The Intel Alder Lake-S architecture will give life to the 12th generation Core processors and will arrive, according to the latest information, during the second half of 2021. This means that we still have yet to see a new generation, and as our regular readers will remember This is Rocket Lake-S, the latest generation of Intel processors for general consumption that will use the process of 14 nm +++.
No, we have not missed a “+”. According to the latest information, these new processors will use the 14nm process, but Willow Cove nuclei adapted to this process will be introduced, which means that they will offer an increase in the IPC and, therefore, will have a higher performance than the Comet Lake S processors operating at the same frequency and with the same number of cores. It is an advance that more than justifies this additional “+”, since its performance will be superior to that of the Core 10 based on Comet Lake-S.
Rocket Lake-S processors should arrive before the end of 2020, since as we told you at the time, Intel will only launch new processors manufactured in the 10nm process during 2021, a maximum that applies to both CPUs for general consumption and those for laptops and professional equipment.
Intel Alder Lake-S: “big.LITTLE” structure with up to 16 cores
The chip giant is going to use a very popular structure within the mobile sector, but nothing unusual within the x86 processor sector. Intel Alder Lake-S processors will be divided into two large core blocks, a high performance one formed by Core nuclei (Golden Cove), and another formed by Atom nuclei (Gracemont).
The idea Intel has in hand is, in essence, the same as we saw with Lakefield processors, which use that same division in high-performance and low-consumption cores, although in a very curious proportion: 1 + 4. The four low-power cores take care of basic tasks and moving the operating system, while the high-performance core only comes into the picture when it’s really necessary.
In the case of Intel Alder Lake-S processors we have a greater configuration of cores, although as we have seen in a recent leak, Intel plans to start from a very modest base, two cores, and go up to a maximum of sixteen cores. In the attached image, courtesy of VideoCardz, we can see the core configurations of the Intel Alder Lake-S (desktop) and Intel Alder Lake-P (portable) processors. The first figure indicates the high performance cores, the second the low consumption cores and the third the presence, or not, of integrated GPU.
As we can see there will be versions with eight high-performance cores, six high-performance cores, four high-performance cores and two high-performance cores, accompanied by eight, six, four or two low-consumption cores, depending on each specific model. Curiously, We also see low-power coreless variants.
Most likely, the mid-range consists of models with 6 high-performance cores and 6 high-consumption cores, a model that could be the equivalent, within its generation, to the Core i5 10600K. I hope this example serve as a reference to guide you in that breakdown of settings.
The image is very revealing, and contains very interesting configurations, such as that Intel Alder Lake-P chip for laptops with two high performance cores and eight low power cores, It has a very attractive look, and is also accompanied by an integrated Intel GT2 GPU (high performance).
I remind you that Intel Alder Lake-S processors will use the LGA1700 socket, which means that to use them we will need a new motherboard.
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