Intel’s latest low-power Core i7-12700T and Core i9-12900T processors with a 35W TDP are currently shipping in Europe and Japan, indicating that they’ll be arriving on Western shores soon. Intel’s hybrid Alder Lake-S CPUs, which are aimed at tiny form-factor and fanless PCs, appear particularly excellent for these market segments because of their energy-efficient cores. They also look to have reasonably priced products.
Because Intel’s 35W Core i9-12900T and Core i7-12700T processors are new to the market, certain shops in some regions charge a premium to compensate for the lower TDP. However, if you’re lucky, you might be able to find them at Geizhals for a reasonable price.
Several merchants in Europe sell Intel’s Core i9-12900T for €514 – €528 ($494 – $503 w/o tax), but Intel’s Core i7-12700T costs €365 – €470 ($351 – $437 w/o VAT), depending on the retailer and country. Some vendors sell the new low-power Alder Lakes CPU for a reasonable price, but some wish to make a modest profit.
In Japan, the situation is much different. 1-s.jp shop (via @momomo us) charges 69,980 ($552 w/o tax) for the Core i9-12900T, which is only slightly less than Amazon’s $579 for the Core i9-12900K in the United States.
If the higher-end low-power Alder Lake parts are too expensive, European retailers have the entire range of Intel’s 12th Generation Core T-series processors with a 35W TDP, including the Core i5-12600T, Core i5-12500T, Core i5-12400T, and Core i3-12300T, for €147 – €299 ($141 – $278) depending on the model, retailer, and country.
Intel’s high-end low-power T-series CPUs have all the cores and functionality of their higher-power counterparts, but they run at far lower clock speeds to keep their base power under 35W. The hybrid Alder Lake-based Intel Core i9-12900T and Core i7-12700T processors are no exception: the higher-end 12900T chip has eight high-performance Golden Cove P-cores as well as energy-efficient Gracemont E-cores, allowing it to process up to 24 threads at once. The 12700T variant has eight P-cores and four E-cores, allowing it to process up to 20 threads at the same time.
When compared to standard non-K versions with a 65W TDP, both CPUs clock their performance cores at 1.40 GHz base frequency and their efficiency cores at 1.0 GHz base frequency.
The good news is that T-series CPUs fully support Intel’s Turbo frequencies, allowing them to boost their clocks to levels comparable to ordinary CPUs when cooling allows, and hence deliver comparable performance. Of course, this raises their Turbo power to 99W – 106W, but that’s the cost of extra oomph.
Meanwhile, Intel offers TE-series CPUs with even lower base speeds but the same Turbo clocks for embedded (or not so embedded) applications that must maintain CPU TDP at 35W. Unfortunately, while the TE-series Alder Lake chips are mentioned on Intel’s website, they aren’t yet available for purchase.
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