Intel PR Confirms Chip Branding Changes in the Works: Core i Series to Give Way to Ultra?
by Ryan Smith on May 1, 2023 3:00 PM EST- Posted in
- CPUs
- Intel
- Core
- Meteor Lake
- Core Ultra
In an unusual move, Intel's director of global communications, Bernard Fernandes, took to Twitter this morning to confirm that the chip giant is preparing some chip branding change for later this year. Citing that the company is at an “inflection point” ahead of the launch of their Meteor Lake architecture client CPUs later this year, Intel is apparently developing something new for branding their first mass-scale chiplet-based consumer CPU.
Yes, we are making brand changes as we’re at an inflection point in our client roadmap in preparation for the upcoming launch of our #MeteorLake processors. We will provide more details regarding these exciting changes in the coming weeks! #Intel
— Bernard Fernandes (@Bernard_P) May 1, 2023
While the tweet in question doesn’t specifically address what it’s in response to, from context and timing it’s almost certainly a reaction to recent rumors that Intel is preparing to change their branding strategy for their Core family of consumer chips. And while it’s AnandTech policy not to republish or otherwise comment on rumors, an official comment from a high-ranking Intel PR representative means that this is no longer a mere rumor, and that changes are indeed in the works.
The current Core paradigm has been in place since late 2008 with the launch of the generational Core family and the now familiar i3/i5/i7 tiers. While Intel has since added the i9 tier and played with suffixes a few times in the last 15 years, Core branding has remained relatively consistent as a whole for what’s become 13 generations of parts.
But if the rumors are true, then the Core family will soon lose its i-series moniker. Based on benchmark data uploaded to the Ashes of the Singularity benchmark results database – a notorious source of leaks from hardware testers who neglect to turn off results reporting – an Intel Core Ultra 5 1003H has been spotted in the database. Which in turn suggests that Intel is intending to phase out the Core i-series branding for new Core Ultra branding.
To be sure, Intel’s tweet does not confirm the Ultra branding; and Ashes alone is not an authoritative source. But given that Intel has opted to confirm that they are making some brand changes to align with the Meteor Lake launch, if it's not Ultra, then some other kind of branding change is clearly in the works.
Source: Intel
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jjjag - Monday, May 1, 2023 - link
You LITERALLY said " we don't comment on rumors", then like 2 sentences later "but if the rumors are true...". Come on you idiots, OWN UP to what this website really is. It's a bunch of rumors and technically incorrect or incomplete articles, with a bunch of engineering speculation by writers who are nowhere near being engineers, on the MOST AD-HEAVY website on the entire internet. Literally there are more ads here than on Fox News, CNN, and ESPN combined.ikjadoon - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
How do you lose all nuance? I hate this Reddit absolutism applied to anything people don’t like.Ryan Smith - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
(In my best Jim Dale voice)The facts were these:
1) Intel's global comms director has directly commented that Intel is going to be undertaking a client branding change in conjunction with MTL.
2) That announcement does not specifically address what it's in response to
3) But the only thing as of late that would make the slightest bit of sense is that it's a response to the Core Ultra rumors.
Thus if we're publishing a factual news story - and Intel making an official statement is grounds for some kind of story - then it's important that we make it clear that Intel's statement isn't addressing what it's in response to. But we also need to contextualize it based on what's currently being rumored, otherwise Intel's statement makes very limited sense in a vacuum.
Normally I avoid rumors and leaks with a 10ft pole. And if you disagree with that, please find me 3 AT articles written in the last year that are based on unsubstantiated rumors. But in this case, it was necessary to divert from normal policy in order to be able to publish a better story about Intel's official comments.
As for ads, realize that I am not at liberty to discuss the subject. But all advertising matters fall under the purview of our publisher, Future PLC.
edzieba - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
ITT the comment section from when the Pentium branding was dropped in favour of Core (and shortly after, iX).Byte - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
18 physical and logical cores seem weird.James5mith - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
Was just going to mention this. No hyper threading? Seems intriguing actually.xol - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
Possibly just turned off for the tests, on not detected properly on test sample. Doubt it's reporting properlySeems unlikely, unless its a high energy efficiency server chip
brucethemoose - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
Eh this feels like a bad move. The i branding has recognition... Some game devs *still* post requirements along the lines of "Recommended: Intel Core i5" even though that's nonsense, and some laptop OEMs still advertise like that.But if the branding makes sense, I’m all for it. Apple's simple deliniation by generation and bus/chip width is so sensible.
PeachNCream - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
In all fairness, it's probably time to stop sticking an "i" in front of things since that Apple-inspired fad has really gotten rather old. I mean iCarly was a thing even, heh.Silver5urfer - Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - link
Intel as a CPU centric innovative company is really in shambles. They have to redesign the CORE series but instead they added E core BS to the mix, but now instead of sticking to their game. Thinking a branding change would make them get the greens. It won't in the long run.Core i is the definition of Intel x64 microarch since the Nehalem days. Why are they changing it esp when the RING design is same even with E cores added on top of essentially CORE brand being same. Just to make more idiotic PR decisions which is what Intel needs I guess.
Add to the rumors of MTL-S being 6P max and ARW-S being 8P that alone makes Intel lose out of touch in the x86 desktop computing, no more Ryzen 9 competition from the SMT POV from those rumors and with Intel DC being losing cash in Intel history, they are really scaling down on desktop perhaps and focusing more on Laptop BGA junk, makes sense why they had 10nm on that useles Tigerlake junk rather than have Rocket Lake on 10nm with those missing 2 cores. Now they have MTL first on laptops in 2023 and then desktops at max 6P cores. They also killed Optane too.
Intel is really headless atm, Gelsinger couldn't steer this ship which is being ravaged by Investors, CA state policies and current state of Electronics being more mobile junk.