Built-in RAM is one of the factors that made Apple M processors efficient. Intel tried to do this with Lunar Lake, but it will no longer be — expensive.
As you know, processors for Intel Core Ultra 200V laptops (Lunar Lake) have RAM on the substrate. According to Intel, this design made it possible to create a great product, but seriously hit profitability. The chipmaker says it will not use embedded memory in future processors.
«[Built-in memory] is unique to Lunar Lake. It will not be in Panther Lake, Nova Lake, and their successors. We will build them in a more traditional way…volumetric memory will not be on the roadmap for the future,» said Pat Gelsinger, Intel’s chief executive officer, during a conference call for analysts and investors.
Intel Core Ultra 200V processors have 16GB or 32GB of LPDDR5X-8533 memory connected via a 128-bit interface. This allows you to save a lot of space inside the laptop, as memory modules or soldered chips take up more space. Data transfer delays are reduced, and the extra space can be used for a larger battery or other purposes.
Such built-in LPDDR5X memory is more expensive than conventional memory, and it is also more expensive to install, which affects the cost of Lunar Lake. Also, processors with pre-installed memory reduce the flexibility of laptop and PC layouts.
«Lunar Lake was originally designed as a niche product where we wanted to achieve the highest performance and longest battery life, and then AI PC came along. And with the AI PC, it went from being a niche product to a fairly mass product. Relatively speaking, we’re not talking about 50 million or 100 million units, but a significant part of our overall product portfolio, not a relatively small part. This change happened and had a bigger impact on Lunar Lake’s margins and the company as a whole,» Helsinger explained.
Intel says it envisioned Lunar Lake as a niche product for compact laptops with long battery life. However, due to the need for chips with NPUs, Intel had to increase the output volume of these processors. So, while the processors have been successful, Intel doesn’t want to deal with embedded DRAM anymore in the future.
Source: Tom`s Hardware