AMD’s Ryzen 7 9800X3D is the new hotness around the gaming PC picnic table. The CPU is so in demand and hard to find that it’s going for hundreds of dollars over retail price on secondary markets. If you’ve been patiently waiting to get one without giving in to resellers, there’s some light at the end of the tunnel — AMD says it’s working on it.
According to a statement given to Tom’s Hardware, AMD is aware of the supply issues and working to fix them. “We expect availability to get better as shipments ramp throughout the quarter,” said a representative.
I’m sure that’s comforting to at least a few people, but it’s also a bit of a non-statement. Of course supply will get better as time goes forward and AMD works out the kinks that are always present for a new high-end CPU. It’ll also happen naturally as the PC gamers who are eager to get the initial batch become satisfied. (We’ve already seen the aftermarket price go down following the launch sales rush.)
What might be a little more encouraging is the declaration that AMD is shipping more processors “every week.” If you’re desperate to get the 9800X3D at retail price, I’d ask around at local brick-and-mortar stores, like Best Buy or (if you’re lucky) Micro Center, to see when they typically get new shipments from AMD. Hit the store first thing the following morning and you might just have a chance.
It’s also worth noting that the 9800X3D is the first (and so far only) member of the Ryzen 9000 series to feature the extra V-cache that makes the X3D processors so enticing to gamers. It hit the market a lot faster than the X3D variants in the Ryzen 7000 and 5000 series, and if I had to guess why, I’d say it’s because AMD wanted a hit in 2024 after its standard 9000 CPUs landed with a bit of a flop.
So, if you want a more powerful X3D variant, or a more affordable one, expect different 9000X3D processors to come along in 2025. And by that time, they should be a lot easier to find.