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Rumor mill: Intel’s next-generation Nova Lake-S desktop processors are quickly taking form, with leaks pointing to a serious architectural leap for the corporate’s client CPUs. In response to well-known leakers @chi11eddog and @jaykihn0, Nova Lake-S is anticipated to launch within the second half of 2026 and can introduce a sweeping overhaul in each design and efficiency targets.
The flagship Core Extremely 9 385K mannequin might characteristic a staggering 52 cores, comprising 16 high-performance P-cores, 32 efficiency-focused E-cores, and 4 4 low-power LPE-cores – making it probably the most highly effective desktop chip Intel has ever produced. This greater than doubles the core rely of in the present day’s Core Ultra 9 285K, which tops out at 24 cores and lacks LPE-cores completely.
The Nova Lake-S lineup is anticipated to span a variety of configurations, from entry-level quad-core fashions to the 52-core flagship. The Core Extremely 7 SKU will reportedly supply 14 P-cores, 24 E-cores, and 4 LPE-cores for a complete of 42 cores.
In the meantime, the Core Extremely 5 sequence is rumored to incorporate three variants: a 28-core model with 8 P-cores and 16 E-cores, a 24-core model with 8 P-cores and 12 E-cores, and an 18-core possibility with 6 P-cores and eight E-cores.
Even the entry-level Core Extremely 3 chips are anticipated to characteristic both 16 or 12 cores, each together with 4 LPE-cores and a 65W energy envelope.
- Core Extremely 9 – 16 P-Cores + 32 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores. 150W
- Core Extremely 7 – 14 P-Cores + 24 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores. 150W
- Core Extremely 5 – 8 P-Cores + 16 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores. 125W
- Core Extremely 5 – 8 P-Cores + 12 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores. 125W
- Core Extremely 5 – 6 P-Cores + 8 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores. 125W
- Core Extremely 3 – 4 P-Cores + 8 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores. 65W
- Core Extremely 3 – 4 P-Cores + 4 E-Cores + 4 LP-E Cores. 65W
New Intel Desktop CPUs coming..🧐🧐🧐
150W for Core Extremely 9/7. Core Extremely 5 125W. pic.twitter.com/mW0MS2lKM9– chi11eddog (@g01d3nm4ng0) June 16, 2025
All desktop SKUs are anticipated to make the most of a tile-based design, with the LPE-cores situated on a separate die, echoing the modular method first launched with Meteor Lake.
A central focus of Nova Lake-S is maximizing flexibility and effectivity by way of its multi-tile structure. The P-cores, based mostly on the brand new Coyote Cove design, will deal with demanding single-threaded workloads, whereas the Arctic Wolf E-cores are optimized for multi-threaded duties. The LPE-cores, an evolution of the E-core household, are designed for background and ultra-low-power duties, serving to scale back total vitality consumption.
Nova Lake Platform PCIE and USB Specs pic.twitter.com/wgG2u5xINN
– Jaykihn (@jaykihn0) June 17, 2025
Transitioning from structure to platform assist, Nova Lake-S will introduce a brand new LGA 1854 socket and 900-series chipset, necessitating new motherboards however enabling a bunch of next-generation options.
In response to @jaykihn0, the platform will natively assist DDR5 reminiscence speeds as much as 8000 MT/s – a 50% enhance over Arrow Lake-S – and should attain speeds past 10,000 MT/s with high-performance modules geared toward lovers.
The chipset can be anticipated to assist as much as 48 PCIe lanes, together with 24 PCIe 5.0 lanes straight from the CPU, together with expanded USB and SATA connectivity to assist high-end desktops.
One other important leap is available in graphics and media capabilities. Nova Lake-S is rumored to undertake a hybrid iGPU structure, with Xe3 “Celestial” cores devoted to graphics rendering and Xe4 “Druid” cores dealing with media and show duties.
This separation permits Intel to optimize every engine for its particular workload, doubtlessly delivering higher gaming and inventive efficiency, together with extra environment friendly media encoding and decoding. The modular design additionally provides Intel the pliability to combine and match parts from totally different course of nodes, balancing price and efficiency.
These sweeping modifications sign Intel’s intention to reclaim management within the desktop CPU market, as rival AMD prepares its personal next-gen Zen 6 chips with increased core counts and enhanced per-core efficiency.
Whereas the total affect of Nova Lake-S will finally depend upon real-world benchmarks and software program optimization, the leaked specs level to a giant shift in Intel’s method to desktop processor design.
