I made a quick timeline of major processor generations for both Intel Core, including their approximate release years. This is super useful when shopping for used or second hand Laptops & CPUs in Zimbabwe or trying to understand how far we’ve come in performance, efficiency and features.
Intel Core i-Series Generations (Nehalem onward - the modern “Core” era)
• 1st Gen (Nehalem) — 2008/2009
• 2nd Gen (Sandy Bridge) — 2011/2012
• 3rd Gen (Ivy Bridge) — 2012/2013
• 4th Gen (Haswell) — 2013/2014
• 5th Gen (Broadwell) — 2014/2015
• 6th Gen (Skylake) — 2015/2016
• 7th Gen (Kaby Lake) — 2016/2017
• 8th Gen (Coffee Lake) — 2017/2018
• 9th Gen (Coffee Lake Refresh) — 2018/2019
• 10th Gen (Comet Lake / Ice Lake) — 2019/2020
• 11th Gen (Rocket Lake / Tiger Lake) — 2020/2021
• 12th Gen (Alder Lake) — 2021/2022 (introduced hybrid P+E cores)
• 13th Gen (Raptor Lake) — 2022/2023
• 14th Gen (Raptor Lake Refresh) — 2023/2024
• 15th Gen (Arrow Lake) — 2025/2026
• Core Ultra Series 1 (Meteor Lake) — 2023/2024 (new naming for mobile-first)
• Core Ultra Series 2 (Arrow Lake / Lunar Lake) — 2024/2025
• Core Ultra Series 3 (Panther Lake) — 2025/2026 (first on Intel 18A process)
As of early 2026, Core Ultra Series 3 is the latest widely available generation, with Series 4 (Nova Lake) expected later in 2026.