It’s no secret that Core Ultra 200 processors are struggling to sell. Whether you’re comparing against AMD Ryzen or older Intel Core stock, there’s no competition. This is naturally impacting Team Blue’s finances, and it’s since provided some commentary on the effect of these circumstances.
During its Q1 2025 earnings call, Intel confirmed that customers continue to purchase Raptor Lake processors over newer Core Ultra offerings. This preference not only affects Arrow Lake but Lunar Lake and Meteor Lake CPUs too.
Michelle Johnston Holtahus, CEO of Intel Products, said: “What we’re really seeing is much greater demand from our customers for n-1 and n-2 (13th Gen & 14th Gen Core) products so that they can continue to deliver system price points that consumers are really demanding.”
Demand for 13th and 14th Gen Core processors remains so strong that it’s causing production capacity shortages for the Intel 7 process node. Intel states that this will remain the case for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, Core Ultra processor supply will be readily available thanks to reliance on TSMC nodes.
The reasons behind this trend in sales include price but are nuanced and multiple. However, our Core Ultra 9 285K review does provide context for at least one of them: performance. or lack thereof. Intel has since worked to plug this generational gap, via multiple patches and a recent 200S Boost overclocking profile. While this post-launch support is welcome, it’s perhaps too little too late for many.
Perhaps Panther Lake can mark a change in fortunes for Intel, as the first architecture to show off the company’s Intel 18A process. Further down the line, Nova Lake CPUs could provide a similar chance to recapture the attentions of the market. In the meantime, I doubt Arrow Lake Refresh will do much to move the needle for Team Blue.
Check out our Core Ultra 9 285K vs Core i9-14900K guide for a look at how Intel’s new processors stack up against their predecessors. Although, your money’s probably better spent on an AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D right now if you’re after the very best chip on the market.
For more analysis on processors and other PC parts, give Club386 a follow on Google News. There’ll be plenty to digest during Computex and you won’t want to miss a thing.
