Intel will be substituting Pentium and Celeron brands with just Intel Processor. The new branding will supersede both existing brands in 2023 notebooks and apparently make things easier when consumers are looking to purchase budget laptops.
Intel will now focus on its Core, Evo, and vPro brands for its flagship products and use Intel Processor in what it calls “essential” products.
Intel is committed to driving innovation to benefit users, and our entry-level processor families have been crucial for raising the PC standard across all price points. So it was explained by Josh Newman, VP and interim GM of mobile client platforms at Intel. “The new Intel Processor branding will simplify our offerings so users can focus on choosing the right processor for their needs.”
Pentium is a trademark used for a series of x86 architecture-compatible microprocessors built by Intel. The original Pentium was released in 1993. The Pentium II and Pentium III were released afterward.
In their state as of March 2022, Pentium processors are deemed entry-level products that Intel rates as “two stars,” indicating that they are above the low-end Atom and Celeron series but below the faster Intel Core lineup and workstation/server Xeon series.
The end of the Pentium brand comes after nearly 30 years of use. Initially introduced in 1993, flagship Pentium chips were first introduced in high-end desktop machines before moving to laptops. Intel has primarily been using its Core branding for its flagship line of processors ever since its introduction in 2006, and Intel repurposed the Pentium branding for midrange processors instead.
Celeron was Intel’s brand name for low-cost PCs. Launched around five years after Pentium, Celeron chips have always offered a lot less performance at a lot less cost for laptop makers and, ultimately, consumers. The first Celeron chip in 1998 was based on a Pentium II processor, and the latest Celeron processors are primarily used in Chromebooks and low-cost laptops.
Celeron is Intel’s trademark for low-end IA-32 and x86-64 computer microprocessor prototypes targeted at low-cost PCs.
Celeron processors are compatible with IA-32 software. However, they generally deliver less performance per clock speed than flagship Intel CPU lines, like the Pentium or Core brands. In addition, Celeron branded processors often have less cache or intentionally disabled advanced features, with variable impact on performance.
As a result, while some Celeron designs have gained strong performance for their segment, most of the Celeron line has shown noticeably degraded performance. It has been the primary explanation for the increased cost of other Intel CPU brands versus the Celeron range.
Raised in April 1998, the first Celeron-branded CPU was founded on the Pentium II. Subsequent Celeron-branded CPUs were established on the Pentium III, Pentium 4, Pentium M, and Intel Core.
Intel’s move to simplify to just Intel Processor means multiple processor families will now be housed under a single brand. How Intel plans to deal with educating consumers on what is midrange and what is low-cost isn’t entirely clear. Either way, the Celeron and Pentium low-cost chips have indeed built up enough negative affinities in recent years, as PC makers increasingly focus on Chromebooks and low-cost devices where occasionally the chips can’t keep up.
Intel tells the brand change won’t impact the company’s current product offerings or roadmap and that it “will resume to deliver the same products and uses within segments.”
Intel’s rebranding comes just weeks before the company introduces its flagship 13th Gen desktop processor. Intel accidentally revealed specs for some of its 13th Gen chips earlier this week after promising at least one will run at 6GHz at stock.