Intel Meteor Lake To Transition to LGA 1851 Socket (Not LGA 2551 Apparently!)

Late last week, information appeared online suggesting that (surprise surprise) Intel was likely going to welch on its promise to retain LGA 1700 for three processor generations and that their 14th-gen Meteor Lake CPUs were looking set to transition to a new socket type. – At the time of this leak, however, the source claimed that the new socket type was going to be LGA 2551. A figure which seemed more than a little crazy given how many additional pins this would require compared to the ‘current’ LGA 1700 design.

Following a new update via TechPowerUp, however, it seems that while the overall information was accurate, the details were not. – Yes, it still seems that Intel Meteor Lake is moving to a new socket design, but rather than LGA 2551, technical specifications have seemingly confirmed a far more sensible (and realistic) LGA 1851 platform!

Intel Meteor Lake – LGA 1851 Socket Platform?

Based upon the specifications (pictured above), we can honestly say that this is significantly more in line with what we (and I think most people) were expecting. Admittedly, it is more than a little disappointing that Intel will only be retaining LGA 1700 for its 12th-gen Alder Lake and upcoming 13th-gen Rocket Lake processors, but on the plus side, this apparent LGA 1851 socket will at least come with some benefits to consumers. – Namely, given that the overall chipset dimensions are practically identical to LGA 1700, this does seem to suggest that existing cooler compatibility will not be an issue.

On the whole, though, this should all still be taken with a grain of salt. – Intel’s Meteor Lake processors are not expected to be released until at least late 2023, and possibly even early 2024. – Yes, their design will already be well underway with engineering samples possibly already being created, but with so much time between these leaks and their apparent release, lots of things can still change and there is plenty of room for mistakes or misinterpretations of leaked information to be made (such as the aforementioned LGA 2551 socket).

At this point though, we’re about 80% willing to commit that LGA 1700 is looking likely to only hang around for 1 more generation (making it just 2 in total).

What do you think though? – Let us know in the comments!