Apple-designed Arm processors have shown it’s possible to get high-performance at relatively low power, and this has left competitors behind in that regard. But Intel aims to rectify that with the goal of becoming the “performance per watt leader” by 2024 with the new Lunar Lake processors manufactured with Intel 18A process.
Intel also provided some details about families following Alder Lake processors with Raptor Lake expected later this year, Meteor Lake and Arrow Lake based on Intel 4 and 20A processes in 2023-2024 2022, and Lunar Lake expected in 2024+.
Let’s have a look at what we know so far for each family.
Intel Raptor Lake
The Raptor Lake processors will rely on the same “Intel 7” process as Alder Lake processors, offer up to double-digit performance boost (translation: up to around 10% in specific workloads), up to 24 cores and 32-threads, better overclocking, support for AI M.2 modules (not quite sure why it’s news), and socket-compatibility with Alder Lake SoCs.
The dissymmetry between the number of cores and threads is because we’re dealing with hybrid processors, and only the Performance cores will support multi-threading. In that particular case, it means 8 Performance cores with 16 Efficiency cores for a total of 24 cores and 32 threads. Raptor Lake family is expected to launch in H2 2022.
Meteor Lake
There are few details for the Meteor Lake, but the “New Flexible Tiled Architecture” looks a lot like the “Open Chiplet Platform” announced a few weeks ago together with a one billion dollars investment in foundry technology innovation. Hybrid cores are here to stay, and the main highlights should be the new tGPU graphics engine and integrated AI accelerator. The first samples should be ready in Q2 2022, and shipping is scheduled in 2023.
There’s no detailed slide that I could find for Arrow Lake. But the roadmap above shows Intel 4 and Intel 20A processes for Meteor Lake and Arrow Lake, so Arrow Lake may just be the switch to Intel 20A with few architecture changes.
Lunar Lake
The new Lunar Lake processors will target ultra low power performance with the Intel 18A process. Intel claims they’ll reach performance per watt leadership by 2024, but we’ll have to wait and see, and Intel initially told us the 18A process would only be ready around 2025, and competitors will not stay idle in the next 2 to 3 years.
All slides from the Intel Investor Meeting 2022 via Ian Cutress. Thanks to NewTips for the link.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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