Deals, Discounts, and Best PC Component Buys & Builds

But if you've got Amazon Prime

I’m personally not particularly interested, but there is that option for a one-month free trial of Prime, and you can cancel whenever you feel like it...
I know that’s how Kindlove's crew used to sign up.

Does this apply here in the States too? I saw it mentioned, but I don't know anyone who actually uses it. If we decide to go for it, can we really just sign up and cancel Prime without any penalties or hidden fees? I'm asking because I don't want to get caught in one of those "3 months of free Max" traps where they hit you with a massive bill if you try to cancel after the trial ends. 😁

Timothy Kim60 said:Does this work here in the States too? I saw it mentioned, but I don't know anyone actually using it. If we grab it, can you really just sign up and cancel Prime without getting hit by some hidden fees or penalties? I'm asking because I don't want to get screwed like those "3 months of free cable" scams where they charge you anyway if you try to cancel after three months. 😁

Yeah, you can actually get it for free on Amazon, you just have to remember to cancel on time.

Wait, what do you mean the price is only for Prime? Everything looks standard to me. Prime doesn't have anything to do with international shipping.

Wait, so the price doesn't change just because it's Prime?
What does being Prime actually signify then, besides getting faster shipping within the US?

Quote: The New Guy

Timothy Kim60 said:Wait, so the price doesn't change just because it's Prime?
So what does Prime actually mean here? Is it just faster shipping within the States through Amazon?

If you see the Prime label, it just means it's Available for Prime service.

Look, in a country where you actually have Prime—and I don't mean some universal version that covers everything—you get free next-day shipping on pretty much any order size. Sometimes you even score free same-day delivery and stuff like that.

Plus, you get early access to Lightning Deals—those quick-hit discounts found under Today's deals.

Amazon Video is basically like Netflix. They've got some decent movies on there, plus they stream the Grand Tour—that’s their own production.

Basically, anything Amazon ships out is available for Prime service. You can still order all that stuff without Prime, you just get stuck with the slower shipping speeds. Deep within the interior.

International orders don't change anything regarding Prime.

Hey Zachary Nguyen2, wiredotter14 and colorful, I just placed the order for 😁
.
It came out to $188.50 including shipping.

:klap:

Sometimes patience actually pays off. I ordered a Z370 Extreme4 from HGSpot yesterday, $35 and honestly, the price was lower than anywhere else I looked. 😛

Timothy Kim60 said:Thanks Zachary Nguyen2, wiredotter14, and the color guys. Order placed: 😁

$185 including shipping

Got everything you need now?

crimsonstag84 said:👏

Sometimes patience actually pays off. I pulled the trigger yesterday and ordered a Z370 Extreme4 from HGSpot, $35 and honestly, the price was lower than any other shop out there. 😛

👍

Man, I had this gut feeling that something big was coming. Either an 8-core release or some massive discounts. Well, here we go—they're bundling the 8c16 with the R5 1600 like it's nothing (must be a week 28 or 36 thing). I was actually planning to just sit tight until Black Friday or Cyber Monday at the end of the month, especially since I had a hell of a time hunting down an SSD last time and I'm in no rush. But clearly, waiting wasn't the move. 😁

I suspect we'll see similar deals during those holidays, and honestly, I think standard prices might drop too. I highly doubt AMD is going to let the i5 8400 undercut them or even match their pricing.

wiredotter14 said:So, do you have everything you need now?

I'm still missing the motherboard. I'm torn between the B350 Prime Plus, the B350-F, or maybe the ASUS X370 Pro if it hits a sale in the next few days. I've pretty much ruled out the MSI X370 because the Krait seems to get terrible feedback—I heard about one guy who had to RMA his board three times. But hey, we'll see.

Timothy Kim60 said:👍

Man, I had a strong feeling something was coming. Either an 8-core option or some massive price drops. Now there's a glitch where they're listing the 8c16 alongside the R5 1600 (must be week 28 or 36). I actually planned on waiting for Black Friday or Cyber Monday at the end of the month because I struggled so much getting an SSD last time and I'm in no rush. Clearly, I shouldn't have waited. 😁

I bet we'll see similar moves then, too. Even the standard retail prices will probably drop since I doubt AMD will let the i5 8400 stay cheaper or even match them.

I still need a motherboard. I'm torn between the B350 Prime Plus, the B350-F, or maybe an ASUS X370 Pro if it hits a sale soon. I've already ruled out the cheap MSI X370; I heard the Krait has pretty bad feedback, like one guy had to RMA his three times. We'll see.

You can find an ASRock AB350M Pro4 at Best Buy for $213.

Looks like this might just be the permanent price for the R5 1600.

Look, I get it. For that specific budget, it’s a solid recommendation and one I find myself suggesting quite often. However, if I were picking, I’d personally opt for something with beefier VRMs—think of it like moving from a standard power supply to a heavy-duty industrial unit to ensure much more stable voltage delivery. As far as features, pricing, and general user feedback go, this board is a winner, and that holds true for the ATX version as well.

I'm not strictly tied to a budget, but I just don't see the point in dropping an extra $180 on a motherboard for a Ryzen build. I have zero use for CrossFire or SLI, and since this generation doesn't see massive overclocking gains anyway, it feels unnecessary. Plus, I'm perfectly fine running the stock cooler for a while before upgrading.

Nice score, honestly. I kind of regret not waiting myself, but hey, I still snagged a pretty solid deal for that timeframe, and plus, you can always wait forever if you want. 😁

If I were you, I’d probably just aim for something mid-range. I don't really see the point in dropping a massive amount of cash on a high-end build when you get everything you actually need once you hit about $267 dollars.

You definitely made the right call picking that up when you did; I remember those old Chase Mastercard promotions. I was actually looking to grab one myself back then, but nobody in my house had that specific card to qualify. That deal really sold me. It ended up being around $1,600 plus change, right? Honestly, that’s pretty much standard pricing at the budget retailers these days. This Amazon price is likely just a temporary flash sale, though it’ll probably settle back down to that level eventually anyway.

You can't just sit around waiting forever—if everyone did that, nobody would ever buy anything. I saw someone posting about how we should wait for the Ryzen refresh, but give me a break; I’d be gray by then. Even if the node is ready in three months, they'll probably drop the R7 first, making us wait even longer for the R5, not to mention the inevitable supply chain issues. I wouldn't be surprised if this drags on until summer. And most likely, all that waiting would only net us a tiny 200MHz boost or maybe saving 5W of power.

And who knows, maybe Zen 2 hits that 4.5GHz mark with insane power draw, but I think we'll be waiting a while. I have a feeling they might take a different path with Zen 2. Honestly, they aren't in any rush and it won't shift the landscape overnight. Plus, with 7nm, they can build much bigger server chips, so we might actually be waiting longer for the Ryzen 5 2600 and similar parts than we did for the 1600.

Anyway, whatever happens, the Ryzen 5 1600 is a beast of a processor and should hold up for years. If the motherboard survives, you could just drop in a used Ryzen 7 2700 or 3600 in a few years. 😁😁
The B350/X370 chipsets ought to support at least two more generations of Ryzen.

Yeah, I grabbed the 1600 when it was listed for 1900, so I guess I came out okay.

As for the refresh, I doubt it'll be anything revolutionary; probably just some minor incremental tweaks, kind of like what Intel did with their chips.

Yeah, you could definitely ride that platform for a few years. Eventually, you can just jump up to an 8-core chip once the latest architecture hits—likely Zen 3, assuming they stick with the current socket layout.

We shouldn't conflate Zen 2—that brand-new 7nm microarchitecture—with what some people call the Zen 2xxx series, which refers to the Zen+ refreshes built on 12nm or 14nm+. It’s more likely that these refreshes will follow the pattern we saw with Intel, much like their transitions from Haswell to Devil's Canyon or Skylake to Kaby Lake.

It appears we’re looking at a 12nm process for the Ryzen successor arriving in early 2018, while AMD is planning the Zen 2 based Matisse follow-up for 2019 using 7nm.

Just like Fudzilla previously noted, In 2018, AMD will release Ryzen / Epyc refreshes built upon an updated 12nm core architecture.While the core architecture shares plenty of DNA with Zen, it’s definitely bringing a new trick up its sleeve. Think of this less as a complete overhaul and more like a refined, polished evolution of the existing architecture.

Moving to a 12nm process should allow for a higher transistor density per square millimeter and potentially bump up those clock speeds a bit. Given that Intel is still struggling to get its 10nm processors out the door, it looks like AMD might actually beat them to the punch with their 14nm shrink. It's anyone's game at this point, though. Intel Has The Power to pull an upset, and they certainly aren't going down without a fight. This 12nm news stems from a GlobalFoundries announcement where CTO Mark Papermaster made it official.

Matisse is the code name AMD chose for Zen 2 Core and 7nm Architecture. This is a massive milestone because we're looking at a projected launch within the first half of 2019. We’re looking quite far down the road here, but let's be real: it isn't going to be a walk in the park for the competition to make that jump to 7nm just to try and keep up.

While most mobile manufacturers are gunning for 10nm and eventually 7nm, they’ll be navigating a landscape filled with 12nm options and Samsung's 11nm architecture in the interim. Intel was clear 10nm is next, likely kicking off with some low-power notebook components in late 2017 before scaling up to high-performance chips throughout 2018.

It’s great news that the future Ryzen will continue to use the same AM4 socket—consistency like that is always a win for builders. However, the big question remains: will you actually be able to upgrade seamlessly? It’s still unclear whether you can jump from the initial Summit Ridge 2017 chips straight to the Pinnacle Ridge 2018 desktop part and later in 2019 the Zen 2 based Matisse without being forced to buy an entirely new motherboard.

We still don't know whether Matisse is actually named after Henri Matisse and, if so, then the name promises a lot of innovation.

Here is the latest update regarding the node.

The transition to EUV lithography appears to be progressing smoothly.

GlobalFoundries is making serious headway in its transition toward EUV lithography, reporting that they've successfully bumped their extreme ultraviolet (EUV) mask yield rate to nearly 65 percent.
Company CTO Gary Patton told the assembled throngs at a Shanghai company shindig that chipmakers were finding EUV lithography mask defects in the development of EUV-based process technologies.

GlobalFoundries anticipates facing further hurdles with EUV mask fabrication before they can transition into full-scale, high-volume manufacturing. That said, there is a silver lining: the company is currently seeing a 65 percent mask yield rate. While that sounds decent, it’s still a far cry from the 95 percent threshold required to make this commercially viable.

GlobalFoundries is set to roll out EUV lithography technology for its 7nm FinFET node, and Patton confirmed they have already kicked off process development in collaboration with AMD.

The company is gearing up to roll out its 12nm leading-performance (12LP) FinFET manufacturing process. This move is designed to pack more density into the chips while providing a noticeable performance boost compared to the current 14nm FinFET lineup. According to him, the 12LP node is slated to hit volume production in the first quarter of 2018..

Underlined refers to Zen 2 (Matisse), specifically the 3xxx series, while bolded indicates Zen+ or the refresh (2xxx series). Perhaps we should move this over to the news section instead of keeping it here.

Alright, I was thinking 3000 series, aka Zen 2. Even an octa-core refresh would feel more like a sidegrade than a real jump. But if the 4000 series ends up being just another Zen 2 refresh? Who knows, maybe they'll stick to compatibility. If they don't switch over to DDR6 or something similar by then, I could see us getting 7nm+ chips in 2019/2020 that actually fit into an X370.

Yeah, probably better to check HW news.

https://www.amazon.com/AMD-Ryzen-1...dp/B06XNRQHG4/

For Prime members, $423 including shipping costs and sales tax.

Samuel Castillo49 said:https://www.amazon.com/AMD-Ryzen-1...dp/B06XNRQHG4/

For Prime members, $423 including shipping and tax differences.

I joined yesterday and didn't even need Prime. They obviously underestimated how many people would jump on this at such a low price.
It's already up to $190.