- An Intel reference laptop has been spotted with a Wildcat Lake CPU
- It has a design that is very MacBook-inspired, and it looks like a notebook that will go after the Neo
- However, you get beefier performance here with a faster CPU and twice the RAM of the Neo
A sighting of a reference laptop from Intel with a new Wildcat Lake CPU has caused quite a stir as it appears to take on Apple’s popular new MacBook Neo.
Tom’s Hardware featured a post on the X by Vaidyanathan Subramaniam of Notebookcheck.net, who got a first look at the laptop at an Intel event, with some additional information on the Notebookcheck.net site itself.
The device is a thin and light 14-inch notebook that has an aluminum chassis and sleek MacBook-style lines with a vibrant green color that also follows in the footsteps of the Neo’s bright appearance.
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The CPU inside is, as mentioned, a Wildcat Lake chip, which is a budget offering and effectively a cut-down version of the new Panther Lake silicon. The processor used is apparently the Intel Core 7 360 or Core 7 350, based on the presence of an NPU with 17 TOPS, along with the CPU, which has two performance cores and four low power efficiency cores (less than the normal efficiency cores, of which this chip has none).
The CPU offers what should be a decent enough level of performance, with a PL1 of 17W (22W maximum) and a PL2 of 35W (which can be hit for very short bursts). Interestingly, there is also the option to run at 11W, which allows the laptop to operate in fanless mode without needing active cooling, so it will be dead silent in that case.
There is 16GB of soldered system RAM present alongside the CPU.
Analysis: a newer Neo?
Given that the MacBook Neo operates at lower wattage (generally under 10W), this should be an effective rival – especially given that it packs twice the RAM of Apple’s laptop.
Keep in mind that the Neo is limited to 8GB of system memory, although Apple has done a good job of ensuring that this isn’t a hindrance for typical day-to-day use.
However, future proofing is more of an issue for me with the MacBook Neo due to the RAM load. Still, we don’t know what price a Wildcat laptop like the one shown by Intel will command. Apple has of course made the Neo very competitive, and that value has been clearly demonstrated by the way it has flown off retail shelves.
I’ve been talking about the threat the MacBook Neo poses to the dominance of Windows 11 in the notebook world ever since Apple launched its budget laptop, while wondering what Microsoft’s response might be. Fixing Windows 11 is one thing, but it looks like Intel could step in to lend its processing power to the battle against Apple with Wildcat Lake, although there are still quite a few unknowns to be figured out.
It’s worth noting that the Intel laptop looks great in the photos taken and shared, but according to Subramaniam, its appearance is even more impressive in real life. Watch this space as they say.
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