Lack of Core i9-14900K for replacement

According to a report by the HKEPCa distribution partner of Intel in Hong Kong is organizing refunds instead of replacing the processors Defective Core i9-14900K. Retailer appears to not have enough CPUs in stock.

Mr. Chen, a HKEPC reader, reportedly requested a replacement Intel Core i9-14900K on September 4, 2024, being mentally prepared to wait four to five weeks for a replacement.

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However, on September 10, Synnex, an Intel distributor, contacted him, asking for his bank account details to arrange a refund for the defective CPU. Mr. Chen reportedly sold the rest of his Intel hardware to a friend, kept only his SSD, and planned to switch to AMD, specifically the Ryzen 9 9950X chip.

This report could partially confirm an earlier report that Intel was allegedly running out of Raptor Lake processors to replace defective units. However, this doesn’t mean that this is happening everywhere and that the company is trying to avoid RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) obligations. In Hong Kong, one of Intel’s partners appears to prefer refunds rather than replacements.

Intel has responded to concerns about a shortage of replacement CPUs for its Core i9-13900K and Core i9-14900K processors. The company confirmed that it has sufficient stock for RMA requests for these desktop processors. Still, if a customer wants a refund and not a replacement, Intel is willing to do that as well.

In July, Intel revealed that some of its 13th and 14th Gen Core ‘Raptor Lake’ processors — both mainstream units with a base processor power of 65W and high-end models with a PBP of 125W — could become unstable or permanently damaged due to excessive voltage. While a BIOS update can prevent future issues for unaffected units, damaged processors require physical replacement, which Intel is actively working to facilitate.

To ensure that all customers receive the proper CPUs, Intel recently extended the warranty on its 13th and 14th Gen Core ‘Raptor Lake’ processors by two more years, giving the company enough time to deal with any defective units. However, in some cases, users have had to wait weeks for replacements.

While this extended warranty provides peace of mind, the potential three to four week delay for replacements is frustrating for many users, especially those who rely on their desktop PCs for gaming and work.