Intel Meteor Lake Desktop Processor Spotted: Intel’s Meteor Lake processors have been making waves in the mobile platform segment, but new leaks suggest that an early engineering sample (ES2) of a Meteor Lake desktop processor has been spotted. Dubbed as Core Ultra 9 185, this processor features 14 cores, no hyperthreading, and works with the LGA 1851 socket, but it seems unlikely to receive official support for most 800-series motherboards.

Intel Meteor Lake Desktop Processor Spotted: 14 Cores, LGA 1851 Socket, and No Hyperthreading

Meteor Lake Desktop: Early Sample Details

Although Intel scrapped its initial plans to release Meteor Lake for desktops, early prototypes were manufactured and have now surfaced in leaked images. The sample, codenamed Q46W, is a second-stage engineering sample (ES2) and is believed to be a desktop variant of the Core Ultra 9 185H, which is already available on mobile platforms.

Key Specifications of Core Ultra 9 185 (Desktop Variant)

Cores and Threads: 14 cores (6 Performance + 8 Efficient) with no hyperthreading.
Clock Speeds: Base clock of 2.8 GHz and boost clock of 4.5 GHz.
TDP Range: Ranges between 65W and 135W.
LGA 1851 Socket Compatibility: Works with the LGA 1851 socket but lacks support for most 800-series motherboards.

How Does It Compare to the Mobile Variant?

The desktop variant of the Core Ultra 9 185 lacks hyperthreading, which reduces its multi-threaded performance. In CPU-Z tests, the sample scored:

Single-core: 732.3 points
Multi-core: 5750.2 points

In comparison, the mobile variant of Core Ultra 9 185H scores:

Single-core: 734 points
Multi-core: 8162 points

The performance gap can be attributed to the absence of hyperthreading in the desktop sample, which significantly limits its multi-threaded capabilities.

Will Meteor Lake Desktop Ever Launch?

Despite the existence of this engineering sample, Intel reportedly decided not to pursue a desktop release of Meteor Lake in early 2023. The Meteor Lake architecture, Intel’s first multi-tiled design, introduced four distinct tiles:

Compute Tile
Graphics Tile
SoC Tile
I/O Tile

This innovation led to notable performance improvements in the graphics segment, thanks to the Xe-LPG architecture.

Final Thoughts: A Glimpse of What Could Have Been

While Meteor Lake was initially planned for high-performance desktop and laptop computing, Intel shifted its focus towards mobile applications and power efficiency. The desktop variant’s lack of hyperthreading and limited compatibility with existing motherboards likely sealed its fate. Nonetheless, this early engineering sample offers a fascinating glimpse into what could have been a significant addition to Intel’s desktop lineup.