Following user outcry, AMD is reintroducing memory into consumer CPUs

Over the weekend, AMD said it plans to do the same in a firmware update that will be released next month. Usually, the chip manufacturer refers to TSME as Memory Guard.

“For non-PRO Ryzen 9000 desktop processors, a BIOS option to support Memory Guard was previously available but was recently removed,” AMD said in an email. “Based on critical community feedback, we will reinstate this feature in the July BIOS release.”

The company has not yet explained why it removed the protection. Critics think AMD dropped it in an attempt to steer customers to more expensive CPUs.

It is possible, however, that there were a few ugly reasons, such as the difficulty of continuing support when the design of the chip changed. Another possibility is that AMD made the move for performance reasons. Encrypting and hiding data in memory creates latency. Slowdowns are the enemy of gamers, one of the most popular clients using the 9000-line of Ryzen processors. Since many players had already disabled TSME of their own accord and had no shortage in the first place, AMD may not have thought about the change in its results.

The incident, and AMD’s refusal to negotiate, is symptomatic of the public relations landscape that has emerged over the past two decades. Once upon a time, Big Tech and many organizations were willing to accept service and product changes to ensure that customers had an intuitive experience. He also showed a willingness to admit mistakes and say how he planned to improve. Now, there is silence. As corporate power and control have increased, their sense of accountability has diminished dramatically.