Intel finally launched its Lunar Lake Core Ultra Series 2 platform today at IFA 2024 and along with comes a customary update to the Intel Evo platform codenamed Project Athena. This year's Intel Evo builds upon parameters introduced with Meteor Lake and is more of an iterative upgrade to accommodate the new Lunar Lake parts.

The new Evo spec is designed for a "No compromise mobile performance", and Intel says that the Evo badge "must be earned". According to the company, the Evo certification process begins with a pre-assessment of the device 8-12 months prior to manufacture. The laptop then passes through 10 different testing phases over a period of six months before earning the Evo badge.

According to Intel, the following are the key experience indicators (KEIs) for Core Ultra 200 series Evo laptops:

• Cooler, quieter performance and responsiveness in ultra-thin designs
• Long real-world battery life
• Built-in security that helps prevent malware attacks and minimizes vulnerabilities
• Built-in Intel Arc graphics for accelerated creation and smoother game play, even while on the go
• Lightning-fast connectivity with Intel Wi-Fi 7 (5 Gig)
• Ability to connect PC to multiple monitors, transfer files and charge PC with Thunderbolt Share
• Instant wake and fast charging
• The highest sustainability standards with EPEAT Gold certification

Essentially, the list is similar to what we've seen with Meteor Lake last year. Once again, Intel doesn't explicitly state what construes "cooler, quieter" performance, so we will have to test out a Lunar Lake laptop ourselves to understand what the likely thresholds are. The only difference this year is that this is a requirement for Evo certification while it was optional with Meteor Lake.

Intel's "real-world battery life" claims are based on a workload that includes Google Chrome, G-Suite or Microsoft Office 365, YouTube, and Google Meet or Zoom, unplugged and connected to 802.11ax networks. The Evo spec mandates minimum battery run times of 9 hours for FHD displays, 8.5 for FHD or 2K, 8 for QHD, 7.5 for 2.8K, and 7 hours of battery life for laptops with 4K displays.

With Lunar Lake, FHD laptops with the Evo badge are expected to last up to 11 hours minimum with 20 hours of local video playback in select designs.

Intel will also rely on VCX metrics to assess camera quality. While Meteor Lake required a 1080p 30 fps webcam at the minimum, Intel doesn't specifically state camera sensor requirements this time around. Nevertheless, it can be safely assumed that the 1080p 30 fps spec will need to be ticked off with Lunar Lake as well.

Intel Evo devices will also come with Unison software preinstalled. Unison allows Windows PCs to connect to Android and iOS devices to share files, photos, calls, and messaging without having to wake up the phone.

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