The chip shortage is bad. But in some good news, retailers have AMD’s Ryzen 7 5800X CPU in stock—and they're discounting it by $30 to $50.
The processor originally landed in November for $449. But Amazon is now selling the CPU for $419, down from $429 a week ago. The CPU will also ship out immediately.
Micro Center is also selling the CPU for even cheaper at $399. However, the price only applies to in-store customers, and currently Micro Center only has locations in 16 US states.
The price drops address a core complaint for the Ryzen 5800X, an 8-core, 16-thread CPU. When the product was first introduced in October, many PC users noticed the chip was $50 more than the last-generation 3800X chip.
As a result, the 5800X gained a reputation as the most unpopular processor in the Ryzen 5000 series. PC users looking for a better deal opted for the $299 5600X, a six-core CPU.
Meanwhile, consumers who desired more power went for the 5900X, a 12-core processor— which also only cost $100 more than the 5800X. Unfortunately, the 5900X is so popular it’s been largely out of stock, and can retail closer to $700 when bought from resellers.
Still, the 5800X is a great chip. PCMag gave it 4.5 out 5 in our review, and the lower price only improves its appeal. How long the discount will persist remains unclear. But retailers have been chipping away at the price for the 5800X for weeks now, possibly in an attempt to clear out inventory.