Raptor Lake CPUs above 65w “may be” affected by issues, says Intel

It’s difficult to get a more concrete position from Intel regarding the problems with Raptor Lake CPUs. In response to questions from The Verge, the company states that any 13th/14th generation CPU above 65w are susceptible to the issues and claims it will not recall or pause sales of these products.

Based on the numerous reports so far, it was believed that only high-end Core i9 series CPUs were affected. However, Intel now says that Raptor Lake (and Refresh) CPUs above 65w, whether from the K, KF, KS and non-K series “may be affected by high voltage problems“.

Intel further says that this “does not mean that all listed processors are (or will be) impacted” due to known instabilities. The company reinforces that any user with a CPU that presents the “symptoms of instability“, should contact the company’s support, even those who had their RMA previously denied.

Intel will not recall Raptor Lake CPUs

In this type of situation, which is serious, a recall is the option that companies usually choose, but not for Intel. When asked whether the company will issue a recall, an emphatic “no” was the reply. Another “no” was the response regarding a stoppage in sales or recall with retailers.

The microcode update is scheduled for mid-August, but until then, the maker of Raptor Lake CPUs tells users to use the factory default settings, in addition to updating their motherboards’ BIOS.

This patch will be a “effective preventive solution for processors already in service“, and they will continue working to reach a complete resolution of the problem.

Intel is investigating options to easily identify affected or at-risk processors in user systems.

Intel

“It is possible that the patch will deliver some instability improvement for currently impacted processors.“, he adds.

Warranty should not be extended

Intel did not respond to The Verge’s questions about extending the warranty on 13th/14th generation Raptor Lake processors or what proof users should send to the company when requesting an RMA.

Regarding processors that have not yet been released, these will arrive with the microcode patch already applied to avoid problems. Other responses from Intel, regarding the guarantee that mobile SKUs were not affected and whether the company will disclose the batches with oxidation problems, were generic without anything concrete.

Finally, The Verge links to this video that Intel has been recommending to Reddit users as a way to check for potential issues with Raptor Lake processors.

Fonte: The Verge