New benchmark data suggests Intel is preparing a mid-cycle refresh to its Arrow Lake processor family, aiming to boost performance thru increased clock speeds. Initial testing of the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus chip shows a peak frequency of 5.7 GHz-a potential enhancement for users prioritizing productivity tasks. While Intel has not officially confirmed the “Plus” refresh for the LGA-1851 socket, leaked scores indicate a focus on optimizing existing architecture rather than a essential redesign.
New benchmark results suggest Intel is preparing a refresh of its Arrow Lake processor family, with a Core Ultra 9 290K Plus chip hitting 5.7 GHz under load in recent testing. The performance gains indicate a focus on boosting clock speeds and platform optimization, potentially offering a significant productivity increase.
Core Ultra 9 290K Plus: New Scores and Test Platform
A recently listed Geekbench benchmark details a system built around an ASUS ROG STRIX Z890-E GAMING WIFI motherboard, powered by an Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus processor. The chip features a 24-core configuration, split between 8 performance cores and 16 efficiency cores, paired with 64 GB of DDR5-6800 memory.
During the test, the processor reached a maximum frequency of 5.7 GHz, with a peak value of 5.6 GHz reported. This represents a performance increase compared to previous leaks of the same chip. A prior test of the 290K Plus yielded scores of 3456 in single-core and 24610 in multi-core performance, while the new run shows approximately a 2.3% improvement in single-core and a 2.0% gain in multi-core scores. It’s important to note that the earlier test was conducted on a Gigabyte Z890 AORUS TACHYON ICE motherboard with 48 GB of DDR5-8000 memory and a Balanced power profile, making for a non-identical comparison.
Reference to 285K and Arrow Lake Refresh Positioning
According to official Geekbench data, the Core Ultra 9 285K achieves scores of 3200 in single-core and 22560 in multi-core tests. The latest benchmark of the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus demonstrates approximately a 10.5% increase in single-core performance and an 11.3% improvement in multi-core performance compared to the 285K.
Another chip, the 270K Plus, expected alongside the 250K and 290K, has also surfaced with the same 24-core topology but at a lower frequency. Recently scoring 3235/21368 on a Gigabyte Z890 EAGLE WIFI7 motherboard with 64 GB of DDR5-4800 memory, it performs similarly to the 285K.
Intel has not yet officially announced an Arrow Lake “Plus” refresh for the LGA-1851 socket. The repeated use of 24-core configurations suggests that the focus of this refresh is on increasing frequencies and optimizing the platform, rather than a fundamental architectural overhaul.
If these performance gains hold up in real-world applications and games, the 290K Plus is expected to deliver noticeable improvements in multi-core productivity thanks to its higher clock speeds. However, Intel remains tight-lipped about potential optimizations to inter-tile latencies and the interconnection between P-cores, E-cores, and the L3 cache. The efficiency of these elements is crucial for overall system responsiveness.
Without these structural improvements, the gaming limitations observed in the 285K could persist despite the added raw power. The Ultra 200 series has consistently offered strong theoretical performance, but has sometimes lacked the responsiveness needed for demanding games. A frequency-focused refresh may be sufficient to dominate in multi-threaded workloads, but catching up to AMD and older Raptor Lake processors in gaming will likely require a more substantial architectural redesign.
Source: VideoCardz
