Intel Nova Lake CPU teaser lists official support for speedy DDR5-8000 RAM — B960 mini-PC’s upgraded power system signals Nova Lake’s higher power demands

3 hours ago 11
Intel Core Series 2 CPU (Image credit: Intel)

As reported by German news outlet ComputerBase, ECS has unveiled its newly revamped Liva P300 mini-PC, specifically engineered to harness the power of Intel’s upcoming Core Ultra 400 (codenamed Nova Lake) processors. These next-generation chips aim to put Intel back in a position to challenge, and potentially surpass, the best CPUs currently available on the market.

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The renovated Liva P300's specification sheet reveals a major advancement in memory support on the Nova Lake platform. Apparently, the next-generation chips support lightning-fast DDR5-8000 memory across all SO-DIMM memory ports. It would mark a significant leap over Intel’s current Core Ultra 200 series (codenamed Arrow Lake), which natively supports DDR5-6400.

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Notably, leaked Intel documents have already confirmed that the upcoming Arrow Lake Refresh, rumored to launch at the end of this month, will further push memory speeds by adopting DDR5-7200. Given this rapid progression, it was only logical to anticipate that Nova Lake would debut with support for even higher data rates. It's possible the feature won't do Nova Lake any favors, however, since high-speed memory yields diminishing returns and the current AI-created memory shortage has sent DDR5 pricing through the roof.

ECS Liva P300 Specifications

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Specification

ECS Liva P300

Processor

Intel Nova Lake-S

Memory

2 x SO-DIMMs, DDR5-8000

Storage

2 x M.2 2280 PCIe 5.0 x4

Ethernet

2 x RJ45 LAN Jack

Wireless

1 x M.2 2230

Video Output

1 x HDMI port
1 x DisplayPort
1 x USB Type-C Alt. DisplayPort

Audio

1 x Combo Audio Jack

TPM

fTPM 2.0

Front I/O ports

1 x USB4 Type-C
1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2x1 Type-C
2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2x1
1 x Combo Audio Jack

Rear I/O Ports

2 x HDMI/DP 2.1
2 x RJ45 LAN
2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2x1
1 x Flex IO Module (Optional)
1 x Kensington Lock

The 3.5-liter Liva P300 mini-PC will harness the power of the B960 chipset, one of five rumored Intel 900-series lineup. According to recent leaks, Intel is preparing to roll out five new chipsets: Z990, Z970, B960, Q970, and W980. Of these, the Z990, Q970, and W980 stand out as genuinely next-generation and reportedly offer native PCIe 5.0 support.

In terms of storage, the mini-PC provides two M.2 2280 ports that run at PCIe 5.0 x4. Expansion-wise, the device has enough space for a low-profile graphics card if you don't plan to use Nova Lake's integrated Xe3P graphics engine, which is based on the Celestial architecture. The Liva P300 accommodates a discrete graphics card in a horizontal orientation using a riser card.

With the new Liva P300, ECS is planning to double the power supply from 120W to 210W or 240W. Apparently, the upgraded capacity is due to the substantial demand for Intel's Nova Lake processors. Early projections pegged Intel's flagship Nova Lake chip with a PBP (Processor Base Power) of 175W, 17% higher than Arrow Lake's 125W. ComputerBase reportedly confirmed the data on the site.

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According to the publication's conversations with various manufacturers at Embedded World 2026, Intel plans to launch Nova Lake in late 2026. Realistically, most processors won't hit retail until 2027.

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Zhiye Liu is a news editor, memory reviewer, and SSD tester at Tom’s Hardware. Although he loves everything that’s hardware, he has a soft spot for CPUs, GPUs, and RAM.

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