Chinese Laptop Maker Chuwi Advertised AMD Ryzen 5 7430U SoC, but Shipped the Older Ryzen 5 5500U

Imagine buying a laptop, thinking you’re getting a model with your desired CPU specifications, only to find a completely different model inside, cleverly concealed so you wouldn’t notice without further investigation. According to an investigation by Notebookcheck, the Chinese electronics maker Chuwi is engaging in specification fraud. Users have discovered a different CPU SKU compared to what was advertised. In a review of the Chuwi CoreBook X and CoreBook Plus, Notebookcheck found that Chuwi had listed these laptops with an AMD Ryzen 5 7430U processor, but they actually come with an AMD Ryzen 5 5500U. This means that Chuwi is actively advertising these models on their website, on the laptop box, with laptop stickers, and even with BIOS modifications to make it seem as if they feature the newer Ryzen 5 7430U SoC with “Zen 3” CPU microarchitecture and Radeon “Vega 6” SoC. In reality, the company is shipping a processor that is a few generations old, with “Zen 2” CPU cores and Radeon Graphics 448SP.

Notebookcheck discovered this during a review of the Chuwi CoreBook X. The unit’s performance was rather lackluster, prompting further investigation. Initially, they thought single-channel RAM was causing the subpar performance. To determine the true cause, they opened the unit and found the older Ryzen 5 5500U SoC with its corresponding part number 100-000000375. Additionally, other differences were noted in the SoC specifications, such as the L3 cache. Chuwi even went a step further by using a modified BIOS version to show that the unit features the AMD Ryzen 5 7430U. This led software diagnostic tools to display the advertised specification, while the lower-tier SoC was actually inside. This issue didn’t occur just once with the Chuwi CoreBook X but also with a separate CoreBook Plus, which Notebookcheck also confirmed to feature the older SoC. Instead of the newer AMD Ryzen 5 7430U processor, both of these laptop models actually come with the AMD Ryzen 5 5500U, as verified through performance testing, and the OPN number that corresponds to a specific AMD chip.

Chuwi has reportedly stated that the issue is merely a production error, and after the investigation went further, threatened legal action against Notebookcheck for brand damage. The company has repeatedly requested the removal of the article, which Notebookcheck refused to do. Since Notebookcheck made a second discovery in the CoreBook Plus laptop, we are awaiting any possible response or statement from Chinese electronics maker Chuwi to clarify the situation and possibly reverse any damage.