Intel Shares Details on New 'Iris' Integrated Graphics for Haswell Chips

As noted by The Verge, Intel late yesterday released details on its next-generation integrated graphics offerings arriving as part of the company's Haswell processor lineup. The new graphics options consist of three primary levels: an Intel HD Graphics 5000 to be packaged as part of 15-watt chips destined for ultrabooks, an Intel "Iris" Graphics 5100 to be paired with 28-watt mid-range chips targeted at larger ultrabooks, and an Intel "Iris Pro" Graphics 5200 for the highest-power chips.

The company claims its new Intel "Iris" Graphics, embedded in upcoming Haswell CPUs, can offer double or triple the performance of the Intel HD Graphics 4000 that comes with current Ivy Bridge processors. That's significant: typically each generation offers only a double-digit percentage boost.

That doesn't mean every new Haswell processor will come with quite that level of graphics performance, though.

haswell_iris_graphics
AnandTech has more, highlighting how ultrabooks, which would include Apple's MacBook Air, will see a lesser but still significant boost in graphics performance with Intel HD Graphics 5000.

Although Ultrabooks (now 15W) won’t get full blown Iris performance, they should still see a healthy increase in GPU performance compared to where they are today (50% improvement in 3DMark) at a lower TDP. The move to a full speed GT3 part (Iris) should more than double performance in 3DMark.

haswell_ultrabook_graphics
Apple is expected to embrace Intel's forthcoming Haswell chips in its next-generation notebook lineup, which may be introduced as soon as next month's Worldwide Developers Conference.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon: New Features for Your iPhone and Release Date

Monday October 27, 2025 7:55 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. Below, we outline key details about iOS 26.1. Release Date Given that Apple has yet to seed an iOS 26.1 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, the...
iOS 26

6 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.1

Wednesday October 29, 2025 4:22 am PDT by
Apple is about to drop iOS 26.1, the first major point release since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least six notable changes and improvements to look forward to. We've rounded them up below. Apple has already provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 26.1, which means Apple will likely roll out the update to all compatible...
maxresdefault

Apple TV 4K Could Still Launch Before 2025 Ends: All the Rumored Features

Monday October 27, 2025 4:51 pm PDT by
Apple is designing an updated version of the Apple TV 4K, and rumors suggest that it could come out sometime in the next couple of months. We're not expecting a major overhaul with design changes, but even a simple chip upgrade will bring major improvements to Apple's set-top box. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up all the latest Apple TV rumors. ...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, and macOS Tahoe 26.1 Release Candidates

Tuesday October 28, 2025 1:07 pm PDT by
Apple today provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, macOS Tahoe 26.1, tvOS 26.1, watchOS 26.1, and visionOS 26.1 updates for testing purposes. The RCs betas come a week after Apple released the fourth betas. The new betas can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software...
M6 MacBook Pro Feature 1

M6 MacBook Pro: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Monday October 27, 2025 9:15 am PDT by
Apple this month refreshed the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with its new M5 chip, and higher-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips are expected to follow in early 2026. However, these machines will represent the final update to the current design, with Apple reportedly developing a completely new version of the MacBook Pro packed with next-generation hardware...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

8 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Thursday October 30, 2025 4:42 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
macos tahoe

Here Are Apple's Release Notes for macOS Tahoe 26.1

Tuesday October 28, 2025 1:21 pm PDT by
Apple today provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of macOS Tahoe 26.1, which means the update will likely see a public launch next week. The release candidate includes notes on what's in the update, so we have a full picture of the new features that Apple has included. macOS Tahoe 26.1 adds AutoMix support over AirPlay, improved FaceTime audio...
ipad mini 7 feature blue

OLED iPad Mini: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Wednesday October 29, 2025 7:13 am PDT by
Rumors are stoking excitement for the next-generation iPad mini that Apple is reportedly close to launching. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released over a year ago? Read on to find out. Processor and Performance Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to...
iPhone Car Key Kia

Another Vehicle Brand Gaining iPhone Car Keys Support

Tuesday October 28, 2025 5:27 am PDT by
Apple is preparing to bring support for its digital car key feature to Jetour vehicles, according to evidence uncovered on Apple's backend by MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. Introduced in 2022, Car Keys allows an iPhone or Apple Watch to unlock a vehicle through the Wallet app. A digital version of a car key is stored in Wallet, and unlocking can be done by holding an Apple Watch or...

Top Rated Comments

Kissaragi Avatar
163 months ago
Blah blah blah, every year Intel produces a new CPU that's suppose to be faster and more efficient, as if the previous one was slow as molasses and every year people here fall for it and get in the mood of "Gotta have it, Gotta have it". And people say that Apple is the one trying to make all sorts of profits. ;)

How dare intel make progress! Its just awful, a pentium 4 was fast enough for everyone.
Score: 50 Votes (Like | Disagree)
elpamyelhsa Avatar
163 months ago
Mmm, I would love some Iris in my Retina.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wildmac Avatar
163 months ago
Looks like a good starting point for the new Mac Pro, or if the Mac Pro has to use Xeon just call the lower end machine a Mac. Either way I would buy a core i7 tower Mac today if it were available.

What?.. a tower using an integrated graphics chip instead of a dedicated video card?

Talk about killing off the MacPro..
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Elijahg Avatar
163 months ago
Oh great, so Intel integrated GPUs will now be just 80% slower than a dedicated AMD/Nvidia one instead of 90%!
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jacquesvw Avatar
163 months ago
.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
keysofanxiety Avatar
163 months ago
Blah blah blah, every year Intel produces a new CPU that's suppose to be faster and more efficient, as if the previous one was slow as molasses and every year people here fall for it and get in the mood of "Gotta have it, Gotta have it". And people say that Apple is the one trying to make all sorts of profits. ;)
Well, they do release faster chips each year, no 'suppose' about it. It's the tick-tock cycle; they're not at all secretive about when they're releasing new chips. Even though the performance of their CPU absolutely blitz the likes of AMD, they continue to release better CPUs as and when they can -- and there's nothing wrong with that IMHO.

Unless you'd prefer they released new chips every 2 years, meaning you're paying 2013 prices for 2011 hardware? Now that's the Apple mentality. ;)
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)