Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC) has announced that its 11th Gen Rocket Lake computer processor will be unveiled in Q1 2021 with PCle 4.0 support incorporated.
Intel to unveil 11th Gen Rocket Lake CPUs in 2021
The announcement comes a heard of Advanced Micro Devices’ (NASDAQ:AMD) launch of its next-gen Zen 3 architecture based CPUs for desktop computers. This has been considered a move that is likely to offer competition to Intel’s dominance in the high-powered PCs segment. Intel’s confirmation that it is lining up new chips next year appears like a reminder for PC manufacturers that they will still have an alternative beyond any flashy hardware that AMD will unveil.
Recently the company launched the 10th Gen CPUs and Z490 chipset, which saw various motherboard manufacturers revealing that their new product offerings will be PCIe 4.0 ready. At the time Intel didn’t give a word about future support, but it has now confirmed that all Z490 motherboards will have PCIe 4.0 support with the 11th Gen Rocket Lake CPUs. These will be the first CPUs from Intel offering support for PCI 4.0, which currently lacks from its mainstream CPUs meaning that it has lagged behind AMD’s 3rd Gen Ryzen CPUs that introduced the new standard last year.
Intel offering CPUs offering PCIe 4.0 support
Although the issues of PCIe 4.0 offer small gains with the RTX 3000-series CPUs from Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) it is nonetheless something that Intel is looking to remedy with its 11th Gen Rocket Lake CPUs. Most importantly, the Rocket Lake-S chips are compatible with current Intel 400-series motherboards, which will be great for those looking for an upgrade next year.
Intel’s desktop processors’ major revamp will see the company backport most of the architecture enhancements it introduced with the Willow Cove architecture from 11th Gen mobile processors. These will offer significant upgrades even though the company has not managed to release 10nm desktop products. Besides PCIe 4.0, the latest Rocket Lake-S chips will offer new Xe graphics as well as integrated Thunderbolt4 support