Intel’s Panther Lake chip redefines mobile efficiency with near-plugged performance
Intel’s upcoming Panther Lake chip promises a major leap in mobile efficiency. Early tests reveal it maintains nearly the same performance on battery as when plugged in. This addresses long-standing concerns about power management in laptops—an issue previously highlighted by Qualcomm’s criticism of Intel’s older designs.
The new design shifts more responsibility to laptop manufacturers for power optimisation. Unlike past Intel chips, which lost up to 45% of their performance on battery—due to firmware flaws in some Dell models—Panther Lake aims to eliminate such drops. Testing shows gaming performance stays consistent whether running on battery or mains power.
Panther Lake also improves efficiency over its predecessor, Lunar Lake, leaving AMD trailing in mobile power savings. Despite drawing up to 65 watts from the wall (matching AMD’s current chips), it delivers better energy management. This makes it particularly suited for handheld devices, where low-power operation is critical. Intel plans to reuse the same Panther Lake silicon for handhelds, without developing a new chip. A possible variant could feature a full integrated GPU but fewer CPU cores. However, no specific OEM partners for handheld use have been announced yet.
Panther Lake’s efficiency gains could reshape expectations for mobile and handheld computing. By maintaining performance on battery, Intel addresses a key weakness in its previous designs. The chip’s flexibility—with potential GPU-focused variants—may also expand its use in portable gaming and other low-power devices.
