Intel’s Core i9-14900KS, a supercharged version of the current Raptor Lake Refresh flagship 14900K, could hit shelves next month.
Tom’s hardware picked up based on a report from Lifespan (a Chinese technology site) citing sources claiming that the alleged Core i9-14900KS will hit the market in about a month, i.e. mid-March.
As always, we should be careful with such rumors and sprinkle a good dose of skepticism on these types of claims.
The report also notes that the power consumption of the 14900KS processor will be higher, but to reach the rumored 6.2GHz boost (which will be a maximum – and not a sustainable one either), the wattage will obviously have to be boosted above level of the 14900KS processor. the 14900K (which has a boost ceiling of 6GHz).
Benchlife adds that it has no information on where this CPU will be sold in terms of sales channels, but as is usually the case with KS models, they will be limited edition. (Based on the number of so-called ‘gold’ chips Intel has set aside, i.e. 14900K silicon, which is good enough to be clocked up to the necessary 200MHz faster boost).
Analysis: We’ll Buy This (The Rumor, Not the CPU)
Okay, so this Chinese website isn’t the most reliable source of rumors, but that doesn’t mean Benchlife hasn’t said anything in the past – it certainly has. And in this case, we are more inclined to believe the rumor presented, because there is supporting evidence with other recent leaks.
That includes a photo sighting of the Core i9-14900KS and a leaked benchmark. There’s also the consideration that the CPU appears to be a production version, rather than an early sample, again suggesting a release is coming soon. So next month is hardly out of the question.
If you’re excited about an even faster Raptor Lake Refresh processor than the already powerful 14900K, keep in mind that, as mentioned, it will have high power consumption (over 400W when pressed, according to leaks) and a heavy price tag to boot.
If the 14900KS comes to fruition, it will be the fourth KS version of a flagship processor that Intel has released, following the 13900KS, 12900KS, and the original 9900KS.