As Xbox Series X stock continues to be in short supply past the holiday shopping season, Microsoft has turned to AMD for help in speeding up the production of the new games console.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer revealed the appeal to AMD, which manufactures the Series X’s CPU and GPU, in a video podcast appearance with Xbox Live director of programming Larry “Major Nelson” Hyrb. Spencer said Microsoft is "working as hard as we can" to meet demand.
- Read our Xbox Series X review
- PS5 vs. Xbox Series X: Which is the best console?
- Plus: Forget PS5 restocks: Here’s when you should buy this console
Acknowledging the difficulties consumers have faced in actually getting their hands on the new console, Spencer noted that Microsoft has even made a direct request to AMD CEO Dr Lisa Su to boost the production of its key components.
"I get some people [asking], ‘why didn’t you build more? Why didn’t you start earlier? Why didn’t you ship them earlier?’ All of those things,” Spencer explained. "It’s really just down to physics and engineering. We’re not holding them back, we’re building them as fast as we can. We have all the assembly lines going. I was on the phone last week with Lisa Su at AMD [asking], ‘How do we get more?’ So it’s something that we’re constantly working on."
While it’s true in theory that more Series X consoles could get out of the factory with a greater supply of its Zen 2-based CPU and RDNA 2 graphics chipset, AMD also has the PS5 on its plate, as it produces the CPU and GPU for Sony’s next-gen console as well.
And finding where to buy the PS5 is also a nightmare due to stock shortages. The console shortages are not helped by bot-wielding scalpers quickly buying up both new gaming machines as soon as they become available.
Even if AMD heeds Spencer’s cry for help, don’t expect Xbox Series X availability to shoot up immediately. Xbox chief financial officer Tim Stuart has previously warned that stock shortages would continue "as we head into the post-holiday quarter,” which could mean supply and demand won’t stabilize until around April 2021.
In the meantime, check out our where to buy Xbox Series X article, as that's where we're tracking the console's restocks.
