Dual Response to AMD: APO to Arrive for Core 12 and Core 13, Enabling Voltage Adjustment of the IMC in Non-K Core 14 Processors

Intel reverses its decisions, allowing support for APO in Core 12 and Core 13, and voltage adjustment for IMC in non-K Core 14s, as a perfect summary of the company’s strategy with popular sayings from our country. It’s true that you can’t say more with less, but fortunately this time, the cards are in the consumer’s favor. Despite claiming that Core 12 and Core 13 wouldn’t support APO, and that mid-range and low-end Core 14s would be completely locked, Intel changes its stance as part of a double punch strategy to compete against AMD’s entire gaming CPU lineup.

The pressure from AMD’s sales and the impressive reception of the Ryzen 7000 series, backed by the Ryzen 5000 series, is pushing Intel back, forcing them to take refuge behind their shield called Core 14 with K-series CPUs. However, the response is arriving, and it will be forceful and growing over time.

Intel’s APO will now be available for Core 12 and Core 13 processors, with improved and increasing support. This great news follows our previous coverage of the technology and its specific FPS improvements in enabled Core 14 chips. The improvements were noticeable, with double-digit percentage gains in supported games and reduced power consumption. However, there were only four compatible CPUs, all of them being new models.

This limitation is ending with the upcoming APO release announced at CES 2024, which Intel confirms is ready to support additional CPUs within the Core 12 and Core 13 series. The new Dynamic Tuning Technology (DTT) with APO will bring broader compatibility, not only to the Core 14s showcased at the event but also to older-generation CPUs.

That said, the specific supported models haven’t been disclosed yet. Intel’s presentation stated that there are plans to “support some older-generation products with APO within the Core 12 and Core 13 series.”

In addition, Intel will provide support for 14 more games with the new APO software release, among which are eight optimized for the new Core 14 HX laptops focused on gaming. But that’s not all…

Mid-range and low-end Core 14s will allow voltage adjustment of the IMC, marking another major news from Intel. Previously, only K-series CPUs could control memory controller voltage, meaning that memory frequency support depended solely on the controller’s quality.

As games increasingly rely on RAM frequency, latency, and response times, Intel aims to boost sales of mid-range and low-end Core 14 chips by allowing users to adjust voltage. Therefore, manufacturer BIOS updates are reportedly unlocking VSSA voltage controls for non-K Core 14s, enabling users to add volts to the memory controller and support higher DDR5 and even DDR4 speeds.

This is a logical reaction from Intel, defending itself against a strong competitor dominating European sales. The counterattack measures, APO support for Core 12 and Core 13 and VSSA enablement for non-K Core 14s, are powerful and proven tools that expand their reach in 2024 to increase competition and potentially turn the tide of sales in their favor. Will they succeed?

The article “Double reaction against AMD: APO will come to Core 12 and Core 13, and allows modifying the IMC voltage in non-K Core 14s” was first published on El Chapuzas Informático.