12th-Gen Intel® Core™ Desktop Processors: Pricing, Availability, and Everything You Need to Know

12^th-Gen Intel® Core™ desktop processors are available on Newegg. The latest from Team Blue offers a unique twist on x86 architecture that is designed to offer users a versatile CPU—one that is equally capable in both gaming and content creation scenarios. They offer support for the next generation of PC components as well, which means that systems built around a 12^th Gen Intel® Core™ Processor are as future-proofed as they can be at this present juncture. Let us rundown some key facts and features!

What motherboard processor socket supports 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors?

12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors require a new Intel motherboard with the LGA 1700 socket. The new processors will not work in legacy motherboards that support sockets for previous generation processors. So, when you are planning your new build, look for the latest 600-series chipset motherboards for your 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors.

Which 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors are available on Newegg on launch day?

 

CPU Name	Max Turbo (GHz)	Cores (P/E)	Threads	List Price
Intel Core i9 12900K	Up to 5.2	16 (8/8)	24	$649.99
Intel Core i9 12900KF	Up to 5.2	16 (8/8)	24	$629.99
Intel Core i7 12700K	Up to 5.0	12 (8/4)	20	$449.99
Intel Core i7 12700KF	Up to 5.0	12 (8/4)	20	$429.99
Intel Core i5 12600K	Up to 4.9	10 (6/4)	16	$319.99
Intel Core i5 12600KF	Up to 4.9	10 (6/4)	16	$299.99

Will 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors be available in Newegg Shuffle?

Judging from the success of our pre-orders, we do anticipate high demand for the flagship Intel Core i9 12900K processor and others. In all likelihood, the Intel Core i9 12900K processor will be up for grabs in the Newegg Shuffle, potentially along with other 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processor SKUs based on demand.

What do the “K” and “KF” designations mean?

Intel CPU nomenclature designates “K” as an unlocked processor that supports overclocking. Intel Processors with “F” in the product name denote NO SUPPORT for processor graphics. A “KF” designation means the processor is unlocked and does NOT support processor graphics. 12th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors which do not have the F designation incorporate Intel UHD Graphics driven by Xe Architecture that can support up to 8K HDR video.

What are P-Cores and E-Cores? What is Intel’s “new performance hybrid architecture” that everyone is so excited about?

The available 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors incorporate two types of cores in the architecture. Performance-cores—or “P-cores”—are optimized for single and lightly-threaded performance. Games in large part run in one core of the processor.  Efficient-cores—or “E-cores”—are optimized for scaling highly-threaded workloads. Multi-threading is useful when multitasking with several programs open, like when using a creative suite, scientific modeling software, or programming with large databases. Architecture schematic of Intel 12th Gen Core Processors In 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors that support the performance hybrid architecture, E-cores and P-cores operate together seamlessly. A processor HW feature called Intel® Thread Director monitors and analyzes performance data in real-time and supports the OS scheduler in routing the right tasks to the appropriate cores.

Are there new Overclocking features in unlocked 12th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors?

Intel has released Extreme Tuning Utility (XTU) 7.5 for users to harness the latest performance customization features in 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors. This includes the ability to overclock E-cores, which provides a useful boost in performance when running creative applications. Users can also overclock their DDR5 desktop memory here as well.  

Want to plunge even further into 12th Gen details? Check out this Reddit AMA with Newegg and Intel engineers!

 

Will 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors have DDR5 support?

Yes. 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors will support DDR5, the latest standard for system memory. Systems with DDR5 RAM support faster frequencies and higher bandwidth and throughput—up to 4800 mega transfers per second (MT/s). Systems powered by 12^th Gen Intel Core Processors will still support legacy DDR4 RAM with throughput topping out at 3200 MT/s.

Do 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors support PCIe 5.0?

Yes. 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors support x16 PCIe Gen 5 and x4 PCIe Gen 4 interface standards. That is important if you use a NVIDIA RTX 3000-series or AMD Radeon 6000-series desktop graphics cards where you stand to realize palpable performance gains. The x16 PCIe Gen 5 slot in an Alder Lake system motherboard is capable of twice the bandwidth (128 GB/s) over the previous generation.   Intel internal benchmarking for CPU-intensive gaming titles.

Are 12th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors good for gaming?

Although they are versatile chips with great capabilities for content creation and workflow, 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors are engineered with gamers in mind. Gaming on a PC, as far as the CPU is concerned, is typically single-thread intensive. The performance hybrid architecture and the latest iteration of Intel’s 10 nm process (which it calls Intel 7) in 12^th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processors improve single-threaded performance over previous-gen CPUs. Manufacturer benchmarks for gaming were released by Intel in October and they look promising. The flagship Intel Core i9-12900K Processor gen-over-gen performance increases on CPU-intensive titles, including up to 25% more FPS on Troy: A Total War Saga, up to 28% more FPS on Hitman 3, and up to 23% more FPS on Far Cry 63.