Intel’s newly launched Core Ultra 200S processors didn’t meet the performance expectations of the PC gaming community, despite improvements in power efficiency. Many users found that the Core Ultra 200S processors underperformed, even compared to Intel’s previous-gen processors.
In a recent Hot Hardware interview, Intel Vice President Robert Hallock acknowledged these performance issues and confirmed that a firmware update would be released, likely as part of the 0x114 microcode update mentioned on the ASUS ROG forums.
Initial reviews criticized the processors’ underwhelming gaming performance, with some reviewers calling them “broken.” However, Intel clarified that the problems were due to suboptimal BIOS and OS optimizations, not flaws in the microarchitecture. The 0x113 microcode update, focused on improving memory compatibility, has already been released.
The highly anticipated 0x114 update promises significant performance improvements, though the exact gains remain unclear. If successful, this update could elevate the Core Ultra 200S processors, bringing them on par with AMD’s offerings and meeting initial performance expectations.
Source: HotHardware(1), HotHardware(2), ASUS ROG Forum
