Intel Core ‘Ultra’ Series: Release Date, Specs and Performance

Intel has introduced changes to name and classify its processors, replacing Core i3/5/7/9 with Intel ‘Core’ and Intel Core ‘Ultra’ Series featuring numbers 3/5/7/9. This new naming convention starts with Meteor Lake or the 15th Generation processors. Here, we’ll discuss the details of this new series, including processor counts, specifications, performance, and release dates.

What to Know About Intel’s Processor Renaming and Future Releases

Starting from the 15th Gen, Intel will name its mobile lineup processors Core and Core Ultra 7, 5, 9, and 3 instead of Core i3, i5, i7, or i9. The 15th Gen Laptop or Mobile Lineup will be the Core Ultra 100 Series, including Core Ultra 100 H Processors and Core Ultra 100 U processors. Core or non-Ultra processors will rebrand as part of Raptor Lake.

Lunar Lake

TSMC’s N3B node will prepare Lunar Lake, featuring Lion Cove and Skymont Cove architectures for P-Core and E-Core, and Xe2-LPG architecture for iGPU. The GPU might have 8 cores. Not much information is available about Lunar Lake yet, as it is expected to release around 2025.

Arrow Lake

The next generation will be named the Core 200/300 or Core Ultra 200/300 series. While Meteor Lake focuses on the mobile lineup, Arrow Lake will include desktop processors. Arrow Lake will feature Intel 20A CPU Tile Node, Lion Cove for P-Core, Skymont Cove architecture for E-Core, and Xe-LPg+ architecture for the GPU section. The Core-H series will have configurations of 6+8 cores, and the Core-HX series will have 8+16 and 8+24 cores. Arrow Lake will support LPDDR5X-7500 MHz and DDR5-5600 MHz RAM by default.

Intel Meteor Lake: Latest Updates and Insights

Intel’s official launch of the Meteor Lake Laptop Lineup is imminent. Over the past few months, numerous rumors and leaks have surfaced in the media. The Core 100 series processors will use Redwood Cove architecture for P-Core and Crestmont Cove architecture for E-Core. The iGPU will be Xe-LPG with 8 Xe-cores and will support up to 64GB of 6000 Hz LPDDR5X memory.

Key Specifications of Intel Core ‘Ultra’ Series Meteor Lake 100H Processors

We’ve revealed information about dive processors in the Meteor Lake 100H series. Among these are Ultra 7 and two Ultra 5 processors, along with one Ultra 9 processor. The lineup includes processors with a minimum of 14 cores and 18 threads, featuring P-Cores, E-Cores, and SoC Cores. It has a base clock of 3.6 GHz and a maximum boost clock of 4.5 GHz, with 6 GPU cores and operates at 28 watts power.

Regarding the specifications of the Core Ultra 5 135H, they mirror those of the 125H. The number of cores, threads, TDP, and GPU cores remains the same. However, the Ultra 5 135H has a 100MHz lower boost clock speed despite sharing the same base clock.

Now, let’s delve into the two processors of the Core Ultra 7 series. The series includes the 155H and 165H models, both equipped with 16 cores and 22 threads, as well as 8 GPU cores and a TDP of 28 watts. The 155H operates at a base clock of 3.8 GHz and a boost clock of 4.8 GHz, while the 165H boasts a 200 MHz higher boost clock, despite sharing the same base clock.

Finally, the Core Ultra 9 185H differs from the previous two processors with a TDP of 45 watts, a base clock of 2.6 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.1 GHz.

Key Specifications of Intel Core ‘Ultra’ Series Meteor Lake 100U Processors

Information about the U series in the Meteor Lake 100U processors remains limited, with only scattered details about processor names and preliminary specifications such as clock speeds and TDP.

Preliminary information suggests that among the five identified processors, one belongs to the Raptor Lake family. Additionally, these processors vary in TDP, with some rated at 15 watts and others at 9 watts. Among them, there are two Ultra 7, two Ultra 5, and one ‘Core 7’ 150U processor. The reason for the different naming of the last model compared to the others is unknown, but it belongs to the Raptor Lake family, not Meteor Lake.

Both the Core Ultra 5 134U and 164U will operate at 9 watts power. Apart from the TDP, no other specifications such as base clock, boost clock, number of cores and threads, or GPU details are known for these two processors.

On the other hand, the Raptor Lake Core 7 150U features a 10-core (2+8) 12-thread configuration with a TDP of 15 watts.

Similarly, the Core Ultra 5 125U and Ultra 7 155U will operate at a TDP of 15 watts.

Performance of Intel Core ‘Ultra’ Series

Various leaks have revealed different synthetic benchmark results for different Core Ultra series processor models over time. In testing, the Intel Core Ultra 5 125H outperformed AMD in iGPU tests but lagged behind in CPU performance against Ryzen 7840HS and Core i5 13500H. The Core Ultra 9 185H was benchmarked using CPU-Z, while the iGPU of the Ultra 7 155H underwent tests in Cinebench, OpenCL, and Time Spy.

Additionally, in the OpenCL GPU test, the iGPU performance of the 155H fell between that of the Radeon 760M iGPU and the Arc A350M mobile dGPU.

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