While the spotlight at CES was firmly on the future Core Ultra 300 (Panther Lake), Intel’s partners have been quietly preparing for a more immediate release. According to industry insiders and motherboard manufacturers like MSI, the Arrow Lake Refresh—branded as the Core Ultra 200K Plus series—is slated to hit the market this spring.
The Leak: What We Know Renowned hardware leaker "Golden Pig" (Weibo) indicates a launch window of March or April. The leak also revealed the existence of the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus, signaling a comprehensive refresh across both desktop and high-end mobile platforms.
Key Specification Upgrades Intel is doing more than just bumping clock speeds. The "Plus" series brings significant architectural changes to the mid-range lineup:
- Core Ultra 9 290K Plus: Expect higher clock speeds and refined performance for enthusiasts.
- Core Ultra 7 270K Plus: A major upgrade featuring an 8P + 16E configuration, matching the core count of the flagship models.
- Core Ultra 5 250K Plus: Will gain +4 E-cores, offering a substantial boost in multi-threaded workloads.
Market Context: Intel vs. AMD Competition is heating up. AMD is preparing to launch the Ryzen 7 9850X3D in late January, aiming to secure the crown for pure gaming performance. In response, Intel’s Arrow Lake Refresh focuses on versatility, maintaining a stronghold in price-to-performance ratios and productivity tasks.
Conclusion from HYPERPC:
"At HYPERPC, we see the 'Plus' series as a strategic move to dominate the creator and pro-sumer markets. The additional cores in the Ultra 7 and Ultra 5 models specifically address the needs of users who game, stream, and edit simultaneously. We are ready to integrate these new CPUs into our premium lineups as soon as they drop. While AMD pushes boundaries in gaming FPS, Intel’s refresh ensures our workstations remain balanced powerhouses for any task."
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