A brand new 12th Generation Intel Alder Lake mobility CPU has appeared within the Geekbench database. The mobility CPU features more cores and threads than any existing notebook chip & also comes with some respectable clock speeds despite it being a very early engineering sample.
Intel 12th Gen Alder Lake-P Mobility CPU Spotted With 14 Cores & 20 Threads, Up To 4.70 GHz Boost Clocks
The Intel Alder Lake CPU spotted within the benchmark database is part of the Alder Lake-P lineup. The 12th Generation family will be split between the notebook Alder Lake-P and the desktop, Alder Lake-S lineups, both of which would be featuring a hybrid core architecture. The CPUs will feature both x86 'Cove' and 'Atom' cores with the bigger cores running in SMT configuration & the smaller cores running without SMT.
The engineering sample features 14 cores and 20 threads. This configuration is only possible with a 6+8 (Big/Small) design. Since only the bigger Golden Cove cores feature SMT, we get to 6 cores and 12 threads while the remaining core/thread count is covered by the 8 smaller Atom cores. If we are to use an 8+6 configuration, then the core count would be 14 too but the thread count would end up being 22.
Intel Alder Lake 12th Gen big.SMALL CPU Configs:
| CPU | Big Cores 'Cove' Architecture | Small Cores 'Atom' Architecture | GPU Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8+8+1 | 8 | 8 | GT1 |
| 8+6+1 | 8 | 6 | GT1 |
| 8+4+1 | 8 | 4 | GT1 |
| 8+2+1 | 8 | 2 | GT1 |
| 8+0+1 | 8 | 0 | GT1 |
| 6+8+2 | 6 | 8 | GT2 |
| 6+8+1 | 6 | 8 | GT1 |
| 6+6+2 | 6 | 6 | GT2 |
| 6+6+1 | 6 | 6 | GT1 |
| 6+4+2 | 6 | 4 | GT2 |
| 6+4+1 | 6 | 4 | GT1 |
| 6+2+1 | 6 | 2 | GT1 |
| 6+0+1 | 6 | 0 | GT1 |
| 4+8+2 | 4 | 8 | GT2 |
| 4+0+1 | 4 | 0 | GT1 |
| 2+8+2.5 | 2 | 8 | GT2.5 |
| 2+8+2 | 2 | 8 | GT2 |
| 2+4+2 | 2 | 4 | GT2 |
| 2+0+2 | 2 | 0 | GT2 |
| 2+0+1 | 2 | 0 | GT1 |
| 1+4+1.5 | 1 | 4 | GT1.5 |
| 1+4+1 | 1 | 4 | GT1 |
Other specifications include 24 MB of L3 cache and 4 MB of L2 cache. The CPU was seen running at speeds of up to 4.70 GHz but it is still an early ES chip with a base clock of just 800 MHz & average clocks of around 4.1-4.2 GHz. In addition to that, the CPU features the GT1 graphics chip that packs 96 Execution units or 768 cores clocking in at 1150 MHz. The OpenCL score for both of the Intel Alder Lake CPU entires ends up around 13,440 points which aren't that impressive but it's also kind of expected considering that the graphics driver isn't yet fully optimized.
Here's Everything We Know About The Next-Gen Alder Lake CPU Family
The Alder Lake CPUs are not only going to be the first desktop processor family to feature a 10nm process node but would also feature a new design methodology. From what we know so far, Intel plans to include a mix of CPU cores that are based on different IPs. The Alder Lake CPUs will come with standard high-performance 'Cove' cores and smaller yet efficient 'Atom' cores. This big.SMALL design methodology has been incorporated on smartphones for a while now but Alder Lake will be the first time we see it in action in the high-performance segment.
Following are some of the updates you should expect from Intel's 2021 architecture lineup:
Intel Golden Cove (Core) Architecture:
- Improve Single-Threaded Performance (IPC)
- Improve Artificial Intelligence (AI) Performance
- Improve Network/5G Performance
- Enhanced Security Features
Intel Gracemont (Atom) Architecture:
- Improve Single-Threaded Performance (IPC)
- Improve Frequency (Clock Speeds)
- Improve Vector Performance
In addition to the chips, the LGA 1700 platform is said to feature the latest and brand new I/O tech such as support for DDR5 memory, PCIe 5.0, and new Thunderbolt / WiFi capabilities. While the chip design methodology isn't anything new as we have seen several SOCs feature similar core hierarchy, it would definitely be interesting to see a similar outing on a high-performance desktop CPU lineup when Alder Lake launches in Q3 2021.
Intel Mainstream CPU Generations Comparison:
| Intel CPU Family | Processor Process | Processor Architecture | Graphics Architecture | Processors Cores/Threads (Max) | Platform | Memory Support | PCIe Support | Launch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alder Lake (12th Gen) | Intel 7 | Golden Cove (P-Core) Gracemont (E-Core) | HD 700 Series | 16/24 | LGA 1700/1800 | DDR5 / DDR4 | PCIe Gen 5.0 | 2021 |
| Raptor Lake (13th Gen) | Intel 7 | Raptor Cove (P-Core) Gracemont (E-Core) | HD 700 Series | 24/32 | LGA 1700/1800 | DDR5 / DDR4 | PCIe Gen 5.0 | 2022 |
| Raptor Lake Refresh (TBA) | Intel 7 | Raptor Cove (P-Core) Gracemont (E-Core) | HD 700 Series | 24/32 | LGA 1700/1800 | DDR5 / DDR4 | PCIe Gen 5.0 | 2023 |
| Meteor Lake | Intel 4 | Redwood Cove (P-Core) Crestmont (E-Core) | Xe1 (Alchemist) | 22/28 | LGA 1851 | DDR5 | PCIe Gen 5.0 | 2024 |
| Arrow Lake | Intel 20A | Lion Cove (P-Core) Skymont (E-Core) | Xe1 (Alchemist) | 24/32 | LGA 1851 | DDR5 | PCIe Gen 5.0 | 2024 |
| Arrow Lake Refresh (TBA) | Intel 20A | Lion Cove (P-Core) Skymont (E-Core) | Xe1 (Alchemist) | TBD | LGA 1851 | DDR5 | PCIe Gen 5.0 | 2025 |
| Lunar Lake | Intel 18A | Lion Cove (P-Core) Skymont (E-Core) | Xe2 (Battlemage) | 8/8? | LGA 1851? | DDR5 | PCIe Gen 5.0? | 2025 |
| Panther Lake (TBA) | Intel 18A | Cougar Cove (P-Core) Skymont (E-Core) | Xe3 (Celestial) | TBD | LGA 1851? | DDR5 | PCIe Gen 6.0? | 2026 |
| Nova Lake (TBA) | TBA | TBD | TBA | TBA | TBA | DDR5? | PCIe Gen 6.0? | 2026 |
| Adams Lake (TBA) | TBA | Douglas Cove (P-Core) | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | 2026-2027? |
News Sources: Videocardz, Benchleaks
