Intel’s Arrow Lake-based Core Ultra 200’s desktop lineup has been out in the open since its official release in October 2024. However, until recently, availability has been limited to unlocked SKUs being offered to users willing to pay the premium of a new Z890 chipset-based motherboard.
With new leaks suggesting upcoming mainstream ‘locked’ Core Ultra 200 series CPUs are on the horizon, a lot of users and system builders alike are sitting on the fence, waiting for more affordable and locked Intel CPUs that come with stock coolers and do not support overclocking that enthusiasts and gamers prefer having on tap.
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What Intel Core Ultra 200 Series SKUs Are Leaked?
PC-Canada’s leak currently showcases 5 different ‘locked’ Core Ultra SKUs when one searches for them.
Intel seems to have planned locked SKUs for all of its currently offered Core Ultra 5, 7, and 9 200 series CPUs. Interestingly, much like the Intel Core Ultra 9, there is no ‘F’ or iGPU-less offering in play, even in a locked state. Intel’s Core Ultra 7 and 5, however, do come in both standard and ‘F’ flavors.
Pricing for these models feels all over the place, something that is possible because these are just placeholders. Once the CPUs are available to purchase, they should adjust to much lower price tags than their more expensive unlocked siblings.
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Why Would One Get A Locked Intel Core Ultra 200 Series CPU?
While some users want bleeding-edge performance and the ability to overclock or tweak their CPU, this is not necessarily true for most users and system builders. Not only are locked CPUs cheaper and can be paired with cheaper motherboards (Intel’s Z890 motherboards are the only option currently, but lower-cost alternatives are expected to emerge), but they also come with stock coolers.
This makes them considerably cheaper versus their unlocked alternatives that require a discrete cooler by default. Intel does not provide a bundled thermal solution for unlocked CPUs currently. This means that many of the Core Ultra 200 series CPU upgrades in the coming days will see a locked CPU being used more often than not, especially in the pre-built PC segment.
For users interested in purchasing already available unlocked CPUs, Amazon has the following SKUs available for sale:
Users would need to pair these to a compatible Z890-based motherboard, as previous generation LGA 1700 motherboards are compatible with Intel’s 12th, 13th, and 14th generation CPUs.
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