Intel Unveils Core Ultra 200S: Big Improvement In Power & Temperature, But Disappointing Performance

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Sajjad Hussain

As Tech4Gamers’ Founder and Editor-in-Chief, I bring over 13 years of PC Hardware Reviewing and 8+ years of IT Project Management experience. Certified in Google IT Support, my focus is on providing honest product reviews and analysis and fostering a strong gaming community with 130k+ members in PPG.

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The day has come; we can now officially discuss the Intel Core Ultra 200S, the Arrow Lake desktop processor. This debut comprises only the high-performance Core Ultra 200K range, which will go on sale on October 24th. The laptop version will be available in early 2025. 

In this extensive article, we will learn about these processors’ new features, which make a big difference compared to the 12th, 13th, and 14th Gen Intel Core processors.

While those three generations of processors are pretty much the same, with the Intel Core Ultra 200S, we have a completely different story. We have a new manufacturing process (Intel 4 in the CPU Tile), a new architecture for high-performance graphics, a new architecture for low-power cores, and even a new GPU.

Other improvements include eliminating Hyper-Threading technology, which generates 2 cores for each P-Core. This technology has been eliminated because it creates a bottleneck in these hybrid design CPUs (combining different cores).

Key New Features of Intel Core Ultra 200S CPUs

As a quick recap, the Intel Core Ultra 200S is said to be the coolest and most efficient gaming CPU on the market. Of course, this is being compared to its predecessors and not AMD. It is said to match the performance of Intel Raptor Lake (13th Gen Core) CPUs while using half the power. While it has lost threads due to the lack of Hyper-Threading, multi-core performance has improved.

To achieve this, we have new P-Core cores under the Lion Cove architecture, which offer a 9% IPC increase over the Raptor Cove. These cores have an improved memory subsystem with 3 MB of L2 cache, up to 36 MB of shared L3 cache, and an AI power management system.

As for the E-Core cores, the Skymont architecture has improved its IPC by 32% compared to Gracemont. To achieve this, the L2 cache bandwidth has been doubled, and adjustments have been made to improve its use.

Overclocking has also been improved, allowing an increase in frequencies of 16.67 MHz on both the P-Core and E-Core cores. This is combined with a double Base frequency on each core type by using an independent BCLK for the SoC and the Compute Tiles.

We have a DLVR bypass and the possibility of overclocking the new CUDIMM memory. All this is combined with a voltage limitation to have better temperatures and the official Intel eXtreme tool to make all these adjustments.

This CPU includes an Intel NPU 3 capable of providing 13 TOPS AI performance. Together with the CPU (15 TOPS) and the iGPU (8 TOPS), it can provide up to 36 TOPS. Something that does not meet the minimum requirement of 40 TOPS of Microsoft Copilot +.

These processors natively support up to 192 GB of DDR5 RAM at 6400 MHz. They also support modules of up to 48GB of capacity in UDIMM, CUDIMM, SODIMM, and CSODIMM formats, as well as ECC memory.

Improvements at the iGPU level

The Intel Core Ultra 200S iGPUs are the first desktop CPUs to feature the Intel Xe-LPG graphics architecture—Alchemist, the same architecture currently used in Intel Arc desktop GPUs. This iGPU uses 4 Xe-Cores accompanied by 4 Ray Tracing Units, 4 MB of L2 cache, and full DirectX 12 Ultimate API support. Don’t expect to run powerful games, but it’s a great bonus.

It also features Xe Vector and Xe Media engines for video encoding and decoding. AI tasks are capable of delivering 8 TOPS performance. It also supports Intel XeSS upscaling technology using DP4a AI instructions. It is a go-to iGPU, but it will be interesting to see how it performs.

Power Consumption Improvements of Intel Core Ultra 200S

According to Intel, its new top-of-the-range CPU, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, consumes up to 58% less power than an Intel Core i9-14900K. As you can see in the graph, performing office productivity tests, consumption is reduced by 44%.

However, these are unrealistic tests for a CPU of this calibre: office, AI, or Zoom video calls. In the synthetic Cinebench 2024 test, consumption is reduced by 42%. So, it’s time to search through the 69 slides offered by Intel for more exciting tests.

To do this, we have to go to the gaming section. As you can see, there is no improvement in many cases. However, in particular cases, such as Total War: PHARAOH, a CPU-intensive game offering the same performance, the Core Ultra 9 285K consumes 58W less power.

In Warhammer: Space Marines 2, it improves its performance by 4% and consumes 165W less power. Age of Mythology: Retold runs 6% faster while consuming 136W less power.

In this case, we can see that consumption drastically improves in games that require a lot of CPU.

The Coolest Intel Desktop CPUs Seen To Date

As you can see, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K offers significant power consumption reductions compared to the Intel Core i9-14900K. This comparison is between the top-of-the-range processors of the Intel Core Ultra 200S series and the 14th-generation Intel Core. The Core Ultra 9 285K will come out as the clear winner, consuming, on average, 58% less energy.

Now, these are somewhat illogical tests for processors of this calibre. For context, there is talk of a 44% reduction in energy consumption in office productivity applications or a 58% reduction in consumption in Zoom video calls. Then, we have a 42% reduction in AI and Cinebench 2024 consumption. We had to review up to 67 slides to find more exciting tests. Luckily, the gaming section has relevant details at the consumption level.

On average, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K is 13ºC cooler than the Intel Core i9-14900K in games. This test was run with 6 games at 1080p resolution and using a 360mm AIO liquid cooler. At worst, Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail improves its temperature by 10ºC. At best, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege reduces its temperature by 17ºC.

Intel Core Ultra 200S Disappoints In Performance

We’ll leave the most interesting part for last: the Intel Core Ultra 200S offers virtually no performance improvements for gamers. The drastic reduction in frequencies to avoid stability problems is noticeable. At least when running at much lower frequencies and being much more efficient and cooler, gaming performance is comparable to that of a previous generation Intel Core i9-14900K. In other words, there is no progress.

The power consumption tests demonstrate this. Out of 14 games tested, the Core i9-14900K was faster in 4, the same number the Core Ultra 9 285K won, and it tied in 6 games. According to this data, the Core Ultra 9 285K is 1% faster on average.

Intel offers a couple of benchmarks against the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D, where the Core Ultra 9 285K comes out on top  (not to mention going from 14 games to 5). In content creation, its multi-core performance is much higher, up to 30% faster. But of course, a content creator might prefer a faster Ryzen 9 7950X (not X3D).

The company also compared the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K performance against the already more impressive AMD Ryzen 9 9950X. Out of 15 tests carried out in professional software, the Ryzen 9 9950X only wins 4. Specifically, the Intel CPU is, on average, 21% faster, excluding cases where Intel indicates performance improvements of up to 730% since it would significantly break this average.

Additionally, we have a performance test between the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K and the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X. Specifically, we only compare the performance of 1 high-performance core. The Core Ultra 9 is superior. But of course, it only offers 8 of these cores compared to AMD’s 16 cores. We have 16 E-Core cores in multi-core performance to tip the balance in its favour. This makes up for the lack of threads (24 vs 32) and offers greater multi-core performance.

Intel Core Ultra 200S Processors And Launch Prices

Another problem with these Intel Core Ultra 200S is the price. These are very high prices, considering that they are processors mainly aimed at gaming. This means that AMD Ryzen 7000X3D outperforms these CPUs and consumes even less power at a more attractive price. Things will worsen with the future Ryzen 9000X3D, which will be subjected to higher frequencies to increase the performance gap with the Ryzen 7000X3D.

If you want a CPU just for gaming, the best option will be an AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D. This processor competes in price with the Core Ultra 7 265K but is more powerful than the Core Ultra 9 285K, which is much more expensive.

In short, the Intel Core Ultra 200S are a big step forward for Intel in terms of efficiency and performance. We saw The same thing with Meteor Lake, whose useful life was around six months.

It was an unnecessary launch, accelerating the arrival of the Lunar Lake processors. Processors that have no rival in their market surpass AMD. Well, the same thing seems to happen with these Arrow Lake desktop processors.

The interesting launch will be the Core Ultra 300S, where we expect a notable performance improvement. So these Core Ultra 200S feel like an unnecessary launch when performing like the 14th Genor at much higher prices than their competition.

Sajjad Hussain

[Editor-in-Chief]

Sajjad Hussain is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Tech4Gamers.com. Apart from the Tech and Gaming scene, Sajjad is a Seasonal banker who has delivered multi-million dollar projects as an IT Project Manager and works as a freelancer to provide professional services to corporate giants and emerging startups in the IT space.

Majored in Computer Science
13+ years of Experience as a PC Hardware Reviewer.
8+ years of Experience as an IT Project Manager in the Corporate Sector.
Certified in Google IT Support Specialization.
Admin of PPG, the largest local Community of gamers with 130k+ members.

Sajjad is a passionate and knowledgeable individual with many skills and experience in the tech industry and the gaming community. He is committed to providing honest, in-depth product reviews and analysis and building and maintaining a strong gaming community.