Intel is reportedly readying the upcoming 'Haswell Refresh' line of processors for launch in the second quarter of 2014, ahead of a previously anticipated launch at Computex in June. Up to 20 SKUs could be launched as replacements and advancements of current Haswell parts, providing minor performance improvements.
Initially Intel's Haswell Refresh will cover non-K parts, launching the Core i7-4790, i5-4690, i5-4590, i3-4360 and others first in Q2, alongside some new Pentium and Celeron entry-level parts. Low-power parts like the Core i7-4790S and i3-4150T will also launch, reducing clock speeds to keep TDPs low. K-series chips, for example the Core i7-4790K, will launch in Q3.
Haswell Refresh is an interesting launch for Intel as it will begin shortly before the next-generation 'Broadwell' chips are launched, which will shrink the Haswell architecture down to 14nm. Socketed Broadwell processors for desktops are expected towards the end of 2014, and will bring further power efficiency improvements to Intel's x86 CPUs.
Both Haswell Refresh and Broadwell will use the LGA 1150 socket, which is used for current Haswell CPUs. Haswell Refresh will likely be supported on current motherboards, perhaps through a BIOS update; when it comes to Broadwell though, the new line may require new Z97/H97 motherboards, despite using the same socket, due to different power specifications.
Haswell-E for enthusiasts, which will use the LGA 2011 socket and X99 chipsets, is also set for launch in 2014.