Intel’s 'Lynx Point' chipset details leak

We know that Intel plans on releasing Haswell architecture-based microprocessors, sometime in 2013, which will be the successor to Sandy Bridge and now, we have more details on the chipset it will be using, thanks to a leaked slide found by Chinese website, Zol.com.cn. This will form the 8-series chipset, once it releases next year.

A look ahead

The first big change is we’ll be seeing a brand new socket once more, the LGA 1150 that will replace the existing LGA 1155 socket. However, existing CPU coolers for the LGA 1155 socket will be compatible, since other than the pin count, the distance between the mounting holes remain the same. The chipset will now handle only analog video signals, whereas the digital signals, like DisplayPort is moved to the CPU. Another major departure from the existing chipset is the support for only SATA 3.0 or 6Gbps support. The chipset will now support a total of six USB 3.0 ports as well as power and performance optimizations for Rapid Storage Technology driver and vPro enhancements. Due to the smaller fabrication process, the new platform will most likely consume less power as well. Going by the lifecycle of Sandy Bridge, Haswell will most likely see two CPU generations on the LGA 1150 socket, before we have another change in architecture and socket. While these specifications do appear to be legit, it’s still from a leaked source, so we won’t know for certain, till we hear something from the horse's mouth.