Intel’s well-documented problems with its high-end 13th and 14th generation CPUs crashing or being generally unstable in PC gaming could cast a cloud over sales of the company’s next-generation Arrow Lake CPUs.
Or it’s a motherboard manufacturer’s warning following the ongoing saga that has dragged on over the course of this year, with complaints from Core i9 processor owners and various advisories from Intel, including recommended risk mitigation settings and a recent BIOS fix . (The latter fixed a bug in the microcode for the Enhanced Thermal Velocity Boost feature of these CPUs, which Team Blue admitted could contribute to the crash issues).
Anyway, Wccftech reports that ZDNet in Korea spoke to a representative of an anonymous motherboard manufacturer who, under the guise of anonymity, expressed concerns about the potential impact of this whole affair on sales of Intel’s next-generation desktop CPUs.
They are quoted as saying: “If the stability issue is not clearly resolved, consumer distrust will increase and sales of ‘Arrow Lake,’ a new processor for desktop PCs that Intel plans to release in the fourth quarter, will decline.”
Analysis: The Danger of a Clouded Perception for Intel
Of course, we should take this report with caution, but is this revelation really surprising? We would say no, although it is surprising, or at least unusual, for a motherboard maker to make such a statement – sprinkle spices on it as indicated – and underscores the seriousness of the situation as it has unfolded.
Indeed, we struggle to remember a more confusing and thorny hardware-related problem in more recent PC history. Accusing fingers have been pointed here and there, as gamers who have spent big bucks on top-of-the-line silicon have suffered from crashes, which have undoubtedly been very frustrating.
While the issue has been resolved to some extent, the root causes have still not been precisely determined and the solutions mentioned come with a performance trade-off that enthusiasts who buy Intel’s Core i9 desktop processors, for example, won’t be happy about either. Although it’s clear that dropping some frames is a better alternative to persistent instability while gaming.
So, with that in mind, is it credible that this debacle could damage the computing public’s confidence in Intel’s CPUs? We think it’s possible, and logically, if Intel doesn’t come up with a final solution relatively soon, it could cast shadows of doubt for those considering Arrow Lake for a next-gen CPU.
While not everyone has been affected by these gremlins in any way, the complaints have been numerous enough that the controversy has undoubtedly registered. And while Arrow Lake is a very different beast than Intel’s current Raptor Lake Refresh CPUs – and it seems likely to bring power consumption to more sedate levels anyway – that likely won’t matter to the average PC buyer. Regardless of the relative power consumption figures, the danger is that all they’ve heard is rumours along the lines of “don’t buy Intel, they’re unstable” or similar sentiments, which could be pretty damaging for Team Blue.
We’ll see, but Intel is already in last place in the battle for the best CPUs for the next generation, with Ryzen 9000 CPUs now imminent, and there’s even the prospect that AMD’s 9000X3D models – which will be great for gamers – could arrive before Arrow Lake does later in 2024 (or at least around the same time).