Intel unveiled its new 12th Gen Desktop CPUs yesterday. These new 12th Gen CPUs, codenamed Aldar Lake, are based on 10nm. This is the first 10nm capability since the intel 6th Gen 14nm base Skylake CPUs launched in 2015. (Finally, we have stopped squeezing all the performance we can get from 14nm +++.) The total number of CPU models introduced is six. CPU models that can be overclocked with iGPU are Core i9 12900K, Core i7 12700K and Core i5 12600K, while CPU models without iGPU are Core i9 12900KF, Core i7 12700KF and Core i5 12600KF.
Intel’s Biggest Architecture Shift
The Intel 12th gen uses a new architecture, the hybrid core design. Alder Lake CPUs use a combination of performance-cores (P-cores) and Efficient-cores (E-cores) instead of conventional multi-core CPUs. Technology using hybrid cores is new to X86 chips, but it is not new. Hybrid cores have been used in our Smart Phone SOCs and Apple M-series processors for a long time. The Alder Lake Hybrid Core works by running P-cores to run software that requires a lot of CPU performance, while at the same time running small background processes such as playing music that are efficient and energy-efficient.
The design of the new chips is shown in the figure above. Multi-threading can only be done on P-cores. For example, the 16-core Core i9 12900K will have eight P-cores and eight e-cores, with eight to eight P-cores and eight to eight e-cores, for a total of 24 threads. As a result of the core design changes, the Base, Boost, and Max Clock speeds are different from those of the P-cores and the E-cores. For example, on the core i9 12900K, the clock speed of the P-cores is
Base clock speed: 3.2GHz
Boost clock speed: 5.1GHz
Max clock speed: 5.2GHz respectively
Clock speed of e-cores
Base clock speed: 2.4GHz
Boost clock speed: 3.9GHz.
CPU Cache Size
Core i9: 30MB
Core i7: 25MB
Core i5: 20MB respectively. The iGPU for integrated graphics models is the Intel UHD Graphic 770.
New 600 Chipset Series
The LGA 1700 Socket Z690 chipset with new Intel processors has also been introduced, and it is expected that more than 60 motherboard manufacturers will be available from motherboard manufacturers such as MSI and Asus at launch. Intel 12th Gen CPUs can also use DDR5 RAM and XMP 3.0 profile. You can also use DDR4 RAM, but you can not use both DDR4 and DDR5 RAM at the same time. Therefore, when buying a motherboard, you need to decide whether to use the cheaper DDR 4 or the more expensive DDR 5 technology.
With these new chips, intel also introduced a simpler Power Rating instead of their slightly harder TDP rating. For example, the Core i9 12900K will have a minimum base clock speed of 125W and a maximum turbo clock speed of 241W. This simplification makes it easier to think about cooling.
Performance
Intel claims that 12th Gen CPUs are 28% better than 10th Gen CPUs in terms of performance of their new chips. According to intel’s website, performance has improved by 36% for photo editing, 32% for video editing, 37% for 3D modeling and 100% for multi-frame rendering. In terms of gaming performance, intel has hailed its new CPU, the Core i9 12900K, as the world’s best gaming CPU. Which game is better than rival AMD’s Ryzen 9 5950X can be determined by looking at the image below.
Release Date and Price
The new Intel 12th Gen processors start at $ 265 for the minimum Core i5 12600KF and up to $ 589 for the Core i9 12900K. Current prices are pre-order, with the announcement of the new Z690 motherboard starting Nov 4.