Intel introduces Rocket Lake CPUs, 11900K is 50 euros more expensive than 10900K

Intel introduces its 11th generation Core processors for desktops, better known by the codename Rocket Lake-S. The new CPUs feature a new architecture for the first time since Skylake in 2015, requiring them to offer a 19 percent higher IPC.

Cypress Cove cores and Xe GPU

Although Rocket Lake is still produced on the 14nm process – according to Intel because only it can achieve the high clock speeds required for desktops – the processors use the new Cypress Cove core. This is a so-called backport of the Sunny Cove core as it was in the 10nm Ice Lake chips for laptops. The downturn in production is deteriorating efficiency, but allows Intel to take another step in performance per clock tick for the first time since Skylake. If that claim is true, the new series’ IPC would be somewhere between AMD’s Ryzen 3000 and 5000 series.

The integrated GPU will also be upgraded to the Xe architecture as we know it from Tiger Lake. Intel calls it UHD Graphics 750 and, according to the manufacturer, it offers up to 50 percent better performance. The Xe GPU also brings modern video decoding capabilities, such as support for 10-bit AV1 and 12-bit HEVC. The new GPU also offers support for connecting HDMI 2.0 and DisplayPort HBR3 monitors.

The Rocket Lake-S processors support PCI-Express 4.0, of which four extra lanes are also available so that you can also connect an M.2 SSD directly to the CPU. Other platform improvements include official support for DDR4-3200 memory, a doubling of four to eight DMI lanes for the Z590 and H570 chipsets, and the ability to use Thunderbolt 4 via an add-in card. Rocket Lake supports the Z490 and H470 chipsets in addition to the 500 series chipsets, but B460 and H410 are left out.

First official benchmarks

With the announcement, Intel also publishes a handful of benchmarks. In four games, the Core i9-11900K is said to be between 8 and 14 percent faster than the 10900K, while the gain over the AMD Ryzen 9 5900X is 3 to 11 percent. Intel barely gives any details about how it arrives at those numbers, so it’s just a matter of waiting for independent benchmarks to appear.

Specifications and prices

After some previous teasers, Intel is now making the full specifications and prices of the new generation of processors available. Top model Core i9 11900K has a suggested retail price of 539 dollars, converted 548 euros including VAT. That is 50 euros more than the suggested retail price of the 10900K, although it has now even dropped in price to 469 euros. Not all 11th-generation Core processors use the new architecture; the Celeron, Pentium and Core i3 models are rebrands of the previous generation. The review embargo and sales start are scheduled for March 30.