TheRetroArcade
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Joined: Feb 2026
Joined: Feb 2026
Don't be fooled by the $199 price tag. The Core Ultra 5 250K Plus might look like a budget processor, but it performs like an Ultra 7 class chip, and there's nothing to touch it for the money. That said, the Core Ultra 7 265K isn't that much more expensive, and it is the better chip for content creation tasks.
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For the refresh of its Arrow Lake-based desktop processor range, Intel has released just two new chips: the brilliant Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and this one, the equally brilliant $199 Core Ultra 5 250K Plus. Apologies for throwing in a review spoiler right at the start like that, but if you've already seen the score and the hardware specs, you won't be surprised in the least bit.
Given its Ultra 5 name, it makes sense to directly compare the 250K Plus to the Core Ultra 5 245K, which was launched back in October 2024. While both processors sport six P-cores, Intel has added four more E-cores to the 250K Plus, for a total of 18 cores and 18 threads.
If that was the only change, you'd be forgiven for feeling a little disappointed. However, in my talks with Intel of late, the company has stressed that things are very different now, with new staff, new structures, and new ways of thinking and doing things. Which is why the 250K Plus also sports a raft of internal changes to lift it well clear of the 245K.
Cores (P+E): 8+12Threads: 18Base clock: 4.2 GHz (P-core)Boost clock: 5.3 GHz (P-core)L3 Cache: 30 MBL2 Cache: 30 MB (Total)Unlocked: YesMax usable PCIe lanes: 24Graphics: Intel Graphics (4 Xe cores)Memory support (up to): DDR5-7200Processor Base Power (W): 125Maximum Package Power (W): 159Recommended customer price: $199/£199.99
The P-core boost clock has been raised by 100 MHz to 5.3 GHz, but the E-core boost clocks remain unchanged at 4.2 GHz. However, the Die-to-Die (D2D) clock has been significantly increased, from 2.1 to 3.0 GHz. This clock controls the links between all the tiles in the Arrow Lake processor, and a higher clock means less waiting for data to arrive.
Additionally, Intel has bumped the NGU clock for the fabric that links all the components inside the SoC tile (which is home to the memory controller), from 2.6 to 3.0 GHz, and it's also given the cache memory ring clock a slight nudge: 100 MHz more, so that it runs at 3.9 GHz in the 250K Plus.
Along with a faster memory controller, which now supports DDR5-7200 without resorting to overclocking, you now have a Core Ultra 5 chip that isn't massively different on the outside but is seriously quicker internally. And it's not merely a hand-picked bunch of Arrow Lake chips with an overclock, as the compute tile is a fresh wafer design. You might think that this won't make any difference, but the benchmark results tell you everything you need to know.
MSI MEG Z890 Ace | 32 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR5-6000 CL32 | Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE | Zotac GeForce RTX 4070 | Corsair MP700 2 TB | Be Quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W | Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable
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In some games, the 250K Plus is no better than the 245K, but it's also no worse than the Core Ultra 7 265K. In Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition and Total War: Warhammer 3, there's no appreciable difference between any of the Core Ultra chips, as a handful of frames per second isn't going to be noticeable during gameplay.
The faster internals of the 250K Plus come to light in Homeworld 3 and Baldur's Gate 3, and while you're not seeing an enormous leap in performance for the former, just 5% here and there, Baldur's Gate 3 ran 9% better on average, with 8% higher lows.
And then there's Cyberpunk 2077. Compared to the 245K, the 250K Plus only achieves a 3% higher frame rate overall, but thanks to its faster inte...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?
PC Gamer's got your back
Our experienced team dedicates many hours to every review, to really get to the heart of what matters most to you. Find out more about how we evaluate games and hardware.
For the refresh of its Arrow Lake-based desktop processor range, Intel has released just two new chips: the brilliant Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and this one, the equally brilliant $199 Core Ultra 5 250K Plus. Apologies for throwing in a review spoiler right at the start like that, but if you've already seen the score and the hardware specs, you won't be surprised in the least bit.
Given its Ultra 5 name, it makes sense to directly compare the 250K Plus to the Core Ultra 5 245K, which was launched back in October 2024. While both processors sport six P-cores, Intel has added four more E-cores to the 250K Plus, for a total of 18 cores and 18 threads.
If that was the only change, you'd be forgiven for feeling a little disappointed. However, in my talks with Intel of late, the company has stressed that things are very different now, with new staff, new structures, and new ways of thinking and doing things. Which is why the 250K Plus also sports a raft of internal changes to lift it well clear of the 245K.
Cores (P+E): 8+12Threads: 18Base clock: 4.2 GHz (P-core)Boost clock: 5.3 GHz (P-core)L3 Cache: 30 MBL2 Cache: 30 MB (Total)Unlocked: YesMax usable PCIe lanes: 24Graphics: Intel Graphics (4 Xe cores)Memory support (up to): DDR5-7200Processor Base Power (W): 125Maximum Package Power (W): 159Recommended customer price: $199/£199.99
The P-core boost clock has been raised by 100 MHz to 5.3 GHz, but the E-core boost clocks remain unchanged at 4.2 GHz. However, the Die-to-Die (D2D) clock has been significantly increased, from 2.1 to 3.0 GHz. This clock controls the links between all the tiles in the Arrow Lake processor, and a higher clock means less waiting for data to arrive.
Additionally, Intel has bumped the NGU clock for the fabric that links all the components inside the SoC tile (which is home to the memory controller), from 2.6 to 3.0 GHz, and it's also given the cache memory ring clock a slight nudge: 100 MHz more, so that it runs at 3.9 GHz in the 250K Plus.
Along with a faster memory controller, which now supports DDR5-7200 without resorting to overclocking, you now have a Core Ultra 5 chip that isn't massively different on the outside but is seriously quicker internally. And it's not merely a hand-picked bunch of Arrow Lake chips with an overclock, as the compute tile is a fresh wafer design. You might think that this won't make any difference, but the benchmark results tell you everything you need to know.
MSI MEG Z890 Ace | 32 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR5-6000 CL32 | Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE | Zotac GeForce RTX 4070 | Corsair MP700 2 TB | Be Quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W | Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable
Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
In some games, the 250K Plus is no better than the 245K, but it's also no worse than the Core Ultra 7 265K. In Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition and Total War: Warhammer 3, there's no appreciable difference between any of the Core Ultra chips, as a handful of frames per second isn't going to be noticeable during gameplay.
The faster internals of the 250K Plus come to light in Homeworld 3 and Baldur's Gate 3, and while you're not seeing an enormous leap in performance for the former, just 5% here and there, Baldur's Gate 3 ran 9% better on average, with 8% higher lows.
And then there's Cyberpunk 2077. Compared to the 245K, the 250K Plus only achieves a 3% higher frame rate overall, but thanks to its faster inte...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?