Intel’s most powerful 14th Generation Core processor will launch in about a month, according to Benchlife’s sources. It wouldn’t surprise us if the rumored Core i9-14900KS special edition Intel chip comes out within the suggested timeframe, simply because it is due. Intel’s pinnacle of Raptor Lake Refresh engineering is expected to hit a single- and dual-core 6.2 GHz turbo clock and chew through up to 410W .
“According to our reliable sources, Intel plans to launch the Intel Core i9 in mid-March 2024," Benchlife writes. The chip is a pretty sure bet that to be the world’s fastest gaming CPU. The latest that a Core i9 KS CPU has launched in recent history was at the beginning of April.
Intel hasn’t officially confirmed that it will release a Core i9 KS special edition to underline the current desktop generation. However, the increasing weight of leaks makes it look like it will be launched in the not-too-distant future.
We assume that Intel has been giving the ‘standard’ Core i9-14900K plenty of time to sell to its full market potential, and to build up a decent stock of cherry-picked chips that are capable enough to make it into the ‘special edition.’ From what we know the Intel Core i9-14900KS will have a 200 MHz higher max turbo frequency out of the box, but it seems to achieve this frequency gain with a large impact on efficiency. Check out our handy comparison chart featuring the established Intel Core i9-14900K and rumored 14900KS to see the expected key differences.
Intel | Core i9-14900K | Core i9-14900KS |
|---|---|---|
Architecture | Raptor Lake Refresh | Raptor Lake Refresh |
Cores / Threads | 24 (8P + 16E) / 32 | 24 (8P + 16E) / 32 |
Base Clock (GHz) | 3.2 | 3.2 |
Turbo Clocks (GHz) | 6.0 (1T), 5.6 (multi) | 6.2 (1T, 2T), X.X (multi) |
Caches (MB) | 32 (L2), 36 (L3) | 32 (L2), 36 (L3) |
Max Turbo Power (W) | 253 | 410 |
While the new 6.2 GHz turbo clock looks likely to be the headlining quality of the Core i9-14900KS, the MTP figure of 410W in the chart above is just a data point taken from the recent leaks. In our review of the Core i9-14900K , we actually saw this processor with an official MTP of 253W hitting a peak of 385W, but its average during the benchmarks was 339W.
When the Core i9-14900KS does arrive, it is going to be fascinating to see how Intel frames the product, and what kind of cooling system potential customers are going to have to equip to see its full potential.
