Intel's Panther Lake CPUs showcased in leaked benchmarks, hinting at fierce competition

Intel's Panther Lake CPUs: A First Look at Performance in Upcoming Core Ultra Series

Intel's next-generation Panther Lake processors are generating significant buzz, and a recent leak of benchmark results offers a tantalizing glimpse into their true capabilities. The PassMark benchmark has been graced by the presence of several models from the forthcoming Core Ultra Series 3, including the Core Ultra 7 366H, Ultra X7 358H, Ultra 7 365, and the Ultra 5 332. Adding to the excitement, a separate leak points to the debut of the first portable console powered by Panther Lake – the ONEXPLAYER X1, featuring the Core Ultra 5 338H processor.

Decoding the Panther Lake Architecture and Core Configurations

Digging into the specifics, the Core Ultra 7 366H boasts an impressive 16 compute cores, complemented by 18MB of L3 cache and 12MB of L2 cache. The Ultra X7 358H mirrors this configuration, though it appears to operate at slightly lower clock speeds. With a base frequency of 1.9 GHz and a boost up to 4.8 GHz, it also integrates Xe3 graphics featuring 12 execution units. Moving down the lineup, the Ultra 7 365 is equipped with 8 cores and dedicates 12MB each to its L3 and L2 caches. At the entry-level, the Ultra 5 332 presents a 6-core design, featuring 12MB of L3 cache and 6MB of L2 cache. These preliminary benchmarks consistently showcase robust single-thread performance, a hallmark eagerly anticipated from Panther Lake as Intel aims to directly challenge AMD's latest mobile chip generation.

Performance Benchmarks: A Competitive Edge Unveiled

In terms of raw performance, the Intel Core Ultra X7 366H appears to rival the Core Ultra 9 285H, despite the latter's higher clock speed ceiling of 5.40 GHz, as the 366H is expected to reach around 5.0 GHz. The Core Ultra X7 358H, operating at 4.8 GHz, demonstrates superior performance compared to the Core Ultra 7 255H, even though the 255H holds an advantage in clock speed by 300 MHz and benefits from additional P-cores. The more budget-friendly Core Ultra 7 365 emerges as a strong contender against comparable 8-core Ryzen and Lunar Lake processors, notably outperforming both the Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme and the Ultra 5 226V. The most accessible option, the 6-core Core Ultra 5 332, predictably trails its more powerful siblings in these early tests.

ONEXPLAYER X1: A New Frontier for Panther Lake in Handheld Gaming

The gaming world is abuzz with the confirmation that ONEXPLAYER is actively testing a new iteration of its X1 portable gaming console, set to be the first to feature a Panther Lake processor. This particular unit is powered by the Core Ultra 5 338H, which in its test configuration appeared as a 12-core chip with a base clock of 1.90 GHz and a maximum boost of approximately 3.68 GHz. This processor employs a dual-cluster design, with one cluster housing 4 cores and the other 8. Further leaked details suggest a configuration of 4 Performance (P) cores, 4 Efficient (E) cores, and 4 low-power cores, totaling the aforementioned 12. When integrated into laptops, this chip is expected to achieve clock speeds closer to 4.7 GHz. The cache subsystem is particularly noteworthy for a portable gaming device, featuring 64KB of instruction cache and 32KB of data cache per core, coupled with 4MB of L2 and a substantial 18MB of L3 cache. Support for crucial instruction sets like AVX2, AVX-VNNI, VAES, and SHA is also anticipated.

Integrated Graphics Powerhouse: Arc B370

Beyond its CPU prowess, the Intel Core Ultra 5 338H is generating considerable excitement for its integrated Arc B370 graphics. Built on the Xe3 architecture, this GPU is projected to deliver performance on par with the mobile RTX 3050 Ti. With 10 execution units and capable of boosting up to 2.4 GHz, early Vulkan benchmarks reveal the B370 closely approaching the AMD Radeon 880M while comfortably surpassing the older Xe2 integrated graphics found in Lunar Lake processors. This integration suggests that the ONEXPLAYER X1, equipped with Panther Lake and Arc B370, could ascend to become one of the most powerful Intel-driven portable gaming consoles available. The original ONEXPLAYER X1 launched with an AMD Ryzen 7 8840U and Radeon 780M GPU. Subsequent X1 Pro models saw upgrades to the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 and Radeon 890M, alongside Intel Core Ultra H-series processors. Most recently, the X1 Air utilized Core Ultra V processors. All these models share the same versatile 10.95-inch LTPS display, offering a crisp 2560×1600 resolution at a fluid 120Hz. Their hallmark feature remains the detachable controllers, allowing seamless transitions between tablet, laptop, and portable console modes. The latest leaks indicate that this very 3-in-1 form factor is now being tested with the formidable combination of Panther Lake and the Arc B370.