Intel has shed some light on its branding plans for upcoming processors saying it would center on three main designations: the lower-end Core i3, mid-range Core i5, and high-end Core i7. The move is expected to reinforce Core as the flagship brand, phasing out or renaming current Core 2 Duo and Quad parts, while making the performance jumps between processors more transparent to the average consumer.

The changes will happen gradually once Lynnfield arrives on the desktop – presumably around September. However, these chips won’t be synonymous with Core i5 as previously thought, but in fact will be available as either Intel Core i5 or Intel Core i7 “depending upon the feature set and capability.” This means it’ll be possible to find Core i7 chips on both LGA1366 and LGA1156, which of course are not socket compatible, so those building their own system will have to be extra careful when choosing a CPU and motherboard combo.

Luckily in the mobile space there’s less confusion, as Clarksfield chips will be available only under the Intel Core i7 name. In addition to Core, Intel will still have Celeron for entry-level computing at affordable price points, Pentium for basic computing, and of course Atom for a range of devices from netbooks to smartphones. Some brands associated with combinations of technology, like Centrino, will be phased out or modified though.