Intel Is Leveling Up: Nova Lake CPUs Already in Final Testing Stages

Intel has begun shipping the first engineering samples of Nova Lake processors, meaning development has entered final testing, with the market launch of Nova Lake-S desktop models still slated for the second half of 2026.

According to early info, Nova Lake-S will come in two flavors: single-chip and dual-chip. Single-chip variants are expected to offer up to 28 physical cores, while top-tier dual-chip configurations could hit 52 cores, split between performance (P-cores), efficiency (E-cores), and low-power LP cores. Current-gen desktop Arrow Lake-S tops out at 24 cores. Hence the rumored 2x multithreaded performance uplift mentioned in leaks, while single-core performance is expected to climb about 20% based on the same estimates.

The massive cache expansion is also worth noting. Single-chip models are rumored to get up to 144MB of combined L2+L3 cache plus bLLC block cache, while dual-chip variants get up to 288MB. This is a clear nod to AMD's 3D V-Cache play: games and productivity workloads will be able to leverage large pools of fast memory to reduce latency and boost FPS. Intel is trying to close one of its key gaps in the gaming segment.

Unfortunately, Nova Lake-S will require a new motherboard. The CPUs move to the LGA 1954 socket, paired with 900-series chipsets led by the Z990. RAM support remains DDR5, but will expand to include CUDIMM and CQDIMM — allowing stable operation with modules up to 8000 MT/s in one-DIMM-per-channel configs. PCIe 5.0 lanes increase from 24 to 36, and PCIe 4.0 from 4 to 16, offering more flexibility for fast SSDs and graphics cards.

The TDP of flagship processors falls in the 125–175W range (PL1), but peak power draw paints a very different picture: single-chip models can spike up to 350W, while dual-chip variants can hit 700W. Those are serious numbers that will require new headroom from cooler and motherboard makers. Intel will likely share official details at Computex, where we might also see the first 900-series boards.

What do you think? Can Intel compete head-to-head with Zen 6 in gaming and multitasking with Nova Lake, or will price-to-performance and efficiency again be the deciding factors? Let us know in the comments.