Intel is taking a new step to solve the high power consumption and overheating problems of desktop processors, which have been criticized for a long time. Core Ultra 200S series processors, which will be released on October 24, aim to redefine the balance between performance and power efficiency. Designed especially for gamers and technology enthusiasts, these processors aim to offer much lower power consumption and cooler operating conditions than the previous generation 14th Generation processors.
One of the most striking features of this new series, codenamed “Arrow Lake”, will be the Neural Processing Unit (NPU), the artificial intelligence accelerator that Intel includes in desktop processors for the first time. This new NPU is designed to accelerate AI operations, thereby increasing efficiency in multitasking. “Arrow Lake will deliver Intel’s best performance across desktop and mobile devices,” said Josh Newman, Intel General Manager of Product Marketing. “We will achieve this performance with a power consumption much lower than previous generations,” he said.
The new Core Ultra Series is assertive in power saving
Intel’s Arrow Lake S architecture is optimized to significantly reduce power consumption. 13th and 14th Generation Intel Core processors generally consumed much higher energy than AMD’s processors. With this new Core Ultra 200S series, Intel plans to halve power consumption during basic tasks on desktop computers. In games, the power consumption of processors will vary between 50 and 150 watts depending on the behavior of the games.
Intel official Robert Hallock emphasizes that this new series will provide lower power consumption, especially even in single-core operations. Intel stated that in tests conducted in popular games such as Assassin’s Creed Mirage, the new Core Ultra 9 285K model showed similar or better performance with 80 watts less power consumption. This decrease has also been observed in games such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III and F1 24, and in some extreme cases, a savings of up to 165 watts has been recorded in the Warhammer: Space Marines 2 game.
In addition, the thermal performance of this new series is also a remarkable improvement. When used with the 360mm all-in-one cooler, the Core Ultra 9 285K processor runs at 13 degrees lower temperature during gaming compared to the 14900K model. Additionally, the LGA-1851 socket that Intel uses in this new series will continue to be compatible with existing coolers. Users will be able to contact manufacturers to check if their existing coolers are compatible.
New packaging technology and architectural changes
By using the latest 3D packaging technology in Core Ultra 200S processors, Intel managed to reduce the processor package size by 33 percent compared to 14th Generation processors. Despite this reduction, the Core Ultra 9 285K model offers a very powerful structure with 24 cores and 24 threads. However, Intel has removed the Hyper-Threading feature from the previous generation in this model in order to save more power.
The new processor has 8 performance cores (P-core) and 16 efficiency cores (E-core). These efficiency cores are capable of more efficient processing with lower latency. The processor also has 36MB L3 cache, 3MB for each P-core and 4MB L2 cache for each E-core. In this way, Intel claims that the new processor will be 8 percent faster in single-core tasks and 15 percent faster in multi-core operations compared to the 14900K.
Intel’s Core Ultra 9 285K model seems to compete head-to-head with AMD’s Ryzen 9 9950X processor in gaming performance. However, according to Intel’s own testing data, there will be a performance gap of about 5 percent compared to AMD’s X3D series. AMD’s Ryzen 7 7800X3D model in particular is currently the leader in gaming performance, and Intel openly acknowledges this.
Intel argues that the Core Ultra 9 285K model will provide superior performance, especially in creative work and artificial intelligence-based tasks. However, the 13 TOPS speed of the NPU in this processor is not enough to use features such as Microsoft’s artificial intelligence-supported Copilot Plus. However, Intel hopes that over time, more developers will use the NPU and take advantage of it to speed up various tasks.
New motherboards and memory support
These new processors, which come with the LGA-1851 socket, will be used with motherboards with the Z890 chipset. Intel’s 800 series chipset offers extensive connectivity options with 24 PCIe 4.0 lanes, up to 32 USB 3.2 ports and 8x SATA 3.0 support. Additionally, while the platform includes features such as integrated Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3 and 1GbE, motherboard manufacturers will be able to offer additional options such as Wi-Fi 7 and Thunderbolt 5.
While DDR4 memory support has been discontinued in the new series, memory support at DDR5-6400 speed is provided. The maximum capacity is determined as 192GB. These features offer great flexibility for users who want to build high-performance systems.
While Intel has not made a clear statement about its future socket plans, there are question marks about the lifespan of the LGA-1851 socket after AMD announced that it will support the AM5 platform until 2027. The fact that Intel has replaced the LGA-1200 socket with the LGA-1700 in just one year in the past suggests that this new socket may also be short-lived.
The new Core Ultra 200S series is seen as an important move after Intel’s instability problems with the previous generation processors. This new Arrow Lake series, which came after the overvoltage problems experienced in Raptor Lake processors were resolved, aims to provide a more balanced user experience.
Intel Core Ultra 200S processors will be available as of October 24. Prices are set at $589 for Core Ultra 9 285K, $394 for Core Ultra 7 265K and $309 for Core Ultra 5 245K. Additionally, KF models without integrated GPU will be on the shelves with price tags of $ 379 and $ 294.