Intel Core of 11th generation: we tell you everything about the processors of our future ultra -portable PCs
Snapdragon Serie 4: Qualcomm will launch a 5G SoC for entry-level smartphones in 2021
With Tiger Lake, Intel takes its claws out against AMD and Nvidia
AymericSIMEON
Journalist
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Eleventh generation Core processors will arrive in our ultraportable PCs from October. They promise us a redesigned and more efficient architecture, graphics power that is finally up to par and power consumption adjustable to the nearest watt by PC manufacturers.
Last week, Intel Core 11e processors gen - codename Tiger Lake - were announced by the Santa Clara founder. They are nine in number, and we find the classic names Core i3, i5 and i7. The registration number incorporates the number 11 in its series of numbers and letters, on the Core ix-11xxGx model. Easy to recognize, right? They will be embedded in Windows 10 laptops and Chromebooks. Intel seems to want to invest massively in this machine market and offer even more powerful and versatile devices to Chrome OS users, at a time when Apple, for the record, is determined to switch its machines to ARM processors.
The next processors for our laptops are therefore fast approaching, and we propose to show them to you in detail.
Switch to 10nm SuperFin and reorganization of the circuit
Foreword, note that the 11th generation Intel Core processors are engraved in 10 nm according to the SuperFin process (10 nm++) that Intel has developed point especially for Tiger Lake. Without going into too much detail, for Tiger Lake and with this new manufacturing process, Intel engineers were able/had to completely revise their copy. The morphology of the transistors has been completely redesigned to limit efficiency losses and optimize the exchanges and performance of the various units present on the circuit. In addition, these new transistors adopt a more flexible behavior in terms of energy consumption and management which, as we will see later, is very important.
It is thanks to this redesign that Intel claims to have broken its frequency record for all generations of low-power processors combined. Indeed, the most powerful of the new Core i7s can develop up to 900 MHz more in Turbo mode than its predecessor, i.e. 4.8 GHz on a single core. Ultimately, thanks to all these changes, Intel obtains what he calls it "the best processor in the world". With ease.
Tiger Lake, what's nice about your circuit?
The diagram below gives you an overview of the new features and improvements that Intel has made to the various parts of its processor .It also shows how the different parts of the processor are arranged in relation to each other. Intel now calls its processors "SoCs" because they incorporate all the elements allowing the chip to operate autonomously, without having to use third-party or external controllers.
However, one point needs to be clarified. Unlike the SoC of smartphones which tend to embed all the elements on a single circuit (die), Intel has chosen to only group all these elements on the same PCB. The main circuit (above) contains a very large number impressive number of vital units of the chip, other elements are on a second circuit and both are soldered on the same component, this justifies the name of SoC for Intel.
Now that these clarifications are made, we first pass the bulk of the two circuits to X-rays. The block diagram below shows you everything that is hidden there.We are talking about processors, so let's talk about the "heart of the millstone" first: the calculation units. Depending on the Core i3, i5 or i7, there are between 2 and 4 (visible in the center). All are hyperthreaded and benefit from a new layout of their interior. Intel has mainly evolved the cache: it communicates differently with the elements of the chip and the PC and, above all, its size is increasing.
We also note that the DDR3 memory controller is definitely abandoned by this generation. It will be DDR4 and/or LPPDR4x, not always in the same quantities, on all Tiger Lake-based machines. What benefit? A faster memory and a little less voracious in energy, welded or implanted on the motherboards of PCs. Better, Intel has already anticipated the transition to LPDDR5. The Tiger Lakes will be compatible with the next generation of modules. To believe that the founder intends to decline the newcomers for a while and that the next generation will not arrive immediately.
The other great novelty of Tiger Lake is the Intel Xe graphics. We invite you to refer to the article we have dedicated to it to learn everything about it. But, very quickly, Intel developed a new architecture which would finally be able to run games at 1080p in good conditions. And not just the old titles! Fortnite, GTA V, Battlefield 5 or even Gears 5 are among the games tested and which appear on the performance charts established by Intel. Finally, this is also where the Thunderbolt 4 and a PCIe 4.0 link, the surprise guest, are hiding. Thus, we can associate a Tiger Lake with a dedicated graphics card, entry-level only, because the number of communication lines is still limited (4x). This link can also be associated with internal or external SSD-type devices that already use this transfer standard.
In direct connection with the processor part, the PCH takes care of everything directly or indirectly related to data input and output. This is where we find - for example - the connections with the USB, SATA, etc. sockets. but also the Wi-Fi 6 module. This is brand new, it is now integrated into the circuit and is no longer an external component, as on current PCs. We therefore gain a little more space in the bowels of our PCs, and it is one less component that will weigh on the bill.
After the (repeated) discoveries of security vulnerabilities made in recent years, Intel claims to have taken the bull by the horns (well almost) and made sure to secure both the different parts of its processor, as well as the data passing through it. He therefore implemented a new flow controller (the CSME) in this piece of Tiger Lake, because it is the one through which hackers are most likely to try to penetrate the bowels of the system.
Last important element and which will allow us to make a clever transition with the suite: the controller and current regulator. It monitors all the energy which passes through both the PCH and the processor part and can adapt the electrical flows according to the occupation of the bandwidth between the processor and the memory controller.
“Tiger Lake” rhymes with “adaptation” (yes, yes)
Intel has divided the Tiger Lakes into two categories. There are those which consume between 7 and 15 watts (the old Y processors, in fact, designated by the technical name UP4) and the others which need 12 to 28 watts to operate at cruising speed (the old processors U, which carry the UP3 badge). But some as for the others no longer have a fixed reference TDP as before.
According to Intel, this data (Thermal Design Power), which has given rise to incredible chapel wars in the history of the processor and which Intel has often used to beat the competition, is a bit outdated. So that in its new summary tables of processors, the founder renames it “typical consumption in activity”. It can thus be variable, included in the range of watts announced most of the time and even... exceed it in certain cases. According to Intel, the Tiger Lakes do not resemble any of its old Core processors because they have a exceptional fit. They can comply with the slightest requirements of PC manufacturers so that they can create ever thinner, quieter and really very durable ultraportable PCs. Or machines which, on the contrary, will be a little less fine but which will develop phenomenal firepower while remaining very transportable and capable of holding out for several hours away from the power outlet. Fewer constraints, more flexibility: the nimble processor, it's the Tiger Lake.
Tiger Lake: we're eagerly awaiting it
We can't wait to have the first machines equipped with Tiger Lake in our hands to see how they react in our various test protocols, some being particularly challenging for low-power chips. We are also eager to see how manufacturers will adapt the chips to their machines and vice versa. Anyway, our opinion of technophiles is forged: Intel promises a lot and the Tiger Lake seem to have as much to offer. Their potential and their skills will promote the emergence of new types of ultraportable machines, that's for sure. We think, first of all, of PCs compatible with the future Intel EVO standard or even more exotic machines, such as the Surface Neo from Microsoft, which we know uses Tiger Lake and whose release has been postponed until next year.
Aymeric SIMÉON Journaliste to follow on 0 01net promo codesDiscover all the Cdiscount promo codes Discover all the AliExpress promo codes Discover all the Amazon promo codes Discover all the Rakuten promo codes Discover all the Pixmania promo codes See all the promo codesYour opinion