Intel 10th-Gen Core i9 Leak Reveals 5.3GHz Clock Speeds

Intel 10th-gen Core i9 to deliver 5.3GHz clock speeds, according to leaked slide

A leaked slide published by VideoCardz revealed some exciting details on Intel’s upcoming 10th-gen Core i9 processors in high-performance laptops.

The processors in question are the Comet Lake-H Core i9-10980HK, and the slide indicates they can reach clock speeds up to 5.3GHz under ideal situations. Combined with an eight-core architecture that supports 16 threads, this CPUs are intended for mobile PC gamers and content creators looking for workstation-level productivity while on the go.

Intel Comet Lake-H clock speed — Image used with permission by copyright holder

There’s a catch, though: The 5.3GHz unlocked clock speed is described in the slide as the “Thermal Velocity Boost,” or TVB, not Intel’s traditional Turbo Boost speeds. Thermal Velocity Boost only kicks in if the system has headroom for power and temperature, so it’s likely you won’t be running at this accelerated speed for long durations. It also could mean that not every laptop with the Core i9 can boost to 5.3GHz.

At this point, we still don’t know what the processor’s base and boost clock speeds will be. Still, given rival AMD’s spring launch of its gaming-centric Ryzen 9 4900H and Ryzen 9 4900HK processors, Intel’s faster TVB speeds will allow the company to stay competitive.

An earlier leaked benchmark showed Intel’s Comet Lake-H enjoying a slight edge over AMD’s current-generation Ryzen 9 3900X desktop processor in single-threaded performance, but the 10th-gen CPU trailed its rival in multi-threaded operations.

Intel’s 10th-gen Comet Lake-H is in the same generation as the company’s Ice Lake release, though it is still based on the 14nm node. Intel adopted a more efficient 10nm process for its Ice Lake processors, though it seems like the power needed for H-series chips still isn’t there.

Earlier leaked benchmarks suggest that Comet Lake-H can drive performance gains of up to 40% when compared to Intel’s previous generation Coffee Lake architecture. The PassMark CPU benchmark posted by Twitter user @_rogame showed that the 10th-gen Core i7-10750H performed 40% better than the Core i7-9750H.

Alongside Intel’s processor drop, there’s been increasing speculation that Nvidia will also announce its new GeForce Super graphics cards for laptops on the same day, April 2. That’s according to a report on Notebook Check.

With both companies rumored to announce processing and graphics chips, we can also expect to see a number of laptops debut or get refreshed on that date.

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