Upcoming $1,000 AMD Strix Halo laptop runs Cyberpunk 2077 at 72 fps on iGPU, with CPU performance close to Ryzen 9 9955HX3D, all at 65 W TDP
YouTuber ETA Prime has shared an early hands-on look at the AIM Max+, a new gaming laptop featuring AMD’s flagship Strix Halo APU, the Ryzen AI Max+ 395. Despite being a relatively new brand, AIM seeks to deliver a high-performance machine at a target price of under $1,000, challenging the pricing seen on other devices with this chip.
The Ryzen Al Max+ 395 features 16 Zen 5 cores and 32 threads, paired with the Radeon 8060S, which ETA Prime calls the “most powerful iGPU on the market.” According to early benchmarks, the Ryzen Al Max+ 395 reached a Time Spy score of 8845 while running at a modest 65 W TDP.
ETA Prime compared this result to an RTX 4060-equipped laptop powered by the Ryzen 9 7940HS, which scored 11,238 in the same benchmark, but with a combined package TDP of 170 W, illustrating the efficiency advantage of the Max+ 395. For reference, as per Notebookcheck’s Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 laptop GPU benchmark figures, the average 3DMark Time Spy score is around 10,250.
In the video, the YouTuber says they chose to test the chip at its stock configuration to reflect real-world, out-of-the-box performance. As shown, in both Geekbench 6 and Cinebench R24, with both CPUs tested at 65 W, the Ryzen Al Max+ 395 held up well.
In Geekbench 6, it achieved a single-core score of 2,849 and a multi-core score of 17,463, while the Ryzen 9 9955HX3D posted 3,110 in single-core and 18,858 in multi-core. Meanwhile, in Cinebench R24, the Ryzen Al Max+ 395 scored 84 in single-core and 1,798 in multi-core, compared to the 9955HX3D’s 106 and 1,882, respectively. The X3D chip leads in both benchmarks.
ETA Prime noted that performance could scale further with higher TDP headroom, particularly in CPU-intensive workloads. They also point out that AIM wants the laptop to be performance-centric rather than a luxury-studded device.
According to the model shown in the video, the AIM Max+ sports a 16-inch 2560×1600 IPS panel with 120 Hz VRR and up to 600 nits of brightness, which, although not explicitly stated in the video, is likely referring to HDR brightness. The laptop also has a chiclet-style backlit keyboard, a standard trackpad, without any glass finish, and an aluminium chassis.
Out of the box, the model tested includes 32 GB of LPDDR5X RAM running at 8,000 MHz, support for dual M.2 2280 SSDs, up to 4 TB total, an 80 Wh battery, and USB4 fast charging at 140 W PD. While the unit came with a 230 W adapter, ETA Prime mentioned that USB-C charging at 140 or 165 W should work without performance drops.
In gaming benchmarks at native 1600p resolution, Cyberpunk 2077 averaged 72 FPS on High settings with FSR set to Balanced. Elden Ring delivered a steady 60 FPS on High settings. Forza Horizon 5 exceeded 90 FPS on Ultra settings. Fortnite and Spider-Man 2 were also tested, though the latter showed occasional shader-related stutter.
When it comes to thermals, the Ryzen AI Max+ 395 remained cool, according to the YouTuber's testing, averaging 68°C in gaming workloads and peaking at 86°C during Cinebench R24. ETA Prime observed that higher performance could be unlocked by increasing the TDP using tools like Universal x86 Tuning Utility.
AIM is targeting an October 2025 launch, though ETA Prime cautioned that the sub-$1,000 claim remains unverified until retail units ship at that price. You can watch the whole video linked below for a more in-depth look at the AIM Max+ gaming laptop.
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