Intel will significantly change the brand name of its CPUs from the next generation of chips, "Meteor Lake" onward. From that generation onward, the "i" in "Core i5" and "Core i7" will disappear, and in its place will be a new "Ultra" brand to signify the most advanced chips of that generation.

The "i" will be removed from the Meteor Lake generation of chips and beyond "to highlight a significant shift in architecture and design." This is not entirely surprising, as word leaked last month that Intel was considering this change.

The new "Ultra" branding will also apply to chips that are deemed valuable, and Intel will use it to differentiate its "leadership" products from mainstream products. This would mean that the most expensive chips would always be positioned as Ultra products. The difficulty here is how easy it is to determine whether a non-Ultra Core 7 or an Ultra Core 5 is better.

The company has also stated that it intends to remove "generation-specific messaging," so we will likely see less "13th generation Core i9" and instead just "Core 9." However, Intel has promised to keep the generation of chips noted in the code name, namely 'Core 9 15900K'. This may prevent the confusion that is currently a bit of a problem with Intel's multi-architecture chip lineup. For example, the Core i5 13400F I reviewed earlier this year is often an Alder Lake chip, not a Raptor Lake chip, and calling it '13th generation' could be misinterpreted as also being an Alder Lake chip, even though it is not a Raptor Lake chip There is a possibility.

Nevertheless, by removing the generation branding, Intel is simply making it less confusing for those who already know, and not actually clarifying which architecture is on which chip.

The new badges will begin to roll out with the new branding changes, so we will likely see these badges on laptops from Meteor Lake onward. These 14th generation chips (as Intel will no longer call them) should start rolling out around Q3/Q4 of this year.

Intel calls Meteor Lake "an inflection point in design, manufacturing, and architecture." However, this generation will likely be all mobile chips, and new innovative designs will not be introduced to desktops until 2024 or later. If they do appear for gaming PCs, expect Arrow Lake chips, not Meteor Lake.

But don't be surprised if you are looking to buy a laptop later this year or next and it looks a bit off. This is a big new marketing push from Intel, and we'll see how well it works with laptops later this year.