Tuesday, September 15th 2026
Intel's Big 12 Xe Core iGPU for "Nova Lake-S" Postponed to "Razor Lake"
Intel's long-rumored "big iGPU" version of the upcoming "Nova Lake-S" desktop processor family might not materialize, according to well-known Intel leaker Jaykihn. Intel had been working on a desktop "Nova Lake-S" version with 12 Xe3P cores and a 16-core (4+8+4) CPU cluster, designed to provide enough graphics power for light gaming and 3D work using the integrated graphics solution. However, the future of this Intel APU is now uncertain, as it has reportedly been postponed to launch with the "Razor Lake" generation, which is set to debut a year after "Nova Lake." Considering that "Nova Lake" is still months away and this SKU has been moved to the next generation, it seems we are quite far from seeing a desktop APU from Intel capable of delivering excellent integrated graphics performance.
Previously, we reported that this specific "big APU" SKU could support DDR5-8000 memory through CSODIMM modules, with a Power Limit 2 (PL2) setting of about 40 W. This builds on earlier rumors that this integrated graphics solution would come with two VCCGT phases for up to 65 W of power. This SKU includes four P-Cores, eight E-Cores, and four LPE-Cores, along with 12 Xe3P GPU cores. This 4+8+4 CPU core and 12 GPU core configuration is one of the few processors where integrated graphics would require two VCCGT phases. In regular SKUs, VCCGT is a single-phase power rail for the integrated graphics inside the processor. However, it is now known that the PL2 setting will only use 40 W, with the 65 W threshold reserved for extreme scenarios like PL3, and the graphics processor's PL4 capped at that 65 W figure. The Xe3P features more microarchitectural changes compared to the Xe3 found in "Panther Lake."
Since all of that is now moved to "Razor Lake," we can continue to look forward to Intel offering SKUs that include a single compute die for up to 28 cores total or two compute dies for a 52-core CPU SKU. It seems that the single compute die version will arrive first, with the dual compute die variants following. The 28-core "Nova Lake-S" DS version, a new SKU segment, is expected to launch in Q1 of 2027. For the regular overclocking-focused "K" SKUs, Intel reportedly plans an early Q2 launch between March and April. Since this is a single compute die SKU with 16 CPU cores and 12 GPU cores, we can expect to see it possibly within the first wave of the "Nova Lake" releases.
Sources:
Jaykihn on X, via VideoCardz
Previously, we reported that this specific "big APU" SKU could support DDR5-8000 memory through CSODIMM modules, with a Power Limit 2 (PL2) setting of about 40 W. This builds on earlier rumors that this integrated graphics solution would come with two VCCGT phases for up to 65 W of power. This SKU includes four P-Cores, eight E-Cores, and four LPE-Cores, along with 12 Xe3P GPU cores. This 4+8+4 CPU core and 12 GPU core configuration is one of the few processors where integrated graphics would require two VCCGT phases. In regular SKUs, VCCGT is a single-phase power rail for the integrated graphics inside the processor. However, it is now known that the PL2 setting will only use 40 W, with the 65 W threshold reserved for extreme scenarios like PL3, and the graphics processor's PL4 capped at that 65 W figure. The Xe3P features more microarchitectural changes compared to the Xe3 found in "Panther Lake."
7 Comments on Intel's Big 12 Xe Core iGPU for "Nova Lake-S" Postponed to "Razor Lake"
- Prices of Strix and Gorgon (Point and Halo) are prohibitively high (above 5070 Ti laptops, which can nearly match desktop 5070, as Radeon 8060S is stuck around 3060 performance)
- Their low-end RDNA2 offerings didn't improve in the slightest (we're still stuck with Radeon 890M which gets about GTX 1650 performance) and we're bound to keep seeing them until 2028-2029 at the very least.
Another point is towards Vega iGPUs, which were powerful for their time, but plagued with issues after the whole architecture flopped on a commercial view.
The RDNA2 iGPUs were fine during the RDNA2/3 days, but it's becoming more of a hassle especially as they are on another driver branch which may (or may not) see its issues fixed.
Intel trying to get back into this market when AMD revealed their plans of not going RDNA 4 (and simply not releasing new iGPUs outside of Strix/Gorgon Halo and Point at all) was bound to happen.
AMD should've shrunk the iGPU die and dropped in a 740M (8 ROPs) for built-in graphics when Zen 5 came out. This would've matched Intel's Xe-cores capabilities in the Arrow Lake desktop CPUs, especially if using the USB4 ports for graphics output on a X870 motherboard (this would still depend if the board OEM wires the proper ports though).