BroadwellEdit
Broadwell was the codename for Intel’s fifth-generation Core microarchitecture, developed by Intel and released to market in the mid-2010s. Built as a shrink of Haswell, it was manufactured on the then-new 14 nm process with FinFET transistors, aiming to deliver longer battery life and better integrated graphics without a dramatic leap in raw performance. The Broadwell family powered a wide range of devices, from thin-and-light laptops and tablets to high-end desktops in the form of Broadwell-E, and it played a key role in extending the reach of the Core platform into more mobile form factors, including the line known as Core M for fanless or ultra-thin designs. The generation was eventually superseded by Skylake (microarchitecture) as Intel transitioned to a new platform and refreshed tooling.
Broadwell sits in the historical arc of Intel’s so-called Tick-Tock cadence, where a process shrink (tick) is paired with a new architecture (tock) in alternating cycles. In this case, Broadwell acted as the shrink from the 22 nm Haswell design to a 14 nm process, with the goal of delivering meaningful gains in energy efficiency and physical density. The transition to 14 nm introduced substantial manufacturing challenges and yield considerations, which in turn affected launch timelines and product availability across different market segments. The result was a generation that emphasized mobile efficiency and form-factor flexibility, even as some enthusiasts awaited the more dramatic changes expected from a new core architecture in the following generation.
Overview
Architecture and process technology
Broadwell is derived from the cores used in Haswell but implemented on the 14 nm process with FinFET transistor design. The smaller process node and FinFET structure allowed for smaller dies and lower power consumption, contributing to longer battery life in mobile devices and the ability to maintain performance under more restrictive thermal envelopes. The move to 14 nm also enabled more compact designs for devices like ultrabooks and certain tablet form factors, while keeping a familiar instruction set and compatibility with existing software.
Product families and variants
The Broadwell family encompassed a range of CPUs intended for different market segments. In mobile notebooks and 2-in-1s, variants were marketed under lines such as Broadwell-U and Broadwell-Y, which targeted different power envelopes and thermal constraints. For enthusiasts and high-end desktops, Broadwell-E represented the desktop-extreme segment. The Core M line, positioned for fanless or ultra-thin devices, drew heavily on Broadwell-Y/low-power designs to maximize silent, compact operation. These variants were designed to run alongside the broader Core platform, with compatibility and a path to newer features maintained through the Core branding and software ecosystem.
Graphics and multimedia capabilities
Broadwell brought improvements to integrated graphics, moving beyond the prior generation’s capabilities to offer more capable on-chip GPUs. The family included iterations of Intel’s integrated graphics subsystems that were marketed under the Iris and HD Graphics branding, with Iris-based configurations delivering better 3D performance and better media acceleration for high-definition video workloads. This made many Broadwell-based devices viable for everyday multimedia tasks and light gaming without a discrete graphics card. Features and performance in the graphics domain were central to the mobile value proposition, particularly for devices relying on battery life and slim form factors.
Security and reliability considerations
Like other modern CPUs, Broadwell inherited a security landscape shaped by speculative execution and microarchitectural design. In later years, significant security disclosures—most notably Meltdown (security vulnerability) and Spectre (security vulnerability)—highlighted vulnerabilities affecting speculative execution in many processors, including Broadwell-era designs. While patches and mitigations were developed, the consequences included potential performance impacts and the need for firmware and software updates across operating systems and environments. The Broadwell family thus sits at the intersection of performance, power efficiency, and the evolving security landscape of commodity CPUs.
History
Development of Broadwell began in the early 2010s as Intel prepared to migrate its mainstream Core lineup to a 14 nm process node. Official product availability rolled out in 2014 for several mobile platforms, with broader desktop introductions following in 2015 and into the Broadwell-E family for high-end desktops. The timing of Broadwell’s launch was closely tied to Intel’s broader platform strategy, and the transition to 14 nm introduced a period of adjustment as manufacturers optimized designs for the new process.
The devices adopting Broadwell spanned consumer laptops from mainstream to ultrathin, as well as tablets and other mobile platforms that benefited from improved energy efficiency. Apple’s MacBook family, for example, incorporated Broadwell-based designs in certain generations, illustrating how the architecture influenced mainstream notebooks beyond the PC-focused ecosystem. The presence of Broadwell in a wide array of devices reflected a period when the market valued longer battery life and lighter devices, sometimes at the cost of incremental performance gains relative to the prior generation. In the desktop space, Broadwell-E represented the higher-end segment, delivering more cores and higher memory bandwidth for enthusiasts and professionals.
Reception and legacy
Broadwell’s reception was mixed in some circles: the performance uplift over Haswell was not as dramatic as the move between certain prior generations, but the power efficiency and integrated graphics improvements were widely seen as meaningful for mobile form factors. The generation is often evaluated in the context of the subsequent Skylake release, which brought a refreshed platform and architecture in addition to broader performance improvements and a new motherboard/power-delivery ecosystem. The Broadwell era also underscored ongoing industry emphasis on balancing performance with power and thermal constraints in portable computing.
While Broadwell proved its value for thin laptops, tablets, and mobile devices, critics sometimes argued that the incremental gains were overshadowed by the rapid cadence of platform refreshes in the following year, which offered a more comprehensive architectural redesign and a cleaner path to the latest technologies. Nevertheless, Broadwell remains a notable chapter in the evolution of the Core family, particularly for its role in enabling longer battery life and more compact devices across a wide range of form factors.