Intel is set to launch its next-generation high-performance desktop processor, Arrow Lake-S, later this year. This new release will adopt the LGA1851 package and come paired with the latest 800-series chipset motherboards, with the Z890 standing as the flagship model.

Now, a netizen has leaked the architectural characteristics diagram of the Arrow Lake-S processor and the Z890 chipset. At first glance, the differences from the Z790 are minimal. The most striking change is the exclusive support for DDR5 memory, marking the end of DDR4 compatibility.

The specific frequency support for DDR5 remains unclear, though it is expected to surpass the current DDR5-5600 standard. For perspective, AMD's Ryzen 9000 series natively supports up to DDR5-6000. With optimal configurations, it can reach DDR5-6400, and even exceed 9000MHz with certain setups.

In terms of PCIe expansion lanes, there are notable improvements. The processor now offers 20 PCIe 5.0 lanes, up from 16. This enhancement allows full utilization for both graphics cards and SSDs simultaneously, without the need for lane splitting. Additionally, there are four PCIe 4.0 lanes available.

The chipset supports 24 PCIe 4.0 lanes, which is an increase of four lanes from previous iterations. However, PCIe 3.0 is no longer supported.

The new platform also integrates a Thunderbolt 4 controller, supporting two interfaces compatible with HDMI 2.1 and DP 2.1. Although there is no native USB 4 support (owing to the presence of Thunderbolt 4), it continues to offer USB 3.2 20Gbps, USB 3.1 10Gbps, and USB 3.0 5Gbps. Networking capabilities include 10Gbps + 2.5Gbps Ethernet and Wi-Fi 7.