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| Laptops based on Intel Panther Lake CPUs are expected to be showcased at CES 2026. |
The annual Consumer Electronics Show is still months away, but the rumor mill is already heating up for one of its expected star attractions: Intel’s next-generation Panther Lake processors. Slated for a full unveiling at CES 2026, these CPUs promise to be the first built on Intel’s advanced 18A manufacturing process. While leaks have teased everything from entry-level Core Ultra 5 chips to a beastly 16-core Core Ultra X9 flagship, the real workhorses for next year’s laptops will likely be the mid-range SKUs. Now, one of those key processors has just popped up in a benchmark, giving us an early—if incomplete—look at what’s coming.
A processor identified as the Intel Core Ultra 7 365 has been spotted in the Geekbench 6 database, running inside a mysterious Lenovo test system (model “4810X90100”). According to the listing, the chip features a configuration of 4 Performance cores and 4 Low-Power Efficient cores with a maximum boost clock of 4.8 GHz. In this early run, it posted a single-core score of 2,451 and a multi-core score of 9,714.
You can view the benchmark entry for yourself here: Geekbench Result for Core Ultra 7 365.
Putting the Numbers into Context
So, what do these figures tell us? To find out, we compared them to scores from currently available chips in similar segments. The results paint a picture of a CPU that’s still finding its feet.
- Versus Intel’s Lunar Lake: The Panther Lake chip trails its immediate predecessor, the Core Ultra 7 258V (Lunar Lake), by a noticeable margin. The 365 is roughly 11% slower in single-core and 10% slower in multi-core performance in this test.
- A Flashback to Alder Lake: The performance level shown here is reminiscent of chips from two generations prior. Specifically, the Core Ultra 7 365’s scores align closely with those of the Intel Core i7-1270P from the 12th-Gen Alder Lake family, a capable processor but not a generational leap forward.
- The AMD Challenge: The comparison with AMD’s current offerings is perhaps the most striking. The 8-core AMD Ryzen AI 9 465 (formerly known as the Ryzen 7 260) significantly outpaces the Intel sample, leading by 8% in single-core and a substantial 23% in multi-core workloads. This is notable because the Ryzen chip is built on the previous-generation Zen 4 core architecture.
A detailed breakdown of these comparisons was recently compiled from various leaks, which you can explore further in this report: Leak Compares Intel Panther Lake and AMD Gorgon Point.
The Crucial Caveat: This is Pre-Release Silicon
Before drawing any final conclusions, a massive asterisk is needed. This benchmark run almost certainly uses pre-production hardware with early, unoptimized drivers and firmware. It’s common for engineering samples to underperform final retail chips, as software tuning and microcode updates can bring substantial improvements in both stability and speed. The “seemingly mediocre performance” should absolutely be taken with a grain of salt at this stage.
What Panther Lake Means for Your Next Laptop
While this single data point is just a snapshot, it reinforces what the broader Panther Lake lineup suggests. For most users eyeing mainstream multimedia and productivity laptops from brands like Lenovo, Dell, and HP, the mid-range Panther Lake CPUs like this Core Ultra 7 365 will be the default choice. They are designed to offer the best balance of day-to-day performance, power efficiency, and battery life—critical factors for thin-and-light designs.
The true promise of Panther Lake lies in its foundational technology. The move to the Intel 18A node is expected to bring significant efficiency gains, which could translate to cooler, quieter laptops with longer endurance, even if peak performance doesn’t always crush the competition.
In the meantime, if you're looking for a powerful laptop available today, consider the current-generation option:
Buy the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus with Core Ultra 7 258V on Amazon
The Wait Won't Be Long
The good news for the curious is that the waiting game is almost over. With CES 2026 on the horizon, Intel’s official reveal is just around the corner. Shortly after, we expect a flood of OEM laptops featuring finalized Panther Lake silicon. Only then, with retail units in hand, will we be able to conduct comprehensive performance testing, assess real-world battery life, and see if the Core Ultra 7 365 and its siblings can live up to the hype of the 18A process.
Until then, this early benchmark serves as a tantalizing, if unpolished, preview of the laptop landscape of 2026.
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| Core Ultra 7 365 Geekbench listing. |