SOLVED: What Does An ‘Intel EVO Design’ Mean

“An Intel EVO Design” is an ingredient brand meaning that it is not a single function or feature or device.

When you see the Intel EVO sticker or graphic you really can be assured that you’re getting high quality equipment that will work seamlessly together and provide usually executives and home power users with the best possible mobile computing experience.

Where it gets a little confusing is when you see an Intel vPRO and Intel EVO design sticker as you can see on the top right graphic. That sticker is telling you that in addition to being an Intel EVO design verified high quality laptop, it also has the requirements for Intel’s corporate management tools named Intel vPRO.

The Need For High Quality Laptop Validation

In the 1990s and early 2000s you could buy some pretty low quality hardware and it took companies like Microsoft making their SurfaceBook series of laptops, to show the industry that both consumers and companies will pay for good quality systems. Intel had been pushing this narrative for several years but without much success until the late 2000s.

Many people don’t know this but Intel actually entered the laptop market by manufacturing entire laptop systems which resellers and it professionals like us at Up & Running were able to assemble and sell. That business didn’t work for Intel so it was scrapped after about 2010.

In 2020 Intel released “Intel EVO” which is simply a list of specifications That laptop manufacturers have to adhere to if they want to us the Intel EVO brand.

Where Did The Name Intel EVO Come From?

The EVO brand is a play on the word EVOlution and when it was in development, Intel called it “Project Athena”.

It is not possible to trademark or protect words that are in common use so companies need to develop twists on words to both tell consumers what they are marketing and stop other companies from misusing it.

What Are The Intel EVO Requirements?

As you can see in the training graphic below, Intel Actually tests laptop designs to ensure that they are premium thin and light, high performing devices.

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Here are the top requirements to receive the Intel EVO certification, for new devices in 2023.

1. Intel 13th Gen Intel Core Processors
2. Intel Unison: Cross-OS multi-device experience
   • This feature lets you relatively seamlessly move from your Android or iOS mobile device to your laptop
3. Intel Wi-Fi 6E (Gig+) with 6 GHz support
4. Intel Connectivity Performance Suite with Advanced Connection
   Manager
   • This feature allows you to use both your wireless and your WiFi connections at the same time to increase transfer rates
5. 4 hours of battery with just 30 minutes if charging
6. High quality webcam and microphones combined with software that allows for noise suppression and AI image effects
7. High quality video card with a minimum of Intel Xe specification
   • Does allow for third party discrete graphics options or Intel Arc video cards
8. Thunderbolt 4 ports
   • Seriously fast 40Gb/s and easy single cable docking/charging/data transfer/display sharing/audio

NOTE: There was a similar list that did not include Intel Unison and only required Intel 12th Gen Core CPU’s in 2022 and 2021.

As you can see in the graphic below, there is a very detailed list of very technical requirements to use the Intel EVO brand that include relatively obscure technology requirements like Intel Adaptix.

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If you still want more details on Intel EVO engineering and validation requirements, click HERE for their 8 page Fact Sheet PDF.

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