Alright, let’s talk about my experience messing around with the Ryzen Z1 and Z1 Extreme. I recently got my hands on both devices and wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Here’s the breakdown of my adventures:
First things first, I unboxed both devices. You know the drill – rip open the box, toss the manuals aside (who reads those anyway?), and admire the shiny new gadgets. Both looked pretty slick, I gotta say.
Setting things up: I started by firing up each device and going through the initial setup. This was pretty straightforward; connected to Wi-Fi, logged into my accounts, and let Windows do its thing with updates. Took a bit of time, as usual, but nothing out of the ordinary.
Next, it was benchmark time. I installed a few popular benchmarking tools like 3DMark and Cinebench. I ran the same tests on both devices to get a baseline. The Z1 Extreme definitely showed a lead, as expected, but I wanted to see how it translated to real-world gaming.
Gaming time! I installed a bunch of games – some AAA titles like Cyberpunk 2077 and Red Dead Redemption 2, and some less demanding indie games. I wanted to see how they performed at different settings.
- Cyberpunk 2077: On the Z1, I had to dial down the settings quite a bit to get a playable framerate. It was okayish at low settings, but nothing to write home about. The Z1 Extreme handled it much better; I could bump up the settings to medium and still get a decent experience.
- Red Dead Redemption 2: Similar story here. The Z1 struggled a bit, requiring lower settings. The Z1 Extreme fared better, but still needed some tweaking to maintain a smooth framerate.
- Indie Games: These ran great on both devices. Games like Hollow Knight and Stardew Valley were smooth as butter.
After gaming, I dove into some everyday tasks. I browsed the web, watched videos, and did some light photo editing. Both devices handled these tasks with ease. No surprises there.
Battery Life: I also tested the battery life while doing various tasks. The Z1 and Z1 Extreme had similar battery performance, lasting around 4-6 hours depending on the workload. Gaming obviously drained the battery faster.
My Conclusion: The Ryzen Z1 is decent for light gaming and everyday tasks. But if you want to play demanding games at reasonable settings, the Z1 Extreme is definitely worth the extra cash. It offers a noticeable performance boost that makes a big difference.
In short, I put both chips through their paces, and the Z1 Extreme came out on top. It’s got more grunt where it counts, especially if you’re a gamer like me. Worth the upgrade if you can swing it.