Intel Alder Lake Leak Core i9-12900K, Core i7-12700K, Core i5-12600K CPU Specifications Revealed

Leaks on Zihun forums claim to list the specifications of the Intel Core i9-12900K, Intel Core i7-12700K, and Intel Core i5-12600K 12th Gen Alder Lake CPUs. As is traditional in Intel CPUs, the K signifies that the CPU is the unlocked version, meaning it enables overclocking for gaming enthusiasts and other users interested in squeezing out maximum performance. Other non-unlocked versions without the K designation will also be available.

All the listed CPUs will be designed for the Intel 6oo-series platform, using the Z690 chipset.

These leaks coincide with the release of engineering samples of the Alder Lake CPUs to various users. Although we can’t definitively confirm these specs are 100% accurate, the timing of their release suggests they probably are.

Rumoured Intel 12th Gen Alder Lake Desktop CPU Specifications

CPU Name	Core/Thread	P-Core Count	E-Core Count	P-Core Boost Clock	E-Core Boost Clock	Cache	TDP
Intel Core i9-12900K	16 / 24	8	8	5.3 GHz	3.9 GHz	30 MB	125W (PL1) 228W (PL2)
Intel Core i7-12700K	12 / 20	8	4	5.0 GHz	3.8 GHz	25 MB	125W (PL1) 228W (PL2)
Intel Core i5-12600K	10 / 16	6	4	4.9 GHz	3.6 GHz	20 MB	125W (PL1) 228W (PL2)

Alder Lake Hybrid Cores - Big & Little Architecture

As it seems AMD will also be adopting in some of its future CPUs, Intel’s Alder Lake CPUs will feature a hybrid core design, also known as Big and Little Architecture.

What Is Hybrid Architecture?

In simple terms, hybrid architecture uses bigger, faster and more energy-intensive cores for the more complex and intensive tasks, diverting simpler, less intensive tasks to the smaller cores which are more energy efficient. Overall this means the CPU can have better performance per Watt.

What Are P-Cores And E-Cores?

Intel’s names for their Big and Little cores are P-cores and E-cores respectively. The codenames for each of these cores types (tech companies love their codenames) are Golden Cove for the P-cores and Gracemont for the E-cores. P-cores have a faster clock speed as can be seen in the above table, whereas E-cores have a lower one.

Intel Core i9-12900K CPU

The Intel Core i9-12900K is the big daddy of the Alder Lake range, and comes with 16 cores in total (8 P-cores and 8 E-cores) with a maximum single-core frequency (on the P-cores) of 5.3 GHz. It also comes with 30MB of L3 cache and reported TDP of 125W/228W for PL1/PL2 respectively, which is the same across all three CPUs listed here.

Intel Core i7-12700K CPU

The Intel Core i7-12700K occupies the mid-tier of the Alder Lake range, and comes with 12 cores in total (8 P-cores as with the i9-12900K but only 4 E-cores) with a maximum single-core frequency (on the P-cores) of 5.0 GHz. It has 25MB of L3 cache (5MB less than the flagship) and the same reported TDP of 125W/228W (for PL1/PL2) as the other two SKUs.

Intel Core i5-12600K CPU

Finally comes the Intel Core i7-12700K occupies the entry-level of the unlocked Alder Lake range, and comes with 10 cores in total (6 P-cores and 4 4 E-cores) with a maximum single-core frequency (on the P-cores) of 4.9 GHz. It has 20MB of L3 cache (10MB less than the flagship and 5MB less than the Core i7-12700K) and once again a reported TDP of 125W/228W for PL1/PL2 respectively.