Intel Skylake-X And Kaby Lake-X LGA 2066 Socket Processors Launching In 2H 2017

Apparently this is the season of leaked slides, at least for Intel, which seems to having trouble keeping inside information under wraps. Earlier today we told you about some upcoming NUC models based on Kaby Lake and Apollo Lake, and now a new batch of internal slides reveals some interesting things about Intel's forthcoming Skylake-X and Kaby Lake-X processors, both slated for release in the third quarter of 2017.

This isn't the first we've heard of Skylake-X and Kaby Lake-X, which are aimed at enthusiasts but no longer bearing the "E" extension. What's new and interesting about these high-end parts is even though they're based on different architectures, they may end up being supported by the same platform, a new one codenamed Basin Falls-X.

Intel Core i7

Basin Falls-X will feature Intel's forthcoming Socket R4 (LGA 2066). The higher pin count compared to LGA 2011 means that all current processors get left behind—you won't be plopping your 10-core Broadwell-E processor into a motherboard based on Basin Falls-X. Interestingly, Basin Falls-X will feature quad-channel memory support for Skylake-X and dual-channel memory support for Kaby Lake-X processors.

Skylake-X will come in same core configurations as Broadwell-E with 10-core, 8-core, and 6-core models in the works. The 10-core and 8-core models will have 44 PCIe Gen3 lanes, while the 6-core variant is cut down to 28 PCIe Gen3 lanes. All three will have a rated TDP of 140W, same as Broadwell-E., so you're getting a bump in performance without increasing the power draw.

Kaby Lake-X will have up to 16 PCIe Gen3 lanes to work with Basin Falls-X. The sole four-core part will also have 8MB of cache, Turbo Boost 2.0 technology (Skylake-X gets Turbo Boost 3.0), and a 112W TDP. Since they share the same platform, both processor families could debut around the same time in Q3 of next year.