Intel’s next-gen mobile platform is starting to surface, and an early Geekbench 6 entry has given us a first look at the Core Ultra X7 358H and its new Xe3 Arc integrated graphics. The leak appears to come from an ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 GU405AA, a 14-inch laptop running a top-tier Panther Lake “12Xe” configuration.
Under the hood, the Core Ultra X7 358H combines 16 CPU cores in a 4+8+4 layout: four high-performance Cougar Cove P-cores, eight efficiency-focused Darkmont E-cores, and four low-power Skymont cores. The chip is listed with a 1.90 GHz base clock and boosts up to 4.8 GHz on the P-cores, alongside 18 MB of L3 cache and 8 MB of L2. The test system carries 32 GB of LPDDR5x memory; while speeds aren’t specified, vendors will likely pair Panther Lake with fast 9600 MT/s memory to feed the iGPU.
The standout here is the Xe3 Arc iGPU. It’s shown with 12 Xe3 cores (96 EUs) and a 2,500 MHz graphics clock, with 16 GB of shared system memory reported for the GPU. Expect higher-tier SKUs like Core Ultra X9 to push iGPU clocks closer to the 2,800 MHz range, depending on power and cooling.
Early performance numbers arrive via Geekbench OpenCL, where two runs on the same Zephyrus G14 produced 52,946 and 46,841 points. The difference likely reflects varying power modes, and the listing explicitly mentions a Turbo profile. When stacked against current Xe2 parts like the Arc 140V, this 12Xe Xe3 iGPU looks roughly 69% to as much as 91% faster in these synthetic tests, depending on the power plan. Keep in mind that Panther Lake-H chips default to 45W TDP, while Lunar Lake peaks around 37W; that extra power budget and a 50% increase in core count help explain the jump.
As always with OpenCL, treat these results as early indicators rather than the final word. Real-world APIs such as Vulkan and DirectX 12 will tell the fuller story for gaming and GPU compute. Intel has previously guided to around a 50% uplift moving from Xe2 to Xe3, and these first numbers suggest that promise should translate to actual games, not just synthetic scores.
What this means for buyers is encouraging: if these trends hold, 14-inch performance laptops powered by Panther Lake could deliver a meaningful step up in integrated graphics, enabling smoother 1080p gaming and accelerated content creation without a discrete GPU. Availability is expected to begin in January, so more comprehensive benchmarks are likely just around the corner.
Key details spotted so far
– CPU: Core Ultra X7 358H (Panther Lake, 4+8+4 core configuration)
– Clocks: 1.90 GHz base, up to 4.8 GHz boost on P-cores
– Cache: 18 MB L3, 8 MB L2
– Memory: 32 GB LPDDR5x in the tested system
– GPU: Xe3 Arc iGPU with 12 Xe3 cores (96 EUs), 2,500 MHz; 16 GB shared memory reported
– Geekbench OpenCL scores: 52,946 and 46,841, likely different power modes
– TDP context: Panther Lake-H at 45W vs Lunar Lake up to 37W
Early Panther Lake lineup at a glance (preliminary and subject to change)
– Core Ultra 9 X388H: 4P + 8E + 4 LP-E, 12 Xe3 cores, 45W, clocks TBD
– Core Ultra 7 X368H: 4P + 8E + 4 LP-E, 12 Xe3 cores, 45W, clocks TBD
– Core Ultra 7 X358H: 4P + 8E + 4 LP-E, 1.9/4.8 GHz, 12 Xe3 cores at 2.5 GHz, 45W
– Core Ultra 5 X338H: 4P + 4E + 4 LP-E, 10 Xe3 cores, 45W, clocks TBD
– Core Ultra 9 375H: 4P + 8E + 4 LP-E, preliminary iGPU listing shows 4 Xe3 cores, 45W
– Core Ultra 7 355H: 4P + 8E + 4 LP-E, preliminary iGPU listing shows 4 Xe3 cores, 45W
– Core Ultra 7 345H: 4P + 8E + 4 LP-E, preliminary iGPU listing shows 4 Xe3 cores, 45W
– Core Ultra 5 325H: 4P + 4E + 4 LP-E, preliminary iGPU listing shows 4 Xe3 cores, 45W
– Core Ultra 7 360U: 4P + 0E + 4 LP-E, preliminary iGPU listing shows 4 Xe3 cores, 15–28W
– Core Ultra 5 350U: 4P + 0E + 4 LP-E, preliminary iGPU listing shows 4 Xe3 cores, 15–28W
– Core Ultra 5 340U: 4P + 0E + 4 LP-E, preliminary iGPU listing shows 4 Xe3 cores, 15–28W
– Core Ultra 3 320U: 2P + 0E + 4 LP-E, preliminary iGPU listing shows 4 Xe3 cores, 15–28W
Bottom line: the first Panther Lake leak points to a sizable graphics leap with Xe3, especially in higher-power H-series designs. If you’re shopping for a thin-and-light gaming or creator laptop early next year, keep an eye on Core Ultra X7 configurations like the Zephyrus G14 for one of the strongest integrated GPU showings yet from Intel.
