The latest Intel roadmap has just leaked out over at Chinese sources and according to it, we are looking at quite a few client side platform and processor updates in 2018.
Leaked Intel Roadmap Confirms Cascade Lake-X CPU For HEDT, Updated Coffee Lake-S For Mainstream and Gemini Lake Embedded Processors in 2018
The roadmap gives us three big updates for the high-end desktop, mainstream and entry level side of things. First of all, we are definitely going to talk about the big fish which is Cascade Lake-X, after that, we will be taking a look at the new Coffee Lake-S chips and also the entry level Gemini Lake N Series processors.
Intel Cascade Lake-X Confirmed For HEDT - Arriving on X299, LGA 2066 Platforms in Late 2018
Succeeding the current generation Skylake-X processors, Intel will introduce their next generation Cascade-X family of HEDT chips. The Cascade Lake-X platform is expected to hit retail in late 2018 which means we can expect the processors in a time period between October to December. There is no mention of what process node the new processors will make use of but I suspect 14nm++ will be used since 10nm may not be as mature for a HEDT family but rather be supplied to entry level chips such as Cannon Lake-Y. Intel had skipped the 14nm++ process for HEDT processors aside of the Kaby Lake-X based offerings so we may see the upcoming high core count chips utilize the new node.
As for the platform, one thing is for sure that the new processors will be supported on the current LGA 2066 socket based X299 motherboards. We may see a board refresh but your Skylake-X and Cascade Lake-X chips will be made inter compatible. As for core count we may see a core bump as AMD is expected to heat the competition with a new range of Ryzen Threadripper series, offering even more cores for a disruptive prices. Intel already took the lead with an 18 core but expensive ($2000 US) Core-X processor known as the Core i9-7980XE so a cheaper variant with similar cores will be a deal breaker for consumers.
Intel HEDT Processor Families:
| Intel HEDT Family | Sapphire Rapids-X? (Sapphire Rapids Expert) | Alder Lake-X? (Sapphire Rapids Mainstream) | Cascade Lake-X | Skylake-X | Skylake-X | Skylake-X | Broadwell-E | Haswell-E | Ivy Bridge-E | Sandy Bridge-E | Gulftown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Process Node | 10nm ESF | 10nm ESF | 14nm++ | 14nm+ | 14nm+ | 14nm+ | 14nm | 22nm | 22nm | 32nm | 32nm |
| Flagship SKU | TBA | TBA | Core i9-10980XE | Xeon W-3175X | Core i9-9980XE | Core i9-7980XE | Core i7-6950X | Core i7-5960X | Core i7-4960X | Core i7-3960X | Core i7-980X |
| Max Cores/Threads | 56/112? | 24/48 | 18/36 | 28/56 | 18/36 | 18/36 | 10/20 | 8/16 | 6/12 | 6/12 | 6/12 |
| Clock Speeds | ~4.5 GHz | ~5.0 GHz | 3.00 / 4.80 GHz | 3.10/4.30 GHz | 3.00/4.50 GHz | 2.60/4.20 GHz | 3.00/3.50 GHz | 3.00/3.50 GHz | 3.60/4.00 GHz | 3.30/3.90 GHz | 3.33/3,60 GHz |
| Max Cache | 105 MB L3 | 45 MB L3 | 24.75 MB L3 | 38.5 MB L3 | 24.75 MB L3 | 24.75 MB L3 | 25 MB L3 | 20 MB L3 | 15 MB L3 | 15 MB L3 | 12 MB L3 |
| Max PCI-Express Lanes (CPU) | 112 Gen 5 | 65 Gen 5 | 44 Gen3 | 44 Gen3 | 44 Gen3 | 44 Gen3 | 40 Gen3 | 40 Gen3 | 40 Gen3 | 40 Gen2 | 32 Gen2 |
| Chipset Compatiblity | W790? | W790? | X299 | C612E | X299 | X299 | X99 Chipset | X99 Chipset | X79 Chipset | X79 Chipset | X58 Chipset |
| Socket Compatiblity | LGA 4677? | LGA 4677? | LGA 2066 | LGA 3647 | LGA 2066 | LGA 2066 | LGA 2011-3 | LGA 2011-3 | LGA 2011 | LGA 2011 | LGA 1366 |
| Memory Compatiblity | DDR5-4800? | DDR5-5200? | DDR4-2933 | DDR4-2666 | DDR4-2800 | DDR4-2666 | DDR4-2400 | DDR4-2133 | DDR3-1866 | DDR3-1600 | DDR3-1066 |
| Max TDP | ~500W | ~400W | 165W | 255W | 165W | 165W | 140W | 140W | 130W | 130W | 130W |
| Launch | Q4 2022? | Q4 2022? | Q4 2019 | Q4 2018 | Q4 2018 | Q3 2017 | Q2 2016 | Q3 2014 | Q3 2013 | Q4 2011 | Q1 2010 |
| Launch Price | TBA | TBA | $979 US | ~$4000 US | $1979 US | $1999 US | $1700 US | $1059 US | $999 US | $999 US | $999 US |
For those who did not know, Intel is already prepping to launch Cascade Lake Xeon Scalable platform on the server side, featuring 59% faster performance, 6 TB of Optane DIMM support along with a range of unannounced features which they aim to detail next year,
Intel Coffee Lake-S Gets Dual Core Processors, More Processor Updates in 2018 Along With Z390 and B360 Chipset Launch
The other thing this roadmap does and does not confirm is that we will get new Coffee Lake-S chips along with new chipsets but there is no word on the 8 core processors as rumored before. Over at the mainstream side, Intel is bringing updated Coffee Lake-S chips which will include dual core offerings with 35W TDPs and these will hit production sometime in the 5th week of 2018 and the B360/H370/H310 motherboards for consumer platforms will arrive in the 7th week of 2018. So both chipsets and processors arrive during March-April 2018.
What is surprising though is there is no mention of the 8 core processors that have long been part of rumors. Intel has mentioned Cascade Lake-X in the roadmap but not mentioning any 8 core part till Q4 2018 raises some questions. If we take a closer look, we can also see a partially small space in the S-Series segment not covered by the new Coffee Lake-S processors so it may be possible that Intel doesn't want to show them in the slides at the moment as specifications may not have been finalized.
Intel Desktop CPU Generations Comparison:
| Intel Sandy Bridge | Intel Ivy Bridge | Intel Haswell | Intel Broadwell | Intel Skylake | Intel Kaby Lake | Intel Coffee Lake | Intel Coffee Lake Refresh | Intel Comet Lake | Intel Rocket Lake | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processor Architecture | Sandy Bridge | Ivy Bridge | Haswell | Broadwell | Skylake | Kaby Lake | Coffee Lake | Coffee Lake | Comet Lake | Rocket Lake |
| Processor Process | 32nm | 22nm | 22nm | 14nm | 14nm | 14nm+ | 14nm++ | 14nm++ | 14nm++ | 14nm++ |
| Processors Cores (Max) | 4/8 | 4/8 | 4/8 | 4/8 | 4/8 | 4/8 | 6/12 | 8/16 | 10/20 | 10/20? |
| Platform Chipset | 6-Series | 7-Series | 8-Series | 9-Series | 100-Series | 200-Series | 300-Series | 300-Series | 400-Series | 400-Series? |
| Platform Socket | LGA 1155 | LGA 1155 | LGA 1150 | LGA 1150 | LGA 1151 | LGA 1151 | LGA 1151 | LGA 1151 | LGA 1200 | TBD |
| Memory Support | DDR3 | DDR3 | DDR3 | DDR3 | DDR4/DDR3L | DDR4/DDR3L | DDR4 | DDR4 | DDR4 | DDR4 |
| TDPs | 35-95W | 35-77W | 35-84W | 65W | 35-91W | 35-91W | 35-95W | 35-95W | 35-127W | TBD |
| Platform | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA | Desktop LGA |
| Launch | 2011 | 2012 | 2013-2014 | 2015 | 2015 | 2017 | 2017 | 2018 | 2020 | 2021 |
Intel Gemini Lake Goes in N-Series Processors, Features 10W TDP and 4/2 Core Variants
Lastly, we have the Gemini Lake platform making use of the new 14nm Goldmont cores which aim the entry level Pentium and Celeron embedded processors. These chips will come with four and 2 core options while featuring a TDP of 10W. The chips hit production in the 52nd week of 2018 and will be hitting retail at the end of this year so we will definitely hear an announcement during CES 2018.
