No More i3, i5, i7? Intel's Overhauling How It Names Its Desktop and Laptop CPUs

Don't expect CPUs called '14th Gen Core,' and say bye-bye to the old 'i.' Intel simplifies its iconic Core brand, starting with upcoming 'Meteor Lake' processors. Will it make understanding its CPUs easier, or murkier?

Love it or hate it, Intel is overhauling its system of naming and marketing its Core processors for laptops and desktops, which has been in place for almost 15 years.

To simplify the company’s branding, Intel is removing the “i” from the i3, i5, i7, and i9 tiers for its Core chips, a move Intel previously hinted at last month. Going forward, consumers will only see Core 3, Core 5, Core 7, and Core 9.

But in a more surprising move, Intel is also ditching the “generational messaging” behind each Core series. Hence, you won’t see a 14th Gen or 15th Gen Core series, at least not officially. Instead, future Core chips will simply be given a processor number, for example "Intel Core 5 processor 1050."

(Credit: Intel)

When the next generation comes along, the numbering will then go up sequentially. For example, a following generation would likely be the Intel Core 2000 series, although the company is still ironing out the exact details of how the new numbering scheme will represent successive generations.

Meet the Intel 'Ultra' Chips

The name-scheme changes don’t stop there. Intel will also be designating a new processor tier, called Core Ultra. The Ultra processors will cut across the Core 5, Core 7, and Core 9 levels, and feature Intel's most cutting-edge CPU architecture or premium features. The basic, non-Ultra Core lines will be allocated to the CPUs intended for a mainstream audience.

You can expect the Ultra chips to arrive with names in the form of "Intel Core Ultra 9 1090H." (Note: The 1090H, like the 1050 above, is given as an expressive example, not reflecting any announced chip.)

(Credit: Intel)

“The first digit of the products coming out here will indicate the newness,” Tim Thraves, senior product brand manager at Intel, told PCMag. “You will see that there is an organizational system.”  

The company is preparing the overhaul to bolster the marketing for "Meteor Lake," or what was broadly expected to be dubbed the company's "14th Generation Core" processors. The new silicon will use Intel’s long-awaited Intel 4 manufacturing process (formerly known as 7-nanometer before it underwent its own name change) and promises to offer substantial improvements in performance and battery life, at a time when the company is facing heated client-silicon competition from both AMD and Apple.

(Credit: Intel)

“We were hearing from customers and partners that Meteor Lake is a pretty big inflection point for us,” Thraves said. “It just felt like maybe this was a time—a little bit—to go outside the box of incrementing from one number to the next.”

Intel: We Want to See More 'Core'

The revamp also aims to emphasize the "Core" in the Intel Core name, seeing as, according to the company, the i3/i5/i7/i9 schema and the 12th Gen and 13th Gen messaging has tended to hog the spotlight.

“There was just a little bit of, ‘Hey, we see way too many articles of i7 versus (AMD’s) Ryzen 7,’" Thraves said. "And we just wanted to put a little bit more focus on the Intel Core brand."

In addition, the company conducted market research last year that found “the combination of Intel Core, plus the label of those tiers” rated highest among consumers when it came to awareness. “It had been probably 15 years since we did an all-in look at the (PC) client branding here,” Thraves noted.  

When it comes to the newly unveiled Core Ultra brand, consumers can expect some significant differences with the standard Core line, such as exclusive features involving AI-powered capabilities. “We’ve been really clear that in order to have a two-tier branding strategy, it can’t just be like a 2% performance improvement,” Thraves said.

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