As a quick follow-up to last week's "Arrow Lake-S" de-lidding by Madness727, we now have a line-up of a de-lidded Core Ultra 9 285K "Arrow Lake-S" processor placed next to a Core i9-14900K "Raptor Lake-S," and the Core i9-12900K "Alder Lake-S." The tile-based "Arrow Lake-S" is visibly larger than the two, despite being made on more advanced foundry nodes. Both the 8P+16E "Raptor Lake-S" and 8P+8E "Alder Lake-S" chips are built on the Intel 7 node (10 nm Enhanced SuperFin). The "Raptor Lake-S" monolithic chip comes with a die-area of 257 mm². The "Alder Lake-S" is physically smaller, at 215 mm². What sets the two apart isn't just the two additional E-core clusters on "Raptor Lake-S," but also larger caches—2 MB of L2 per P-core, increased form 1.25 MB/core, and 4 MB per E-core cluster, increased from 2 MB/cluster.

Thanks to high quality die-shots of the "Arrow Lake-S" by Madness727, we have our first die-area estimations by A Hollow Knight on Twitter. The LGA1851 fiberglass substrate has the same dimensions as the LGA1700 substrate. This is to ensure the socket retains cooler compatibility. Using geometrical measurements, the base tile of the "Arrow Lake-S" is estimated to be 300.9 mm² in area. The base-tile is a more suitable guideline for "die-area," since Intel uses filler tiles to ensure gaps in the arrangement of logic tiles are filled, and the chip aligns with the base-tile below. The base tile, built on an Intel 22 nm foundry node, serves like a silicon interposer, facilitating high-density microscopic wiring between the various logic tiles stacked on top, and an interface to the fiberglass substrate below.

In a surprising development, Intel plans to extend the longevity of its Socket LGA1700 platform even as the newer LGA1851 platform led by the Core Ultra 200 "Arrow Lake" remains on track for a late-Q3/early-Q4 2024 debut. This, according to a sensational leak by Jaykihn. It plans to do this with a brand-new silicon for LGA1700, codenamed "Bartlett." This should particularly interest gamers for what's on offer. Imagine the "Raptor Lake-S" die, but with four additional P-cores replacing the four E-core clusters, making a 12-core pure P-core processor—that's "Bartlett." At this point we're not sure which P-core is in use—whether it's the current "Raptor Cove," or whether an attempt will be made by Intel to backport a variant of "Lion Cove" to LGA1700.

This wouldn't be the first pure P-core client processor from Intel after its pivot to heterogeneous multicore—the "Alder Lake" H0 die has six "Golden Cove" P-cores, and lacks any E-core clusters. Intel is planning to give launch an entire new "generation" of processor SKUs for LGA1700 which use the newer client processor nomenclature by Intel, which is Core 200-series, but without the "Ultra" brand extension. There will be SKUs in the Core 3, Core 5, Core 7, and Core 9 brand extensions. Some of these will be Hybrid, and based on the rehashed "Raptor Lake-S" 8P+16E silicon, and some "Alder Lake-S" 8P+8E; but "Bartlett" will be distinctly branded within the series, probably using a letter next to the numerical portion of the processor model number. There will not be any Core 3 series chips based on "Bartlett," but Core 5, Core 7, and Core 9.

Intel's upcoming Core Ultra "Arrow Lake-S" desktop processor introduces a new socket, the LGA1851, alongside the new Intel 800-series desktop chipset. We now have some idea what the 151 additional pins on the new socket are used for, thanks to a leaked platform map on the ChipHell forums, discovered by HXL. Intel is expanding the number of PCIe lanes from the processor. It now puts out a total of 32 PCIe lanes.

From the 32 PCIe lanes put out by the "Arrow Lake-S" processor's system agent, 16 are meant for the PCI-Express 5.0 x16 PEG slot to be used for discrete graphics. Eight are used as chipset bus, technically DMI 4.0 x8 (these are eight lanes that operate at Gen 4 speed for 128 Gbps per direction of bandwidth). There are now not one, but two CPU-attached M.2 NVMe slots possible, just like on the AMD "Raphael" and "Granite Ridge" processors. What's interesting, though, is that not both are Gen 5. One of these is Gen 5 x4, while the other is Gen 4 x4.

DFI, the world's leading brand in embedded motherboards and industrial computers, is thrilled to announce two of the world's first Industrial MicroATX motherboards to support Intel Core 12th, 13th, and 14th (Alder Lake-S, Raptor Lake-S and Raptor Lake-S Refresh) Gen Processors. "With support for the latest Intel Core processors and features including dual GPU slots and dual 10GbE ports, RPS310 and ADS310 represent a significant leap forward in innovation for industrial and medical computing, empowering manufacturing and healthcare professionals to achieve new levels of efficiency," said Jarry Chang, General Manager of Products Center at DFI.

RPS310
Featuring dual PCIe x16 Gen 4 GPU slots, addresses key challenges for Factory Automation professionals working in Smart manufacturing field, enabling improved visualized data, complex imagery processing and quality monitoring in automated production lines. RPS310 is also perfect for medical professionals to analyze Medical imaging data with unprecedented image quality and efficiency, improving diagnosis accuracy on MRIs and CT Scanners and X-rays.

Intel is reportedly settling for 6P+4E as the CPU core configuration for its upcoming Core i5-14400 and i5-14400F desktop processors. That's 6 performance cores or P-cores, and 4 efficiency cores or E-cores. Two distinct engineering samples of the i5-14400 were spotted in the wild, one of which had a 6P+4E configuration, and the other believed to be with 6P+8E, like the rest of the 14th Gen Core i5 series. There are two distinct steppings of the i5-14400 among the engineering samples, besides the core-configuration, B0 and C0.

What differentiates B0 from C0 is the specific die they're based on. B0 is the larger "Raptor Lake-S" die that physically has 8 P-cores and 16 E-cores, which has been significantly cut down to achieve the 6P+4E configuration; whereas C0 is the die the "Alder Lake-S" top-spec processor models were based on, which physically have an 8P+8E configuration. Both B0 and C0 Core i5-14400/F processors have 6P+4E. The P-cores on both steppings, including B0, are configured with 1.25 MB of dedicated L2 cache, the E-core clusters on both each have 2 MB of L2 cache; and both get 20 MB of shared L3 cache, and 65 W of processor base power. The Core i5-14400 and i5-14400F succeed a long line of successful processor models for Intel, positioned around or below the $200 mark.

AAEON, a leading producer of industrial motherboards, has announced the release of the MIX-Q670A1, the most advanced Mini-ITX board it has ever produced. The first AAEON solution across any of its product ranges to support both 12th and 13th Generation Intel Core i9/i7/i5/i3/Pentium /Celeron processors (formerly Alder Lake-S and Raptor Lake-S respectively), the MIX-Q670A1 harnesses up to 24 cores, 32 threads, and a host of peripheral technologies including Intel vPro, Intel Thermal Velocity Boost, and Intel UHD Graphics 770.

AAEON believe the MIX-Q670A1 will become the gold-standard for applications requiring real-time, high-performance computing on the edge. Supporting 64 GB of dual-channel DDR5 4800 MHz system memory and a PCIe [x16] Gen 5 slot, the MIX-Q670A1 offers a 44% increase in memory speed over previous generations. Combining this speed with an I/O consisting of two LAN, two COM, and ten USB ports, the MIX-Q670A1 offers both a wealth of connectors for peripheral devices and real-time data transmittance on the edge for smart city applications.

Axiomtek—a world-renowned leader relentlessly devoted to the research, development, and manufacturing of innovative and reliable industrial computer products of high efficiency - is pleased to introduce the MANO561, a high-performance thin Mini-ITX motherboard built with LGA1700 socket for the 12th generation Intel Core processors (codename: Alder Lake-S). Aside from superior compute performance, this low-profile embedded motherboard delivers high-speed connectivity with flexible I/O, impressive graphics in support of triple displays, and high reliability by 12 V-24 V wide-range DC power to bridge the next-gen AIoT applications.

Axiomtek's MANO561 is powered by the 12th generation Intel Core i9/i7/i5/i3, Intel Pentium Gold or Intel Celeron processors (up to 65 W) with the Intel H610 chipset. This embedded board has dual 260-pin DDR4-3200/2666/2400 SO-DIMM sockets with a total capacity of 64 GB. When it comes to display-related features, this motherboard along with Intel UHD graphics offers triple displays with two HDMI ports, one LVDS port, and one VGA port. Plus, it provides various wireless connectivity options which include 5G/4G/LTE connectivity with an M.2 Key B 2242/3042/3052 slot and seamless Wi-Fi connection with an M.2 Key E 2230 slot and a mini-PCIe slot. This motherboard also has a PCIe x16 slot for GPU, AI acceleration, and frame grabber card configurations.

Axiomtek, a world-renowned leader relentlessly devoted to the research, development, and manufacturing of innovative and reliable industrial computer products of high efficiency—is glad to introduce the IMB540, a superior industrial ATX motherboard featuring the LGA1700 socket for the 12th generation Intel Core i9/i7/i5/i3 processors (code name: Alder Lake-S). In addition to providing high computing performance, the IMB540 ATX motherboard features quad displays and dual GPU expansion, delivering intelligent workload optimization and highly scalable graphics for next-gen edge AIoT applications.

he Axiomtek's IMB540 is built with Intel R680E chipset and features ranging CPU options with the 12th generation Intel Core, Intel Pentium and Intel Celeron processors. In addition to this, it is equipped with four DDR4-3200 ECC/non-ECC un-buffered Long-DIMM slots with a total capacity of 128 GB. This motherboard has a total of five PCIe slots—two PCIe 4.0 x16 slots and three PCIe x4 slots—for GPU, AI acceleration, frame grabber, NIC, and motion control card configurations. The networking interfaces consist of a 2.5 GbE LAN port with time sensitive networking (TSN), a GbE LAN port, as well as a PCIe Mini Card slot with SIM slot for Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/LTE connectivity. Featuring Intel Iris Xe Graphics, the IMB540 supports up to four independent displays via HDMI, DVI-D, VGA, and DisplayPort.

According to an investigative report by "Chips and Cheese," the larger L2 caches in Intel's 13th Gen Core "Raptor Lake-S" doesn't come with a proportionate increase in cache latency, and Intel seems to have contained the latency increase well. "Raptor Lake-S" significantly increases L2 cache sizes over the previous generation. Each of its 8 "Raptor Cove" P-cores has 2 MB of dedicated L2 cache, compared to the 1.25 MB with the "Golden Cove" P-cores powering the current-gen "Alder Lake-S," which amounts to a 60 percent increase in size. The "Gracemont" E-core clusters (group of four E-cores), sees a doubling in the size of the L2 cache that's shared among the four cores in the cluster, from 2 MB in "Alder Lake," to 4 MB. The last-level L3 cache shared among all P-cores and E-core clusters, sees a less remarkable increase in size, from 30 MB to 36 MB.

Larger caches have a direct impact on performance, as more data is available close to the CPU cores, sparing them a lengthy fetch/store operation to the main memory (RAM). However, making caches larger doesn't just cost die-area, transistor-count, and power/heat, but also latency, even though L2 cache is an order of magnitude faster than the L3 cache, which in turn is significantly faster than DRAM. Chips and Cheese tracked and tabulated the L2 cache latencies of past Intel client microarchitectures, and found a generational increase in latencies with increasing L2 cache sizes, leading up to "Alder Lake." This increase has somehow tapered with "Raptor Lake."

An Intel Core "Raptor Lake" engineering sample was de-lidded by Expreview giving us a first look at what will be Intel's last monolithic silicon client processor before the company switches over to chiplets, with its next-generation "Meteor Lake." The chip de-lidded here is the i9-13900, which maxes out the "Raptor Lake-S" die, in featuring all 8 "Raptor Cove" P-cores and 16 "Gracemont" E-cores physically present on the die, along with 36 MB of shared L3 cache, and an iGPU based on the Xe-LP graphics architecture.

The "Raptor Lake-S" silicon is built on the same Intel 7 (10 nm Enhanced SuperFin) silicon fabrication node as "Alder Lake-S." The "Raptor Lake-S" (8P+16E) die measures 23.8 mm x 10.8 mm, or 257 mm² in area, which is 49 mm² more than that of the "Alder Lake-S" (8P+8E) die (around 209 mm²). The larger die area comes from not just the two additional E-core clusters, but also larger L2 caches for the E-core clusters (4 MB vs. 2 MB), and larger L2 caches for the P-cores (2 MB vs. 1.25 MB); besides the larger shared L3 cache (36 MB vs. 30 MB). The "Raptor Cove" P-core itself could be slightly larger than its "Golden Cove" predecessor.

Back in January, we heard the first reports of Intel significantly increasing the on-die cache sizes on its 13th Gen Core "Raptor Lake-S" desktop processor, with the sum total of L2 and L3 caches on the silicon being 68 MB. A CPU-Z screenshot from the same source as the January story, confirmed the cache sizes. The "Raptor Lake-S" die in its full configuration features eight "Raptor Cove" performance cores (P-cores), and sixteen "Gracemont" efficiency cores (E-cores), making it a 24-core/32-thread chip.

Each "Raptor Cove" P-core features 2 MB of dedicated L2 cache even in its client variant, as previously reported, which is an increase from the 1.25 MB L2 cache of the "Golden Cove" P-cores on "Alder Lake-S." The sixteen "Gracemont" E-cores are spread across four E-core clusters, just like the eight E-cores of "Alder Lake-S" are spread across two such clusters. The four cores in each cluster share an L2 cache. Intel has doubled the size of this L2 cache from 2 MB on "Alder Lake" chips, up to 4 MB. The shared L3 cache on the silicon has increased in size to 36 MB. Eight P-cores with 2 MB each, and four E-core clusters with 4 MB, each, total 32 MB of L2 cache. Add this to 36 MB of L3 cache, and you get 68 MB of L2+L3 cache. Intel is expected to debut "Raptor Lake" in the second half of 2022 alongside the 700-series chipset, and backwards compatibility with 600-series chipset. It could go down as Intel's last client processor built on a monolithic silicon.

Intel started selling its new flagship desktop processor, the special edition Core i9-12900KS, on Newegg for USD $799. Based on the highest bins of the "Alder Lake-S" C0 silicon, the chip has the same configuration as the i9-12900K, with 8 P-cores, 8 E-cores, and 30 MB of L3 cache; but higher clock speeds. The chip offers maximum Turbo Boost frequencies of 5.50 GHz on the P-cores, compared to 5.20 GHz for the regular i9-12900K. The Newegg listing mentions the i9-12900KS to have the same power limits as the i9-12900K, with 125 W processor base power (PBP) and 241 W maximum turbo power (MTP), and not the previously reported 150 W PBP with 260 W MTP.

Update 20:50 UTC: And the listing on Newegg has vanished, which probably has to do with Intel's embargo ending only next week. Sales are supposedly starting not before April.

ASRock Industrial launches a new range of industrial motherboards powered by 12th Gen Intel Core Processors (Alder Lake-S) with up to 16 cores and 24 threads, supporting the new Intel 600 Series W680, Q670, and H610 chipsets. Featuring high computing power with performance hybrid architecture and enhanced AI capabilities, rich IOs and expansions for up to quad displays 4K@60 Hz, USB 3.2 Gen2x2 (20 Gbit/s), triple Intel 2.5 GbE LANs with real-time TSN, multi M.2 Key M, ECC memory, plus TPM 2.0, and wide voltage support. The new series covers comprehensive form factors, including industrial Mini-ITX, Micro-ATX, and ATX motherboards for diverse applications, such as factory automation, kiosks, digital signage, smart cities, medical, and Edge AIoT applications.

Intel is allegedly advancing the launch of its 13th Gen Core "Raptor Lake-S" desktop processors to some time in Q3-2022, according to a report by Moore's Law is Dead. It was earlier believed to be a Q4 launch, much like "Alder Lake" was, in 2021. The report predicts the debut of "Raptor Lake" in the desktop segment in Q3-2022 (between July and September), with certain mobile SKUs expected toward the end of the year, in Q4. The Core "Raptor Lake-S" processor is built in the existing Socket LGA1700 package, and is being designed for compatibility with existing Intel 600-series chipset motherboards with a firmware update.

The "Raptor Lake-S" silicon is built on the existing Intel 7 (10 nm Enhanced SuperFin) node, and physically features eight "Raptor Cove" P-cores, along with sixteen "Gracemont" E-cores that are spread across four clusters. The chip has additional cache memory, too. Moore's Law is Dead predicts that the "Raptor Cove" P-core could introduce an IPC uplift in the region of 8 to 15 percent over the "Golden Cove" core, while the chip's overall multi-threaded performance could be anywhere between 30 to 40 percent over "Alder Lake-S," on account of not just increased IPC of the P-cores, but also eight additional E-cores.

Intel recently announced the Core i9-12900KS, its new flagship desktop processor that comes as a deterrent to the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, which the red-team claimed to be matching the current i9-12900K in gaming performance. The new i9-12900KS is built from the highest bins of the "Alder Lake-S" C0 silicon, which are needed to support the chip's 5.50 GHz maximum Turbo Boost frequency on the P-cores, and 3.90 GHz max Turbo on the E-cores. While the E-core max Turbo isn't any different from the i9-12900K, the P-core sees it go up from 5.20 GHz on the older model.

The Core i9-12900KS processor is now beginning to show up on retailers, with Shop BLT listing it at USD $791 for the boxed retail processor, and $780 for the chip-only OEM part. Even at these prices, the premium over the i9-12900K is barely $150. The listing also sheds light on increased power limits. The processor base power value for the i9-12900KS is set at 150 W, compared to 125 W on the i9-12900K. This isn't the same as PL1, as Intel changed the definition of its power definitions with the 12th Gen. The maximum turbo power value (PL2) remains unknown. For the i9-12900K, this is set at 241 W. This isn't the first "KS" SKU by Intel, with the last one, the i9-9900KS, shipping as the first processor with a 5.00 GHz all-core Turbo frequency. It remains to be seen if all Socket LGA1700 motherboards support the i9-12900KS with a firmware update, because not all 300-series chipset motherboards supported the i9-9900KS due to its steep electrical requirements.

Intel's Alder Lake processors have two types of cores present, with two distinct sets of features and capabilities enabled. For example, smaller E-cores don't support the execution of AVX-512 instructions, while the bigger P-cores have support for AVX-512 instructions. So Intel has decided to remove support for it altogether not to create software errors and run into issues with executing AVX-512 code on Alder Lake processors. This happened just months before the launch of Alder Lake, making us see some initial motherboard BIOSes come with AVX-512 enabled from the box. Later on, all motherboard makers pulled the plug on it, and it is a rare sight to see support for it.

However, it seems like MSI is unhappy with the lack of AVX-512, and the company is reenabling partial support for it. According to Xaver Amberger, editor at Igor's Lab, MSI reintroduces selecting microcode version with its MEG Z690 Unify-X motherboard. There is an option for AVX-512 enablement in the menu, and it is indeed a functional one. With BIOS A22, MSI enabled AVX-512 instruction execution, and there are benchmarks to prove it works. This shows an advantage of 512-bit wide execution units of AVX-512 over something like AVX2, which offers only 256-bit wide execution units. In applications such as Y-Cruncher, AVX-512 enabled the CPU to reach higher performance targets while consuming less power.

Large on-die caches are expected to be a major contributor to IPC and gaming performance. The upcoming AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D processor triples its on-die last-level cache using the 3D Vertical Cache technology, to level up to Intel's "Alder Lake-S" processors in gaming, while using the existing "Zen 3" IP. Intel realizes this, and is planning a massive increase in on-die cache sizes, although spread across the cache hierarchy. The next-generation "Raptor Lake-S" desktop processor the company plans to launch in the second half of 2022 is rumored to feature 68 MB of "total cache" (that's AMD lingo for L2 + L3 caches), according to a highly plausible theory by PC enthusiast OneRaichu on Twitter, and illustrated by Olrak29_.

The "Raptor Lake-S" silicon is expected to feature eight "Raptor Cove" P-cores, and four "Gracemont" E-core clusters (each cluster amounts to four cores). The "Raptor Cove" core is expected to feature 2 MB of dedicated L2 cache, an increase over the 1.25 MB L2 cache per "Golden Cove" P-core of "Alder Lake-S." In a "Gracemont" E-core cluster, four CPU cores share an L2 cache. Intel is looking to double this E-core cluster L2 cache size from 2 MB per cluster on "Alder Lake," to 4 MB per cluster. The shared L3 cache increases from 30 MB on "Alder Lake-S" (C0 silicon), to 36 MB on "Raptor Lake-S." The L2 + L3 caches hence add up to 68 MB. All eyes are now on "Zen 4," and whether AMD gives the L2 caches an increase from the 512 KB per-core size that it's consistently maintained since the first "Zen."

Intel released the substantive portion of its 12th Generation Core, Pentium, and Celeron desktop processors to the retail market, based on the latest "Alder Lake" architecture. The part that's making the most waves is the Core i5-12400, a 6-core/12-thread part that only features "Golden Cove" P-cores (no E-cores or the software-optimization issues they bring). The i5-12400/F, i5-12500, and i5-12600, are based on the "H0" die of "Alder Lake-S," which physically only features six "Golden Cove" P-cores, no "Gracemont" E-core clusters, and only has 18 MB of L3 cache. The larger "C0" die is used across the i5-12600K, Core i7 and Core i9 chips, physically has 8 "Golden Cove" P-cores, 8 "Gracemont" E-cores across two E-core clusters, and 30 MB of L3 cache. It's important to lay out this piece of information to understand what Intel did with the new Core i5-12490F processor that's spotted in markets across Asia.

Apparently Intel is sitting on a pile of "C0" dies, and decided to create the i5-12490F. This chip has 6 "Golden Cove" P-cores, no E-cores, but 20 MB of L3 cache; and is based on a heavily cut-down "C0" silicon. As an "F" SKU, it also disables the iGPU on the silicon. The clocks set are 3.00 GHz nominal, and 4.60 GHz boost, compared to 2.50 GHz nominal, and 4.40 GHz boost of the i5-12400/F, and identical clock speeds to the i5-12500. It's quite puzzling how the "H0" based i5-12500 is differentiated from this chip, given its lower 18 MB L3 cache amount. The base power value is set at 65 W, with maximum turbo power at 117 W. The i5-12490F can hence be simulated using an i5-12600K.

The Intel Laminar RM1 stock cooler has recently been tested with the Core i5-12400 by Chinese news site 163. The RM1 will be included with the upcoming Intel 12th Generation Core 65 W Core i3, i5, and i7 processors including the i5-12400. This mid-tier cooler positioned underneath the Laminar RH1 doesn't feature LED illumination instead opting for a blue colored ring. The cooler was tested by running the AIDA64 FPU stress test for 8 minutes where the i5-12400 reached a maximum reported temperature of 73°C with an average of 70°C. The processor drew a peak of 89 W with an average of 81 W while the RM1 fan reached a speed of 3100 RPM which was described as audible by the tester. The Intel Laminar stock coolers will be announced alongside the new 12th Generation Alder Lake-S desktop processors on January 4th.

Intel's upcoming Core i3-12100 and i3-12300 quad-core processors that form the value-end of the 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake-S" desktop processor family, pack an incredible mix of performance for their segment, which puts them ahead of six-core parts from the previous-generation, according to performance testing on the ChipHell forums. The two chips are based on the "H0" silicon, and feature four "Golden Cove" P-cores with HyperThreading enabled; no E-cores, and 12 MB of shared L3 cache. From what we can tell, the i3-12100 and i3-12300 are segment only by a 100 MHz maximum boost frequency value, and possibly at the iGPU-level.

Among the tests run by ChipHell are Cinebench R20, Cinebench R23, CPU-Z bench, CS:GO; and power/thermal testing using AIDA64. Right off the bat, we see the two chips flex their high IPC in the CPU-Z bench, scoring 687 points (i3-12100), and 702.5 points (i3-12300). An AMD "Zen 3" based quad-core chip, such as the OEM-only Ryzen 3 PRO 5350G, should score roughly 620 points, while the slowest "Rocket Lake" part, the i5-11400, only does 566 points. The multi-threaded test sees scores ranging between 3407 to 3482 points for the two.

The pricing for Intel's upcoming 65 W 12th Generation Core Alder Lake-S desktop processors has recently been confirmed by BestBuy when they prematurely updated the pricing on their website. The listings do not include some previously leaked products so some models may be delayed and not immediately available to purchase at launch. The Intel Core i9-12900 is listed for 529.99 USD which is 60 USD less than the unlocked Core i9-12900K, while the Core i7-12700 will retail for 359.99 USD.

We can see three mid-range Core i5 products listed with the i5-12600 for 239.99 USD, i5-12500 for 219.99 USD, and the i5-12400 at 209.99 USD. The entry-level segment includes the i3-12100 listed at 139.99 USD and the Pentium G7400/G6900 for 79.99 USD and 59.99 USD respectively. These new processors are expected to be available immediately after their announcement on January 5th. The complete leaked price list with comparisons to the current retail pricing for the comparable 11th Generation Core chip can be found below.

The upcoming stock coolers for the Intel 12th Generation Core Alder Lake desktop processors were recently uncovered showing the Laminar RH1, Laminar RM1, and Laminar RS1. The Laminar RH1 will be bundled with the 65 W 12th Gen Core i9 desktop series and has recently been pictured showing its full metal design. The RH1 will include integrated LED lighting however it is currently unclear if this will be an RGB setup. This is the second leaked cooler to be pictured after the mid-range RM1 which will be bundled with Core i3, i5, and i7 processors while the RS1 should be included with Pentium and Celeron products. The Alder Lake-S processors featuring these new coolers are expected to launch on January 5th.

The upcoming Intel Core i5-12400 processor could be a game changer in the mid-range, according to an early gaming performance review by Igor's Lab, which landed simulated the chip by disabling the E-cores, and setting the right clock speeds and power values. Based on the smaller H0 silicon of "Alder Lake-S," which physically only features six "Golden Cove" CPU cores, and no "Gracemont" E-core clusters, the i5-12400 ticks at 2.50 GHz, and 4.40 GHz boost frequency, with 65 W base power, and 117 W maximum turbo power (MTP).

Testing reveals that this MTP value lends the processor some stellar energy-efficiency numbers, and the chip strikes a performance/Watt sweetspot. Igor's Lab, however, recommends that for the best efficiency, the i5-12400 should be paired with DDR4 memory. In its testing, DDR4-3733 (with Gear 1) was used. Gaming benchmarks put out by Igor's Lab shows that the Core i5-12400 trades blows with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X "Zen 3" in a number of games, beating it in several of them by virtue of higher IPC of the "Golden Cove" cores, and beating the i7-11700K "Rocket Lake" 8-core/16-thread processor at a fraction of its power-draw. A word of caution, though, is that the i5-12400 was simulated on a C0 silicon, possibly the i9-12900K, and the real i5-12400 die may not have the same refinements or electrical characteristics. Even with the E-core cluster disabled, the L3 cache size isn't the same (30 MB vs. 18 MB). Catch the review in the source link below.

The first 65 W Alder Lake desktop processors have recently surfaced including the i3-12100F, i5-12400F, and i7-12700F which are expected to launch in January. The i3-12100F and i5-12400F are expected to be the first Alder Lake-S processors without any Gracemont high-efficiency cores instead of relying solely on Golden Cove high-performance cores. The i3-12100F will feature 4 cores and 8 threads with a max boost speed of 4.3 GHz while the i5-12400F will include 6 cores and 12 threads running at a max clock speed of 4.4 GHz.

The i7-12700F will feature the same core configuration as the i7-12700KF just with lower clock speeds and a reduced TDP of 65 W compared to 125 W. The packaging for these three processors along with marketing materials have been leaked revealing that the retail versions will include the Laminar RM1 stock cooler. These new Alder Lake CPUs along with various other models are expected to launch sometime in January after CES 2022.

Intel's next entry-level processor for the Socket LGA1700 platform is the Core i3-12100. Carved out of the "Alder Lake-S" H0 silicon, this processor features 4 "Golden Cove" performance cores with HyperThreading enabling 8 logical processors, and no E-cores. The processor ticks at 3.30 GHz, with 4.30 GHz Turbo Boost 2.0 frequency. Each of the four cores has 1.25 MB of L2 cache, and they share 12 MB of L3 cache. The i3-12100 gets a Gen12 Xe LP-based iGPU, while a variant of the processor, the i3-12100F, lacks integrated graphics. Intel is rating the processor base power value at 60 W, with 77 W maximum turbo power.

XFastest scored an i3-12100 engineering sample, and wasted no time in comparing it with the Ryzen 3 3300X. The i3-12100 was tested on an ASRock Z690 Steel Legend motherboard that has DDR4 memory slots. 16 GB of dual-channel DDR4-3600 memory and RTX 3060 Ti were used on both the Intel and AMD test-beds. A Ryzen 3 3100 was also used on the AMD side. Right off the bat, we see the i3-12100 take a significant lead over the AMD chips at PCMark, posting a roughly 15% performance lead. Cinebench R23 is another test where the little "Alder Lake" scores big, posting a roughly 26% performance lead in the multi-threaded test, and 27% in the single-threaded test. This is mainly because the 3300X is based on "Zen 2" while the i3-12100 uses the cutting-edge "Golden Cove" cores. AMD hasn't bothered with "Zen 3" based Ryzen 3 desktop processors in the retail market.