All articles tagged with #alder lake
Intel is reportedly moving away from a split P-Core/E-Core hybrid toward a unified core design for its next-generation CPUs, with a dedicated design team and an unclear launch timeline, potentially impacting both consumer and Xeon lines and leaving room for new differentiation techniques.
Intel confirms Alder Lake (12th-gen Core 12xxx) and Sapphire Rapids (4th-gen Xeon Scalable) have entered discontinuation. Alder Lake final shipments are scheduled for January 22, 2027 with last orders by July 24, 2026. Sapphire Rapids last order date is September 26, 2025, with shipments continuing through March 31, 2028. Afterward, only 13th- and 14th-gen Raptor Lake/Sapphire Lake Refresh CPUs will remain on the LGA1700 client platform, influencing DDR4/DDR5 build choices as the market shifts.
Intel has confirmed that there are no plans to support Application Optimization (APO) on their 12th and 13th Gen Core CPUs, including the Raptor Lake Refresh and Alder Lake series. APO technology, which prioritizes P-Cores and optimizes E-Cores for game-intensive tasks, has shown significant performance improvements in select games. However, the support for APO remains limited, with only two games currently compatible. While the lack of APO support may not be a major concern at present, gamers using older LGA1700 CPUs may feel left out if Intel continues to expand software support for APO.
Intel's 12th Gen Alder Lake CPUs, despite being two years old, are still offering great value for performance. Various US retailers are currently offering significant price discounts on these CPUs, making them an even better deal for budget and high-end PC builders. The Core i7-12700KF can be purchased for just $126.32, the Core i5-12600KF for $155, and the Core i9-12900K for $329. These CPUs offer high core counts, impressive clock speeds, and compatibility with LGA 1700 socketed motherboards, providing users with more options for their PC builds in the sub $200 and sub $300 price range.
Linux kernel developers are disabling Process Context Identifiers (PCID) for Intel Alder Lake and Raptor Lake processors due to an issue with incomplete global INVLPG flushes. A patch is set to be mainlined for Linux 6.4 development and back-ported to stable kernel versions. Intel is working on a microcode mitigation for the issue, but for now, PCID support will be disabled. PCID support helps offset some of the overhead in dealing with Kernel Page Table Isolation/mitigating Meltdown.