Intel recently announced the Core i9-12900KS, its new flagship desktop processor that comes as a deterrent to the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, which the red-team claimed to be matching the current i9-12900K in gaming performance. The new i9-12900KS is built from the highest bins of the "Alder Lake-S" C0 silicon, which are needed to support the chip's 5.50 GHz maximum Turbo Boost frequency on the P-cores, and 3.90 GHz max Turbo on the E-cores. While the E-core max Turbo isn't any different from the i9-12900K, the P-core sees it go up from 5.20 GHz on the older model.

The Core i9-12900KS processor is now beginning to show up on retailers, with Shop BLT listing it at USD $791 for the boxed retail processor, and $780 for the chip-only OEM part. Even at these prices, the premium over the i9-12900K is barely $150. The listing also sheds light on increased power limits. The processor base power value for the i9-12900KS is set at 150 W, compared to 125 W on the i9-12900K. This isn't the same as PL1, as Intel changed the definition of its power definitions with the 12th Gen. The maximum turbo power value (PL2) remains unknown. For the i9-12900K, this is set at 241 W. This isn't the first "KS" SKU by Intel, with the last one, the i9-9900KS, shipping as the first processor with a 5.00 GHz all-core Turbo frequency. It remains to be seen if all Socket LGA1700 motherboards support the i9-12900KS with a firmware update, because not all 300-series chipset motherboards supported the i9-9900KS due to its steep electrical requirements.

Intel's Alder Lake family is apparently still growing and the latest leaks suggest that a new addition is on its way in the shape of the Alder Lake-N. This should be the most basic SKU of Alder Lake CPUs, as it'll only have "small" Gracemont cores and no Golden Cove cores at all, unlike all of its other siblings. The oddities don't stop here though, as these new CPUs won't even have any PCIe lanes from the CPU itself, beyond the chipset interconnect.

It's possible that these will be some kind of embedded parts, as Alder Lake-N is said to come with up to eight cores. The limitation of PCIe lines, of which apparently only a total of nine will be offered, is something that might make it less appealing for embedded systems, especially if it requires a separate chipset. It's possible that Intel has designed these new SKUs for Chromebooks or other budget notebooks, but they'd have to be priced extremely affordably to be appealing, considering how cheap Chromebooks already are. The chips are also said to feature a full GT1 Gen 12.2 GPU with up to 32 EUs, so graphics performance should at least be comparable to Alder Lake-S desktop parts. We'd hazard a guess that the GPU clocks will be a lot lower though.

Akasa, a leading provider of cooling and thermal solutions for the global electronics industry, has released new variants of their classic CPU coolers, updated for the Alder Lake processors (LGA 1700 mounting system). The three coolers are designed for unlocked desktop CPUs (AK-CC6606BP01), F-Series desktop CPUs (AK-CC6603EP01), and T-Series desktop CPUs (AK-CC6601EP01). These coolers will work at the TDP set by Intel, and will follow the official thermal and mechanical design guide, improving heat dissipation from the Alder Lake processors.

The 12th generation of Intel Core processors will be using the LGA1700 mounting system, launching with a host of technological advances. Intel's new hybrid core design allows for efficient data processing, with the introduction of Performance and Efficiency cores (P-cores and E-cores respectively). P-cores are dedicated to the faster processing tasks, whilst E-cores have been built to work through background processes, therefore increasing the multitasking capabilities of the CPU. Due to the new sizes of these cores, the shape of the CPU's integrated heatspreader (IHS) has changed to accommodate this, with its rectangular dimensions of 37.5 mm x 45 mm.

Intel's Alder Lake processors have two types of cores present, with two distinct sets of features and capabilities enabled. For example, smaller E-cores don't support the execution of AVX-512 instructions, while the bigger P-cores have support for AVX-512 instructions. So Intel has decided to remove support for it altogether not to create software errors and run into issues with executing AVX-512 code on Alder Lake processors. This happened just months before the launch of Alder Lake, making us see some initial motherboard BIOSes come with AVX-512 enabled from the box. Later on, all motherboard makers pulled the plug on it, and it is a rare sight to see support for it.

However, it seems like MSI is unhappy with the lack of AVX-512, and the company is reenabling partial support for it. According to Xaver Amberger, editor at Igor's Lab, MSI reintroduces selecting microcode version with its MEG Z690 Unify-X motherboard. There is an option for AVX-512 enablement in the menu, and it is indeed a functional one. With BIOS A22, MSI enabled AVX-512 instruction execution, and there are benchmarks to prove it works. This shows an advantage of 512-bit wide execution units of AVX-512 over something like AVX2, which offers only 256-bit wide execution units. In applications such as Y-Cruncher, AVX-512 enabled the CPU to reach higher performance targets while consuming less power.

Akasa, has announced they will be releasing an updated set of CPU coolers compatible with Intel's newest mounting system, LGA1700. The new line of coolers will follow Intel's official thermal and mechanical design guide and improves heat dissipation from the Alder Lake processors.

The 12th generation of Intel Core processors will be using this LGA1700 mounting system, launching with a host of technological advances. Intel's new hybrid core design allows for efficient data processing, with the introduction of Performance and Efficiency cores (P-cores and E-cores respectively). P-cores are dedicated to the faster processing tasks, whilst Ecores have been built to work through background processes, therefore increasing the multitasking capabilities of the CPU. Due to the new sizes of these cores, the shape of the CPU's integrated heatspreader (IHS) has changed to accommodate this, with its rectangular dimensions of 37.5 mm x 45 mm.

It took a while for this discovery as it's probably rare for people with modern PCs to also have Blu-ray optical drives. Apparently PCs with Intel 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake," and older 11th Gen Core "Rocket Lake" processors, as well as the latest Windows 11 OS, are unable to playback protected 4K Blu-ray video discs, as the DRM component is broken in the absence of Intel Software Guard Extensions (SGX). Intel introduced SGX with 6th Gen Core "Skylake," and deprecated it with "Rocket Lake." To be clear, playback of Blu-ray discs at 1080p isn't affected.

CyberLink, makers of the PowerDVD software that's bundled as an OEM application with optical drives to play back protected Blu-ray video; put out a statement on its website confirming that they're unable to help with this situation, as they don't control the DRM, the Blu-ray Association does. "The removal of the SGX feature, and its compatibility with the latest Windows OS and drivers, has caused a substantial challenge for CyberLink to continue supporting Ultra HD Blu-ray movie playback in our player software," it stated. Just to clarify, this only affects playback of Blu-Ray content at 4K—1080p is not affected.Many Thanks to Steevo for the tip.

Large on-die caches are expected to be a major contributor to IPC and gaming performance. The upcoming AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D processor triples its on-die last-level cache using the 3D Vertical Cache technology, to level up to Intel's "Alder Lake-S" processors in gaming, while using the existing "Zen 3" IP. Intel realizes this, and is planning a massive increase in on-die cache sizes, although spread across the cache hierarchy. The next-generation "Raptor Lake-S" desktop processor the company plans to launch in the second half of 2022 is rumored to feature 68 MB of "total cache" (that's AMD lingo for L2 + L3 caches), according to a highly plausible theory by PC enthusiast OneRaichu on Twitter, and illustrated by Olrak29_.

The "Raptor Lake-S" silicon is expected to feature eight "Raptor Cove" P-cores, and four "Gracemont" E-core clusters (each cluster amounts to four cores). The "Raptor Cove" core is expected to feature 2 MB of dedicated L2 cache, an increase over the 1.25 MB L2 cache per "Golden Cove" P-core of "Alder Lake-S." In a "Gracemont" E-core cluster, four CPU cores share an L2 cache. Intel is looking to double this E-core cluster L2 cache size from 2 MB per cluster on "Alder Lake," to 4 MB per cluster. The shared L3 cache increases from 30 MB on "Alder Lake-S" (C0 silicon), to 36 MB on "Raptor Lake-S." The L2 + L3 caches hence add up to 68 MB. All eyes are now on "Zen 4," and whether AMD gives the L2 caches an increase from the 512 KB per-core size that it's consistently maintained since the first "Zen."

Following the announcement of new 12th Generation Intel Core processors at CES 2022, global industrial computer hardware manufacturer and IoT solution provider, OnLogic, has revealed their upcoming Karbon 800 Series of rugged computers, designed to leverage the advanced features and capabilities of Intel's latest CPUs. The OnLogic Karbon 800 Series has been engineered for machine learning, artificial intelligence (AI), advanced manufacturing, automation, and other Industry 4.0 and Industrial IoT applications, that require powerful computing in commercial and industrial environments.

The Karbon 800 will be available in four models at launch, allowing users to select and customize the system that best fits their particular needs. Each model can be configured with up to a 16-core, Intel Core i9 processor and 64 GB of DDR4 ECC or non-ECC memory. Depending on the model, a wide range of storage and expansion options are available, including optional hot-swap bays as well as single and dual PCIe Gen 4 slots. OnLogic's unique ModBay expansion technology can also be used to add a variety of additional connectivity and storage options, including up to 14x LAN ports and a 6x 2.5" SSD RAID array.

EK-Quantum Velocity², the successor of the highly popular EK-Quantum Velocity, expands to Intel LGA 1200 socket. The water block showcases the EK-Matrix7 initiative, a standard where increments of 7 mm manage the height of products and the distance between ports. This product uses a socket-specific cooling engine to ensure the best performance and optimal flow with low restrictions on every platform.

his new water block kept the name "Velocity" because it retained the ability to be responsive and agile in the world of liquid cooling. Embedded in the Velocity² is a next-generation EK CPU water block cooling engine that is socket-specific. A combination of mounting pressure and cold plate geometry, tailored for the IHS and die layout of Intel LGA 1200 socket processors, is used to achieve low hydraulic flow restriction and high performance. Thе lathe-turned cold plate is made with precision to cover the IHS effectively and put optimal pressure on the die area.

Intel over the weekend stated that it has resolved the game DRM compatibility issues its 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake" processors were facing with certain games running on older versions of the Denuvo DRM solution. The company said that it has worked with both game developers and Microsoft, to address the issues. Gamers should look forward to OS updates as well as game patches, in the coming days. In was revealed back in October 2021, in the run up to the Core "Alder Lake" debut, that the processors face severe compatibility issues with games that use certain older versions of DRM solutions, due mainly to the processor's new hybrid CPU core architecture.

A few days ago, we reported a strange Intel Core i5-12490F processor that appeared in the Chinese marketplace. The processor uses the C0 silicon that Intel sits on a pile of and repurposes it to make these odd chips for Asian markets. As we found out, this C0 silicon is a heavily cut-down version, with only six high-performance P-cores present. Compared to the regular Core i5-12400F, it has a bigger L3 cache arriving at 20 MB and slightly higher clock speeds where the base stands at 3.0 G and a boost frequency that manages to ramp up to 4.6 GHz. As a reference, the regular Core i5-12400F has 18 MB of L3 cache, a base frequency of 2.5 GHz, and a boost speed of 4.4 GHz.

Thanks to the early benchmarks, we have the performance numbers in two cases where Intel's Core i5-12490F model is compared to the regular Core i5-12400F. According to the GeekBench data, the first case proves that higher clock speeds of the strange processor, coupled with higher L3 cache, prove to be of help as the single-threaded performance grows by 10%. In comparison, the multi-threaded results show an even more considerable improvement at 15%. The second test shows smaller margins compared to the Core i5-12500, where the Core i5-12490F processor now only leads by 2.5% and 5% in single-threaded and multi-threaded workloads, respectively. This indicates that we have to wait for more benchmarks to see how this design stands in the Alder Lake family and see just how big of an improvement comes from higher frequencies and bigger L3 cache.

congatec - a leading vendor of embedded and edge computing technology - introduces the 12th Generation Intel Core mobile and desktop processors (formerly code named Alder Lake) on 10 new COM-HPC and COM Express Computer-on-Modules. Featuring the latest high performance cores from Intel, the new modules in COM-HPC Size A and C as well as COM Express Type 6 form factors offer major performance gains and improvements for the world of embedded and edge computing systems. Most impressive is the fact that engineers can now leverage Intel's innovative performance hybrid architecture. Offering of up to 14 cores/20 threads on BGA and 16 cores/24 threads on desktop variants (LGA mounted), 12th Gen Intel Core processors provide a quantum leap [1] in multitasking and scalability levels. Next-gen IoT and edge applications benefit from up to 6 or 8 (BGA/LGA) optimized Performance-cores (P-cores) plus up to 8 low power Efficient-cores (E-cores) and DDR5 memory support to accelerate multithreaded applications and execute background tasks more efficiently.

Intel today is announcing a slew of new client computing products to kick-start the 2022 International CES. The "Alder Lake" CPU architecture now reaches the biggest class of consumers—notebooks, as well as mainstream desktops. In the mobile space, the company is announcing 12th Gen Core-H processors in the 35 W to 45 W segments with up to 14 CPU cores (6 P-cores and 8 E-cores); and new Core-U in the 15-28 W and 9 W categories; with up to 10 CPU cores (2 P-cores and 8 E-cores), as it detailed in older presentations of the architecture. We also expect the company to flesh out its Socket LGA1700 Core desktop processor lineup with new models across all four brands, and possibly even the entry-level. We're also expecting big announcements to the company's notebook co-engineering initiative, EVO.18:01 UTC: Gregory Bryant takes center stage.

Earlier today, AMD's upcoming mobile CPUs leaked and now it's Intels turn, as its soon to be announced 12th Gen Alder Lake mobile parts in the H and U-series have both leaked, courtesy of VideoCardz. These will be Intel's first mobile CPUs with efficiency cores and every single SKU gets at least four of them. When it comes to performance cores, things are a lot more complex, as we're looking at everything from six performance cores, to a mere one for the Pentium and Celeron parts.

Starting with the H-series chips, Intel is set to release a pair of Core i9 parts, three Core i7 parts and three Core i5 parts. The Core i9's have 14 cores, divided between six performance cores and eight efficiency cores and a total of 20 threads. Intel is aiming for the same 5 GHz max turbo frequency as AMD, but Intel's max GPU frequency is a lot lower at a mere 1.45 GHz, compared to 2.4 GHz for AMD's parts. The Core i7's have two nearly identical SKUs, just with lower clock frequencies, but also a 10 core version, that loses four of the efficiency cores and gets a weaker GPU. The Core i5 parts start at 12 cores, of which four are performance cores, with the last SKU only having a total core count of eight. Oddly enough the two higher-end Core i5's have a more powerful GPU than the lowest tier Core i7. All H-series CPUs have a 45 W base TDP, with a boost TDP of between 95 and 115 W.

For a significant period, Intel's Next Unit of Computing (NUC) series has featured soldered processors on the PC's motherboard. However, according to the latest leaks from Twitter hardware leaker @9550pro, we have a potential Alder Lake-based NUC featuring desktop processor versions and a dedicated LGA1700 socket. As the leaked image shows, it looks like Intel's NUC 12 Extreme edition will feature an LGA1700 socket that features support for desktop-class of Alder Lake processors. If this leak is correct, we could see a compelling NUC solution filled with Intel-only processors, meaning an Alder Lake CPU and Arc Alchemist discrete graphics card.

There is room for PCIe expansion, which means that theoretically, you could connect any GPU to the mainboard. However, it is natural to assume that Intel could force their own GPU SKUs to launch this mini PC. We have to wait and see what Intel presents at tomorrow's CES 2022 event for more information.

Intel is reportedly disabling the rudimentary AVX-512 instruction-set support on its 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake" processors using a firmware/ME update, reports Igor's Lab. Intel does not advertise AVX-512 for Alder Lake, even though the instruction-set was much publicized for a couple of its past-generation client-segment chips, namely 11th Gen Rocket Lake, and 10th Gen Cascade Lake-X HEDT processors. The company will likely make AVX-512 a feature that sets apart its next-gen HEDT processors derived from Sapphire Rapids, its upcoming enterprise microarchitecture.

AVX-512 is technically not advertised for Alder Lake, but software that calls for these instructions can utilize them on certain 12th Gen Core processors, when paired with older versions of the Intel ME firmware. The ME version Intel releases to OEMs and motherboard vendors alongside its upcoming 65 W Core desktop processors, and the Alder Lake-P mobile processors, will prevent AVX-512 from being exposed to the software. Intel's reason to deprecate what little client-relevant AVX-512 instructions it had for Core processors, could have do with energy efficiency, as much as lukewarm reception from client software developers. The instruction is more relevant to the HPC and cloud-computing markets.Many Thanks to TheoneandonlyMrK for the tip.

With less than a week to the expected announcement for the rest of Intel's Alder Lake family of CPUs, as well as accompanying motherboards, pricing has leaked on a few ASUS B660 and H610 motherboards from a somewhat more unusual location, namely Ecuador. Courtesy of @harukaze5719, who tends to leak all sorts of things on Twitter, we now have a rough idea of what some of ASUS' upcoming motherboards will cost.

The models leaked are the Prime B660M-A WIFI D4, Prime B660M-A D4 and Prime H610M-E D4, all of which are fairly basic models and maybe the most noteworthy thing about them is how little you get for your money. The Prime B660M-A WIFI D4 is listed for US$191.11, which includes 12 percent VAT, although the official currency in Ecuador is US dollars. That said, electronics are normally more pricey in Ecuador than the US, so this should also be taken into account here.

Intel's upcoming Core i3-12100 and i3-12300 quad-core processors that form the value-end of the 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake-S" desktop processor family, pack an incredible mix of performance for their segment, which puts them ahead of six-core parts from the previous-generation, according to performance testing on the ChipHell forums. The two chips are based on the "H0" silicon, and feature four "Golden Cove" P-cores with HyperThreading enabled; no E-cores, and 12 MB of shared L3 cache. From what we can tell, the i3-12100 and i3-12300 are segment only by a 100 MHz maximum boost frequency value, and possibly at the iGPU-level.

Among the tests run by ChipHell are Cinebench R20, Cinebench R23, CPU-Z bench, CS:GO; and power/thermal testing using AIDA64. Right off the bat, we see the two chips flex their high IPC in the CPU-Z bench, scoring 687 points (i3-12100), and 702.5 points (i3-12300). An AMD "Zen 3" based quad-core chip, such as the OEM-only Ryzen 3 PRO 5350G, should score roughly 620 points, while the slowest "Rocket Lake" part, the i5-11400, only does 566 points. The multi-threaded test sees scores ranging between 3407 to 3482 points for the two.

The pricing for Intel's upcoming 65 W 12th Generation Core Alder Lake-S desktop processors has recently been confirmed by BestBuy when they prematurely updated the pricing on their website. The listings do not include some previously leaked products so some models may be delayed and not immediately available to purchase at launch. The Intel Core i9-12900 is listed for 529.99 USD which is 60 USD less than the unlocked Core i9-12900K, while the Core i7-12700 will retail for 359.99 USD.

We can see three mid-range Core i5 products listed with the i5-12600 for 239.99 USD, i5-12500 for 219.99 USD, and the i5-12400 at 209.99 USD. The entry-level segment includes the i3-12100 listed at 139.99 USD and the Pentium G7400/G6900 for 79.99 USD and 59.99 USD respectively. These new processors are expected to be available immediately after their announcement on January 5th. The complete leaked price list with comparisons to the current retail pricing for the comparable 11th Generation Core chip can be found below.

The upcoming stock coolers for the Intel 12th Generation Core Alder Lake desktop processors were recently uncovered showing the Laminar RH1, Laminar RM1, and Laminar RS1. The Laminar RH1 will be bundled with the 65 W 12th Gen Core i9 desktop series and has recently been pictured showing its full metal design. The RH1 will include integrated LED lighting however it is currently unclear if this will be an RGB setup. This is the second leaked cooler to be pictured after the mid-range RM1 which will be bundled with Core i3, i5, and i7 processors while the RS1 should be included with Pentium and Celeron products. The Alder Lake-S processors featuring these new coolers are expected to launch on January 5th.

Ahead of its early-January announcement, sales of "locked" Intel 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake" processors have started in Peru, with the Core i5-12400F reportedly selling for the equivalent of USD $222. Assuming it has a similar pricing to its predecessor, the i5-11400F, the i5-12400F should have a pre-tax price of around $180, about $15 less than the i5-12400. The retail package is a simple paperboard fare. Inside, you'll get one of Intel's new Laminar RM1 stock coolers.

The i5-12400F is expected to be a 6-core/12-thread processor that only features six "Golden Cove" P-cores, and no "Gracemont" E-core clusters. The CPU cores tick at a boost frequency of 4.40 GHz. These cores are paired with 18 MB of shared L3 cache, and the same I/O as the i5-12600K. As an "F" SKU, this chip lacks integrated graphics. The processor base power of these chips is rated at 65 W, with 117 W maximum turbo power. Intel is expected to launch these alongside the value-ended B660 and H610 chipsets in January.

According to the latest round of rumors coming from tech media VideoCardz, Intel could be preparing an answer to AMD's 3D V-cache in the form of... pre-binned Core i9-12900KS? As per the report, Intel could be making a pre-binned, pre-overclocked Core i9-12900KS processor with an all-core turbo boost frequency of 5.2 GHz. This alleged clock speed will push the processor to some fantastic heights and increase the overall performance of the regular Core i9-12900K processor. With AMD's Ryzen processors with 3D V-cache incoming, Intel has prepared this solution to keep up with the increasing pressure from AMD.

So far, we don't know the specific requirements for Core i9-12900KS to reach 5.2 GHz. However, we assume that Voltage needs a big boost, making cooling and power supply requirements increase. This special edition Alder Lake design should launch around the same time frame that AMD reveals its 3D V-cache enabled Ryzen processors, so Intel doesn't let AMD steal the performance crown.

Quite possibly the first sighting of a next-generation AMD processor with DDR5 memory surfaced on the web. A BAPCo CrossMark Database entry references a prototype processor with the name-string "AMD Eng Sample: 100-000000560-40_Y," running on a platform titled "ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. M3402RA." The chip has 16 GB of memory across 2 memory channels, and a memory frequency of 4800 MHz DDR. The platform here could be either a desktop motherboard, or a notebook. 4800 MHz is an unusual memory speed for a mobile platform, unless it's a single stick of DDR5-4800 SO-DIMM, with two 40-bit channels.

The first notebooks with DDR5 memory make landfall early next year, when Intel launches mobile variants of its 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake" processors. This would mean that DDR5 SO-DIMMs are already in circulation with OEMs. If the theory of this being a mobile chip holds true, it could very well be the "Rembrandt" APU that combines "Zen 3+" CPU cores with an iGPU based on the RDNA2 graphics architecture. If however the platform is a prototype Socket AM5 motherboard, it could be one of the first sightings of a next-generation "Raphael" desktop processor with "Zen 4" CPU cores, and a combination of DDR5 memory and PCI-Express Gen 5.

The first 65 W Alder Lake desktop processors have recently surfaced including the i3-12100F, i5-12400F, and i7-12700F which are expected to launch in January. The i3-12100F and i5-12400F are expected to be the first Alder Lake-S processors without any Gracemont high-efficiency cores instead of relying solely on Golden Cove high-performance cores. The i3-12100F will feature 4 cores and 8 threads with a max boost speed of 4.3 GHz while the i5-12400F will include 6 cores and 12 threads running at a max clock speed of 4.4 GHz.

The i7-12700F will feature the same core configuration as the i7-12700KF just with lower clock speeds and a reduced TDP of 65 W compared to 125 W. The packaging for these three processors along with marketing materials have been leaked revealing that the retail versions will include the Laminar RM1 stock cooler. These new Alder Lake CPUs along with various other models are expected to launch sometime in January after CES 2022.

FinalWire Ltd. today announced the immediate availability of AIDA64 Extreme 6.60, Engineer 6.60, Business 6.60, and Network Audit 6.60 software. The latest AIDA64 update introduces optimized benchmarks for Intel "Alder Lake" and "Raptor Lake" processors, improvements for DDR5 memory modules and XMP 3.0 memory profiles, and supports the latest AMD and Intel CPU platforms as well as the new graphics and GPGPU computing technologies by both AMD and NVIDIA.

The AIDA64 product family for Windows PCs consists of three business editions and a home edition. The company's flagship IT asset management offering with hardware diagnostic features is AIDA64 Business, while a dedicated network inventory solution called AIDA64 Network Audit is also available, for a lower license fee. Designed for corporate engineers and IT technicians, AIDA64 Engineer includes expert tools not available in AIDA64 Extreme, the home edition of the software. Today all four AIDA64 editions are updated to v6.60.