Intel Ice Lake-U laptop processors get igpu with 48 execution units
The next generation of economical laptop processors from Intel will probably get an igpu with 48 execution units. That’s twice as much as the current Intel HD Graphics 620 GPU, which has 24 EUs. The new GPU is expected in the Ice Lake-U processors, which are made at 10nm.
Details about Intel’s Gen 11 GPU have surfaced in SiSoftware’s database and it was noted by TechPowerUp. The database contains a mention of a device with an Ice Lake-U-soc and its GPU has 384 streaming processors, spread over 48 execution units. The clock speed is 600Mhz, but the boost speed is unknown. The igpu can address a maximum of 6GB of the system memory as a vram.
Compared to the Intel HD Graphics 620 GPU, which is in most Intel Kaby Lake-U and Kaby Lake-R laptop processors, the specifications are a significant improvement. Not only has the number of execution units doubled, the same goes for the clock speed, which is standard at 300MHz with the Gen 9.5 GPU. With the new specifications, the igpu may equal or exceed the integrated Vega GPU of the Ryzen Mobile processors, although it is not possible to give a good judgment without benchmarks. Performance can also vary greatly per benchmark or game.
Intel already makes igpus with 48 execution units, for example the Iris Plus Graphics 640, which is in the Core i7-7660U dual core. However, there are few laptops with that processor and there are no variants of the new Kaby Lake-R quadcores with a better GPU than the HD Graphics 620. Because the Ice Lake-U processors are made on a smaller process, it is it is likely that the processors get a larger gpu as standard.
The Intel Ice Lake-U laptop processors will mainly be used in thin and light laptops. They are the successors to the Kaby Lake-R processors, which Intel announced in August last year and which can now be found in many laptops. Those are quad cores with HyperThreading; presumably the same applies to the new Ice Lake-U models.
Intel has not yet given any details about Ice Lake laptop processors, but the processor manufacturer does mention the name on its website. This shows that there will be both U and Y models. Current U versions have a tdp of 15 watts and Y variants are even more economical with a tdp of 4.5 watts. It is not yet known whether Y models will also receive the Gen 11 GPU with 48 EUs.