There are two key names in Intel’s new line of cellular processors: Core and Core Ultra. Core Ultra processors come with new architectures such as Lunar Lake, Arrow Lake and Meteor Lake. While Core chips involve an architecture that we are incredibly familiar with. Yes, it’s Raptor Lake and more chips are on the way.
The new Core 200H series has just arrived on Intel’s website. These new product listings give us all the information we could ever need about the new cellular processors, which will be the mainstream of the computer market.
Core 200H series chips come with up to 14 Performance cores (Raptor Cove) and 8 Efficient cores (Gracemont). This is more than you can have in the socketed 100 series (up to 2 P cores and 8 E cores), but matches the integrated 100 series processors (up to 6 P cores and 8 E cores).
The smartest chip in the 200H series, the Core 9 270H, has a particularly higher clock speed than any 100H series chip at 5. 8 GHz.
You can see some of the differences between the mobile (socketed) 200-series and 100-series chips in this table, spotted by momomo_us on X (via Videocardz).
So, why does the Core 200H-series exist? In some ways it’s set to be the replacement to some of the 14th Gen mobile processors. It’s tough to say exactly how laptop manufacturers will position the 200H-series but there are a few worthy replacements in the lineup. Take the Core 9 270H. This chip offers a decent improvement over the Core i5 14500HX, which the same number of cores but a much higher clock speed and a lower TDP.
The challenge is that the 2-series chip has a recommended visitor value of $697, while the 14th-gen chip costs $337. This doesn’t sit well with me, given that they both use the same architecture, which is now obsolete.
What makes things more confusing is that those are the only 200H series processors we expect to hit the market. The Raptor Lake Core 200H series chips are here first, but Intel has already shown that the Core Ultra 200H and 200HX series chips will be on the way next year. These are based on the new Arrow Lake architecture, which is a hybrid of its Meteor Lake (series 1) and Lunar Lake (series 2) chips.
If you find these codenames, architectures, and generations confusing, I dare say you wouldn’t be the only one. Intel has really made a meal of it. These latest launches are only going to confuse matters for customers.
Here’s a table of the most prevalent mobile series, to help clear things up:
There are more processors than the ones mentioned above, adding UL and HL built-in chips, but I’ve stuck to what someone looking to buy a gaming laptop might find.
Best gaming PC: The pre-built machines. Best Gaming Laptop: Great Devices for Mobile Gaming
Check your processor specifications before checking out – that’s what I would suggest as of now. We may see some more mainstream computers taking advantage of those socketed Core chips than we’ve noticed so far, as the 14th generation is sometimes excluded from the market. Still, there’s a good chance we’ll find a Core Ultra 200H or 200HX chip in a gaming PC and they’ll meet our frame rate needs perfectly.
For a quick recap, Arrow Lake H/HX includes the same core architecture as Lunar Lake (Lion Cove and Skymont). They’ll include up to 8 P-cores and 16 E-cores. However, these chips skip over the new Xe2 GPU found in Lunar Lake and feature an older Xe GPU with some AI acceleration thrown in for good measure.
Keep an eye out for CES 2025 in early January if you’re considering a new gaming laptop. That’s when we’ll be more informed about the many models that will hit the market.
Jacob received his first byline for his own technology blog. From there, he turned pro as a Hardware Editor at PCGamesN and later led the team as a Hardware Editor. He joined PC Gamer’s controller team as a senior hardware editor before becoming chief editor of the hardware team. Now you’ll find him reporting on the latest developments in the generation and gaming industries and testing the newest PC components.
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