DF are Nintendo shills.

 

[subzero83]

oh, I see. You're one of those who don't understand what DF says, and then get angry at what they misunderstood.

those missing reflections come down to a lack of care by the devs. they gave those surfaces the wrong material settings in the Series S port. (the series S is a low priority platform that often gets the short end of the stick)

they also didn't focus on it.
they list a whole slew of downgrades compared to Series S in the same video. including showing that the Switch 2 has reduced details in RT reflections compared to Series S.

again, you do the same shit fanboy accounts do, just that you use it to claim the opposite position.

they have a list of 20 downgrades, but 1 element that looks surprisingly close or even slightly better, and then you boil everything down to that singular element to make your claim.

fanboys do it to claim the Switch 2 is on par with Series S, and you do it to claim DF are Nintendo shills.

Fanboy use it cause olivar says they look very comparable

oh, I see. You're one of those who don't understand what DF says, and then get angry at what they misunderstood.

those missing reflections come down to a lack of care by the devs. they gave those surfaces the wrong material settings in the Series S port. (the series S is a low priority platform that often gets the short end of the stick)

they also didn't focus on it.
they list a whole slew of downgrades compared to Series S in the same video. including showing that the Switch 2 has reduced details in RT reflections compared to Series S.

again, you do the same shit fanboy accounts do, just that you use it to claim the opposite position.

they have a list of 20 downgrades, but 1 element that looks surprisingly close or even slightly better, and then you boil everything down to that singular element to make your claim.

fanboys do it to claim the Switch 2 is on par with Series S, and you do it to claim DF are Nintendo shills.

The reason those fanboys claim it's close to series s because while listing those downgrades they say you won't notice it, no big deal or they look comparable, something DF used to never do. Oliver keeps saying AC shadows looks similar to series s when the reality is the IQ, physics, level of detail, shadows are much worse so why does he keep saying it looks comparable or similar. heck the other day while discussing the FF remake demo on xbox olivar sounded disgusted stating that he really don't want to cover xbox, version, does that seem professional to you? just the fact that they call ff remake crsiper despite having a ton of break up in motion, and dithering but they cant say the same of ac shadows which is a massive step on in iq is insane.