Intel has officially launched its 12th Gen Alder Lake-P and Alder Lake-U Laptop CPUs for all kinds of users ranging from enthusiasts to thin and light needs.
Intel 12th Gen Alder Lake-P & Alder Lake-U CPUs Power Next-Gen Enthusiast Performance & Thin & Light Laptops
The Intel 12th Gen Alder Lake mobility lineup will be segmented into the P-series for high-end and U-series for entry-level mobility platforms. The main change to the lineup is the addition of hybrid cores which comprise Golden Cove (P-Cores) and Gracemont (E-Cores) on a 10nm ESF (Enhanced Super Fin) process node. There are a total of 28 new SKUs that Intel is introducing today, 14 P and 14 U series. So let's start with the P-series lineup.
Some of the key features of the lineup include:
- Intel announces the 12th Gen Core family of mobile processors led by the launch of new H-series mobile processors featuring the flagship Intel Core i9-12900HK – the fastest mobile processor ever and the world’s best mobile gaming platform – built on the Intel 7 process.
- Intel introduces the new 65- and 35-watt 12th Gen Intel Core desktop processors with ultimate scalable power and performance for gaming, creation, and productivity. The processors are available now.
- Intel discloses specifications for the forthcoming 12th Gen Intel Core U- and P-series mobile processors that will power the latest ultra-thin-and-light laptop designs.
- Intel shares updates to the Intel Evo platform that incorporate new specification technologies and key experience indicators (KEI), including intelligent collaboration.
- Intel announces new Intel vPro platform offerings – vPro Essentials and Intel vPro Enterprise – for expanded commercial support ranging from small businesses to large-scale enterprises.
Taking full advantage of the performance per watt benefits of the Intel 7 process, new 12th Gen Intel Core mobile processors for thin-and-light designs deliver:
- All-new core architecture with up to 14 cores (6 P-cores and 8 E-cores).
- Integrated Iris Xe graphics with up to 96EU.
- Broad memory support for DDR5/LPDDR5 and DDR4/LPDDR4.
- Incredible scale with up to 70% faster multi-thread performance.
- Nearly 2x performance for 3D rendering -- ideal for creators on the go.
- Superior productivity performance with up to 30% faster photo editing.
- Integrated Intel® Wi-Fi 6E (Gig+) for improved wireless performance, responsiveness, and reliability.
- Thunderbolt 4 for the fastest, simplest, and most reliable cable solution to any dock, display, or accessory.
- Intel IPU 6.0 for high image quality and power efficiency for enhanced video conferencing.
Intel Alder Lake-P Series SKUs
The Intel Alder Lake-P series will be replacing the entire Tiger Lake-H45, H35, and UP3 portfolio of chips. It will max out at 14 cores in the top SKU which will comprise 6 Golden Cove cores & 8 Grace Mont cores. The parts replacing the Tiger Lake-UP3 series will feature 2 Golden Cove cores and 8 Gracemont cores. The chips will pack both GT2 and GT3 Xe configurations with up to 96 Execution units.
- Alder Lake-P
- 2 Big Cores + 8 Small Cores with a GT2/GT3 GPU
- 4 Big Cores + 4 Small Cores with a GT2/GT3 GPU
- 4 Big Cores + 8 Small Cores with a GT2/GT3 GPU
- 6 Big Cores + 4 Small Cores with a GT2/GT3 GPU
- 6 Big Cores + 8 Small Cores with a GT2/GT3 GPU
Based on the Intel 7 process, new 12th Gen H-series processors offer:
- Up to 5 GHz frequencies, 14 cores (6 P-cores and 8 E-cores), and 20 threads that give the 12th Gen Intel Core i9-12900HK the crown as the fastest mobile processor. It delivers performance leadership over Intel’s previous generation and the competition.
- The performance extends for unparalleled gaming experiences across top gaming titles and content creation tools. The new 12th Gen Intel Core H-series is the world’s best mobile gaming platform, delivering up to 28% faster gaming than the previous mobile gaming leader in the market: the Intel Core i9-11980HK. 12th Gen Intel Core H-series is more than up to the task for content creators. For example, users may see up to 43% higher performance in 3D rendering gen-over-gen.
- Broad memory support for DDR5/LPDDR5 and DDR4/LPDDR4 modules up to 4800 MT/s – a first in the industry for H-series mobile processors.
- Nearly three times faster connectivity on exclusive high-speed channels without legacy Wi-Fi interference. Using integrated Intel® Wi-Fi 6E (Gig+)v gives users the freedom to work and learn from home and relax with smooth, high-quality streaming.
- Thunderbolt 4 support that delivers transfer speeds up to 40Gbps and PC connectivity to multiple 4K monitors and accessories.
Other features of the platform will include support for Thunderbolt 4, PCIe Gen 5.0 lanes & Killer WiFi 6E. When it comes to memory support, the Intel Alder Lake-P chips will get both LPDDR5 and DDR5 configurations. It is likely that Intel will release Alder Lake-P first with LPDDR5 variants while the higher-end Tiger Lake-H successors will come outfitted with DDR5 memory.
As for features, the Intel Alder Lake H series processors feature the Core i9-12900HK as the flagship CPU, offering up to 14 cores, 24 MB of L3 cache, and a clock frequency of 5 GHz. The lineup is also going to be up to 40% faster than the previous generation, offering a big boost to content creators and gamers alike. In a Core i9-12900HK performance slide, the CPU can be seen beating both the Apple M1 Max and Ryzen 9 5900HX by offering much higher performance at the same wattage. It really shows that Alder Lake is going to give AMD and Apple a beating in the overall efficiency game and further extend the performance with a max turbo power of up to 115W.
The same is true for the standard P and U parts which show up to 70% gain in performance over their predecessors and higher performance under the same power as seen below:
As for overall performance, the Intel Core i9-12900HK is up to 28% faster in gaming and up to 44% faster in content creation versus the Core i9-11980HK and also easily beats the Ryzen 9 5900HX & Apple's M1 Max / Pro chips. There are tons of options to select from too as these chips will power enthusiast-grade laptop designs. The more mainstream options will be configured with Intel's Alder Lake-P28 lineup which has the Core i7-1280P as the flagship, featuring 14 cores, 20 threads, a 4.8 GHz boost clock, 18 MB of cache, and a max turbo rating of up to 64W.
Intel Alder Lake-P Laptop CPU Lineup Specs:
| CPU Name | Cores / Threads | Base Clock | Boost Clock | Cache | GPU Config | TDP | Max Turbo Power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intel Core i9-12950HX | 8+8 / 24 | 2.3 GHz | 5.0 GHz | 30 MB | 32 EU @ 1550 MHz | 55W | 157W |
| Intel Core i9-12900HX | 8+8 / 24 | 2.3 GHz | 5.0 GHz | 30 MB | 32 EU @ 1550 MHz | 55W | 157W |
| Intel Core i9-12900HK | 6+8 / 20 | 2.5 GHz | 5.0 GHz | 24 MB | 96 EU @ 1450 MHz | 45W | 115W |
| Intel Core i9-12900H | 6+8 / 20 | 2.5 GHz | 5.0 GHz | 24 MB | 96 EU @ 1450 MHz | 45W | 115W |
| Intel Core i7-12850HX | 8+4 / 20 | 2.1 GHz | 4.8 GHz | 25 MB | 32 EU @ 1450 MHz | 55W | 157W |
| Intel Core i7-12800HX | 8+4 / 20 | 2.0 GHz | 4.8 GHz | 25 MB | 32 EU @ 1450 MHz | 55W | 157W |
| Intel Core i7-12800H | 6+8 / 20 | 2.4 GHz | 4.8 GHz | 24 MB | 96 EU @ 1400 MHz | 45W | 115W |
| Intel Core i7-12700H | 6+8 / 20 | 2.3 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 24 MB | 96 EU @ 1400 MHz | 45W | 115W |
| Intel Core i7-12650HX | 6+8 / 20 | 2.0 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 25 MB | 32 EU @ 1450 MHz | 55W | 157W |
| Intel Core i7-12650H | 6+4 / 16 | 2.3 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 24 MB | 64 EU @ 1400 MHz | 45W | 115W |
| Intel Core i5-12600HX | 6+4 / 16 | 2.5 GHz | 4.6 GHz | 20 MB | 32 EU @ 1350 MHz | 55W | 157W |
| Intel Core i5-12600H | 4+8 / 16 | 2.7 GHz | 4.5 GHz | 18 MB | 80 EU @ 1400 MHz | 45W | 95W |
| Intel Core i5-12500H | 4+8 / 16 | 2.5 GHz | 4.5 GHz | 18 MB | 80 EU @ 1300 MHz | 45W | 95W |
| Intel Core i5-12450HX | 4+4 / 12 | 2.4 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 12 MB | 16 EU @ 1300 MHz | 55W | 157W |
| Intel Core i5-12450H | 4+4 / 12 | 2.0 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 12 MB | 48 EU @ 1200 MHz | 45W | 95W |
| Intel Core i7-1280P | 6+8 / 20 | 1.8 GHz | 4.8 GHz | 24 MB | 96 EU @ 1450 MHz | 28W | 64W |
| Intel Core i7-1270P | 4+8 / 16 | 2.2 GHz | 4.8 GHz | 18 MB | 96 EU @ 1400 MHz | 28W | 64W |
| Intel Core i7-1260P | 4+8 / 16 | 2.1 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 18 MB | 96 EU @ 1400 MHz | 28W | 64W |
| Intel Core i5-1250P | 4+8 / 16 | 1.7 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 18 MB | 80 EU @ 1400 MHz | 28W | 64W |
| Intel Core i5-1240P | 4+8 / 16 | 1.7 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 12 MB | 80 EU @ 1300 MHz | 28W | 64W |
| Intel Core i3-1220P | 2+8 / 12 | 1.5 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 12 MB | 64 EU @ 1100 MHz | 28W | 64W |
Intel Alder Lake-U Series SKUs
Moving over to the Alder Lake-U lineup, these chips will replace the Intel Tiger Lake-UP4 platform and max out at 10 cores comprising 2 Golden Cove cores and 8 Gracemont cores. The chips will be equipped with up to 96 EU Xe integrated graphics, Thunderbolt 4, WiFi 6E, but PCIe capabilities will still be limited to PCIe Gen 4. As for memory, the laptops featuring Intel Alder Lake-U chips will be available in both LPDDR4X and LPDDR5 flavors.
- Alder Lake-U
- 1 Big Cores + 4 Small Cores with a GT2/GT3 GPU
- 2 Big Cores + 8 Small Cores with a GT2/GT3 GPU
Intel vPro Platform: Built for All Businesses With over 15 years of raising the bar for hardware-based security and performance in the industry, Intel is introducing new versions of the Intel vPro® platform to offer businesses a tailored approach that takes advantage of the enterprise-grade performance of 12th Gen Intel Core processors for business.
- Intel vPro Enterprise: The full-featured platform with enterprise-grade computing, premium security, modern manageability, and stability for managed businesses of all sizes. It now supports the Chrome operating system with Intel vPro Enterprise for Chrome.
- Intel vPro and Intel Evo Design: Combines the benefits of Evo and vPro together for mobile professionals who need next-level user experiences.
- Intel vPro Essentials: Meets small-business foundational computing needs with built-in security features and performance, including basic PC management features.
The Intel U-series lineup will range from several Core i7, Core i5, Core i3, Pentium, and Celeron parts with the Core i7-1265U taking the charge of the U-series lineup with its 10 cores, up to 4.8 GHz clock speeds, and up to 55W TDP. There's also a more power-tuned variant of each chip & those run-up to 29W max boost power. Intel really has one of the strongest mobile CPU lineups it has ever made for the consumer segment and even AMD's Ryzen 6000 lineup won't be enough to conquer the crown until a more next-gen solution comes out.
Intel Alder Lake-U Laptop CPU Lineup Specs:
| CPU Name | Cores / Threads | Base Clock | Boost Clock | Cache | GPU Config | TDP | Max Turbo Power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intel Core i7-1265U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.8 GHz | 4.8 GHz | 12 MB | 96 EU @ 1250 MHz | 15W | 55W |
| Intel Core i7-1255U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.7 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 12 MB | 96 EU @ 1250 MHz | 15W | 55W |
| Intel Core i5-1245U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.6 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 12 MB | 80 EU @ 1200 MHz | 15W | 55W |
| Intel Core i5-1235U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.3 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 12 MB | 80 EU @ 1200 MHz | 15W | 55W |
| Intel Core i3-1215U | 2+4 / 8 | 1.2 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 10 MB | 64 EU @ 1100 MHz | 15W | 55W |
| Pentium 8505 | 1+4 / 6 | 1.2 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 8 MB | 48 EU @ 1100 MHz | 15W | 55W |
| Celeron G7305 | 1+4 / 6 | 1.1 GHz | N/A | 8 MB | 48 EU @ 1100 MHz | 15W | 55W |
| Intel Core i7-1260U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.1 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 12 MB | 96 EU @ 950 MHz | 9W | 29W |
| Intel Core i7-1250U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.1 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 12 MB | 96 EU @ 950 MHz | 9W | 29W |
| Intel Core i5-1240U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.1 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 12 MB | 96 EU @ 900 MHz | 9W | 29W |
| Intel Core i5-1230U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.0 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 12 MB | 96 EU @ 850 MHz | 9W | 29W |
| Intel Core i3-1210U | 2+8 / 12 | 1.0 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 10 MB | 64 EU @ 850 MHz | 9W | 29W |
| Pentium 8500 | 1+4 / 6 | 1.0 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 8 MB | 48 EU @ 800 MHz | 9W | 29W |
| Celeron 7300 | 1+4 / 6 | 1.0 GHz | N/A | 8 MB | 48 EU @ 800 MHz | 9W | 29W |
