The new P and U Series of the 12th Gen Intel Core have a mission: not give AMD a break in ultraportables

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The new P and U Series of the 12th Gen Intel Core have a mission: not give AMD a break in ultraportables
the new p and u series of the 12th gen

Intel continues to steadily expand the family of Alder Lake microarchitecture processors for mobile computing. At the beginning of last January, it unveiled the characteristics of the 12th generation Core chips that make up the H series. These are the processors designed for high performance laptopsBut he still had one more ace up his sleeve.

And it is that we already know the characteristics of the processors of this family belonging to the P and U series. These two ranges have been designed to fit in ultralight laptops in which it is crucial to moderate both the consumption and the level of heat dissipation. The competition is tight, and this is the trick that Intel is about to play.

Intel Core 12th Generation P and U Series: Technical Specifications

p-series

cores

threads

high performance cores

high efficiency cores

l3 cache

gpu

PBP

MTP

i7-1280p

14

twenty

6

8

24MB

96 EU

28 watts

64 watts

i7-1270p

12

16

4

8

18MB

96 EU

28 watts

64 watts

i7-1260p

12

16

4

8

18MB

96 EU

28 watts

64 watts

i5-1250p

12

16

4

8

12MB

80 EU

28 watts

64 watts

i5-1240p

12

16

4

8

12MB

80 EU

28 watts

64 watts

i3-1220p

10

12

two

8

12MB

64 EU

28 watts

64 watts

U-series

cores

threads

high performance cores

high efficiency cores

l3 cache

gpu

PBP

MTP

i7-1265U

10

12

two

8

12MB

96 EU

15 watts

55 watts

i7-1260u

10

12

two

8

12MB

96 EU

15 watts

55 watts

i7-1255u

10

12

two

8

12MB

96 EU

9 watts

29 watts

i7-1250u

10

12

two

8

12MB

96 EU

9 watts

29 watts

i5-1245U

10

12

two

8

12MB

80 EU

15 watts

55 watts

i5-1240U

10

12

two

8

12MB

80 EU

15 watts

55 watts

i5-1235U

10

12

two

8

12MB

80 EU

9 watts

29 watts

i5-1230U

10

12

two

8

12MB

80 EU

9 watts

29 watts

i3-1215U

6

8

two

4

10MB

64 EU

15 watts

55 watts

i3-1210u

6

8

two

4

10MB

64 EU

9 watts

29 watts

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The Microarchitecture of the 12th Gen Intel Core P and U Series Processors Explained

Like all other Intel processors with the Alder Lake microarchitecture, the P-series and U-series chips combine high-performance, high-efficiency cores with the purpose of balancing productivity, consumption and the level of heat dissipation, adapting them, incidentally, to the characteristics of the equipment in which they are going to be installed.

In the specification tables that we published a little above we can see that these processors prioritize high-efficiency cores, so that in all of them they outnumber the high-performance cores (the difference is larger in the U-series chips). In any case, one of the main hallmarks of these processors is their level of energy dissipation in the form of heat. That of the P-series CPUs ranges, according to Intel, between 28 and 64 watts, and that of the U-series chips between 9 and 55 watts.

On Alder Lake Intel processors it does not reflect the TDP; now use the PBP and the MTP

One note worth noting is that with Alder Lake processors, Intel has stopped using the TDP, and instead is using the PBP and MTP parameters. The TPD (Thermal Design Power) reflects how much power a CPU dissipates on average as heat when all cores are active and working at the base clock frequency.

However, the PBP (Processor Base Power) measures how much average power the processor dissipates when running an Intel-predefined workload at the base clock frequency without exceeding the transistor junction temperature stated in the specifications. And the MTP (Maximum Turbo Power) reflects what is the maximum peak power dissipation in the form of sustained heat for not less than 1 s and limited by current delivery and temperature monitoring controls. This parameter can be set by computer manufacturers, and under certain circumstances can exceed Intel’s stated value for no more than 10ms.

Intel12genpu 1

According to Intel, the 12th generation Core processors belonging to the P series are up to 70% faster than its predecessors, the comparable 11th Gen Intel Core chips, when faced with a very demanding multi-threaded scenario. It will be interesting to see when we get a chance to thoroughly test one of the first laptops to feature these chips.

intel12genpu 2

The number of cores of the P-series processors ranges from 10 to 14, and they are capable of processing at most 20 threads (threads) simultaneously. The integrated Iris Xe graphics logic is more ambitious, as expected, in the Core i7 than in the Core i5, and also in the latter more than in the Core i3. And when it comes to main memory, these CPUs can coexist with modules with DDR4, DDR5, LPDDR4x and LPDDR5 interfaces.

intel12genpu 3

U-series processors prioritize moderate thermal power consumption and dissipation level, so they incorporate fewer cores than P-series chips. The number of cores ranges from 6 to 10, and they can simultaneously process a maximum from 12 threads. Of course, they can coexist with the same range of main memory technologies as the microprocessors belonging to the P series.

intel12genpu 4

On the next slide we can see the numbers used by Intel to describe the performance of its new processors for ultra-light laptops. According to this company they are, as we have seen above, up to 70% faster than its predecessors in a multithreaded scenario. Sounds good, but it’s clear that Intel is an interested party, so for now it’s wisest to take these figures with a grain of salt until we have a chance to test them and draw our own conclusions.

intel12genpu 5

Laptops equipped with a 12th generation Intel Core processor will offer us Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, Bluetooth 5.2, Thunderbolt 4 over USB-C with support for USB4, and also Intel’s own 5G solution (although this last option will certainly not be available on all machines). As far as connectivity is concerned, it seems that Intel has put all the meat on the grill, although, again, we will check it when the first laptops equipped with these microprocessors begin to arrive in stores.

intel12genpu 6

Finally, Intel has confirmed that in the coming weeks the first laptops equipped with processors belonging to the P and U series will begin to arrive in stores. According to this brand, they will be available during 2022 more than 250 machines who will bet on these CPUs.

intel12genpu 7