Intel’s future generation low-level, budget consumer CPU, codenamed Moon Lake, recently had some details leaked. Supposedly, the future budget CPU could scrap the Performance cores (P-Cores) altogether, at least for one SKU in the series.
According to Jaykihn, the source of the leak who posted it on X, that one SKU is expected to have no P-Cores and only four low-power efficiency cores (LP E-Cores). Given the layout, it’s possible that the cores are based on the Darkmon LP-E silicon.
For comparison, the current generation budget CPU from Intel, Wildcat Lake, offers at least two P-Cores in its lowest configuration, and up to four cores with the Wildcat Lake-R. On another note, and one that is perhaps more pleasant, Moon Lake seems to have a much lower base power at 6W.
On that note, its operating wattage may also be lower, between 6W and 16W, if Jaykihn’s rumour is to be believed. Oh, and like Wildcat Lake, there is to be no vPro variant, given its budget nature.
There are some important details missing from the leak, however. Chief among these details are base and boost clock speeds. However, it is surmised that the biggest gains for Moon Lake will come from its architecture, not its clocks; both Panther Lake and Wildcat Lake are built on the same 18A process, with the former having proven itself to be an absolute beast, both in performance and power efficiency. To that end, you can check out our review of the CPU in the Asus Zenbook DUO, as well as the review of the MSI Claw EX 8 AI+, the latter being powered by the Arc G3 Extreme, which itself is a variation of the top-tier Panther Lake, to better understand how we feel about it.
But, as it usually goes with all rumours, it is best to have that salt shaker ready in hand. Intel itself hasn’t officially acknowledged this bit of news, and it may never confirm said details.
(Source: Techspot, Tom’s Hardware, Jaykihn via X)
