Intel Core Ultra 9 285K Review And Performance Breakdown (2025)

In this review, we'll go over everything about Intel's brand-new Core Ultra 200 series desktop CPUs, including the new architecture, power usage, thermals, gaming performance, and cost factors.

A Shift Toward Efficiency

Efficiency is the main objective of Intel's Core Ultra 200 series. They accomplished this by radically altering the architecture and chip layout to lower total power consumption. Why Intel prioritizes efficiency over sheer speed may be a mystery to many enthusiasts. 

The benefit is obvious: you can avoid spending too much money on overly potent cooling solutions because an efficient CPU operates at a lower temperature. You can overclock with greater headroom when operating temperatures are lower, and a big, full-tower chassis isn't always necessary to dissipate heat. This makes it possible to build powerful little PCs with less demanding airflow requirements.

The New Platform and Architecture

Intel launched five variants in the Core Ultra 200 lineup: one Core Ultra 9, two Core Ultra 7, and two Core Ultra 5 CPUs. Each of these chips is unlocked, and there are options both with and without integrated graphics. My focus will be on the flagship Core Ultra 9 285K, although I also examined a Core Ultra 5 sample from the media kit provided by Intel.

For the first time, Intel has moved off its in-house Intel 4 process and partnered with TSMC's 3 nm node for the Core Ultra series—an advance over AMD's Zen 5, which is built on TSMC's 4 nm process. 

The new desktop platform utilizes a brand-new socket called LGA 1851, which is supported by Z890-series motherboards. These motherboards introduce significant improvements, including a total of 48 PCIe lanes, 20 of which are PCIe 5.0 lanes, as well as Wi-Fi 7 support and integrated Thunderbolt 4 and 5 capabilities.

Meet the Core Ultra 9 285K

The Core Ultra 9 285K is a 24-core, 24-thread processor. Unlike previous generations, Intel has removed Hyper-Threading entirely, meaning each physical core can only handle a single thread. Of the 24 cores, eight are high-performance "P-cores," and 16 are high-efficiency "E-cores," totaling 36 MB of L3 cache.

While the 14th-gen Core i9 series peaked at around 6 GHz with Thermal Velocity Boost, the Core Ultra 9 285K is rated for up to 5.7 GHz in boosted mode. Although this represents a slight reduction in peak frequency, Intel expects the overall gains in IPC (instructions per cycle) to compensate for this.

On the integrated graphics front, the Core Ultra 9 285K features an upgraded iGPU based on Intel's Xe LP G architecture, similar to the GPU in Core Ultra 1 series laptops. This is not the Lunar Lake architecture seen on the newer laptop chips.

For AI capabilities, the CPU features an NPU (Neural Processing Unit) similar to the one found in Meteor Lake series one laptops, offering peak performance of up to 13 TOPS. Again, this is not the most recent NPU found in the Lunar Lake series two laptops, but it does position Intel's desktop platform to be "AI-ready" for desktop workloads.

Intel claims that the new P-cores deliver up to a 9% IPC uplift compared to the 14th-gen P-cores, while the E-cores boast an impressive 32% IPC uplift over their predecessors. Although these are company figures, I've verified many of them through hands-on testing, which I'll detail below.

Motherboard Highlights: ASUS ROG Maximus Z890 Hero

When I evaluated the ASUS ROG Maximus Z890 Hero motherboard, I noted that Intel's new socket is LGA 1851, which requires updated motherboard support. This board provides a total of 48 PCIe lanes, 20 of which are PCIe 5.0, coming directly from the CPU and chipset. In terms of connectivity, the motherboard supports Wi-Fi 7, along with integrated Thunderbolt 4 and 5. 

One important consideration is that it supports only DDR5 memory, making it incompatible with older DDR4 modules. These enhancements represent a significant leap in connectivity and expansion capabilities, though they do mean that users switching from DDR4-based systems must invest in new DDR5 RAM.

Test Bench Configuration

For all my tests, I assembled a reference system centered around the Core Ultra 9 285K. I paired the CPU with an Inno 3D RTX 4080 Super GPU to ensure that graphics would not bottleneck the processor during gaming or GPU-heavy workloads. 

In terms of memory, I used a 32 GB DDR5-6400 MT/s kit from Kingston, and I relied on a 360 mm AIO liquid cooler to manage temperatures. However, Intel's stock AIO bracket was not initially optimized for LGA 1851. 

The motherboard at the heart of this setup was the ASUS ROG Maximus Z890 Hero. I ran all benchmarks at stock Intel performance settings with XMP enabled for the DDR5 memory without any manual overclocking. To verify consistency, I repeated key benchmarks on an alternate MSI Z890 motherboard as well.

Benchmark Results

In Geekbench 6, the Core Ultra 9 285K achieved a single-core score of 386 and a multi-core score of 22,153. Initially, I was skeptical about multi-threaded performance since Hyper-Threading had been removed, but these scores show that there is no significant compromise. 

For comparison, a 14th-gen Core i9-14900K typically scores around 365 in single-core performance and approximately 20,000 in multi-core performance. Meanwhile, AMD's Ryzen 9 7950X typically achieves around 390 single-core and 18,500 multi-core performance. 

Against the 14th-gen i9, the Core Ultra 9's single-core uplift is modest (365 → 386), but the multi-core performance sees a noticeable gain. When compared to the Ryzen 9 7950X, the Core Ultra 9 285K trails slightly in single-core but leads comfortably in multi-core performance.

When testing on MSI and ASUS motherboards, I also noticed a few minor differences: the MSI board generated a slightly better single-core score (around 390) than the ASUS board's 386, most likely as a result of different BIOS tweaking or other small adjustments. These variations, however, had no impact on my final conclusions.

Moving on to Cinebench R23, the Core Ultra 9 285K posted a single-core score of 2,312 and a multi-core score of 41,129. By contrast, the Core i9-14900K typically scores around 2,350 in single-core and 37,000 in multi-core performance, so while single-core performance is similar, the multi-core result shows a substantial improvement. 

Against the Ryzen 9 7950X—approximately 2,400 single-core and 39,000 multi-core—the Core Ultra 9 285K again slightly trails in single-core but outpaces in multi-core by a healthy margin.

In Cinebench R24, the Core Ultra 9 285K took the lead with a single-core score of 133 and a multi-core score of 2,327, meaning it posted the highest single- and multi-core results among its competitors, including both Intel's 14th-gen i9 and AMD's top-tier Ryzen chips.

Gaming Performance

After validating raw compute performance, I proceeded to AAA gaming benchmarks at native 4K resolution to push both the CPU and GPU to their limits. 

In Horizon Forbidden West at 4K with the "Very High" preset, the combination of the Core Ultra 9 285K and the RTX 4080 Super maintained a smooth average of 95–100 fps during extended play sessions. Despite the absence of Hyper-Threading, gaming performance remained robust and fluid.

 In Spider-Man Remastered at 4K with maximum settings, raw rasterization (without RTX or DLSS) yielded 140–150 fps. Enabling ray tracing and setting DLSS to "Balance" still delivered 125–130 fps. 

Even with RTX features enabled and DLSS activated, I sustained triple-digit frame rates at 4K. These findings clearly show that the Core Ultra 9 285K offers a great performance balance for contemporary AAA games, with no noticeable CPU bottlenecks in GPU-bound situations.

Power Consumption and Thermals

One of Intel's key selling points for the Core Ultra platform is improved efficiency. I measured power draw and temperatures using Hardware Info during gaming and productivity tasks, comparing the Core Ultra 9 285K to my baseline Core i9-14900K system (identical cooling and GPU). 

In gaming scenarios with 4K AAA titles, the Core Ultra 9 285K drew approximately 50–60 W less power than the Core i9-14900K. In productivity and content creation workloads, power consumption was approximately 35–40% lower than that of the previous-generation i9. Under heavy load, the Core Ultra 9 285K peaked around 260 W, compared to roughly 320 W on the 14th-gen setup. 

Temperature measurements were equally impressive: during 4K gaming loads with ray tracing enabled, the Core Ultra 9 285K ran at around 60–65 °C, whereas the Core i9-14900K reached about 70–72 °C under identical conditions. This means the Core Ultra 9 285K runs approximately 7–8 °C cooler.

It's worth noting that my 360 mm AIO, designed for previous Intel sockets, did not make ideal contact with the Core Ultra die. Intel has informed reviewers that new AIO brackets tailored for LGA 1851 will be released soon, promising an additional 3–4% reduction in temperatures.

Pricing and Upgrade Considerations

Intel set the launch price for the Core Ultra 9 285K at the same level as the previous-gen Core i9-14900K, which is $589. Because the new LGA 1851 socket is not compatible with older Intel motherboards, you must purchase a Z890-series board (or any future Z or B series board that supports LGA 1851).

Additionally, those new motherboards support DDR5 memory only, so you must invest in DDR5 RAM if you haven't already. If you're upgrading from a recent 12th, 13th, or 14th-gen Intel system that already uses DDR5, the performance uplift may be modest—meaning you might not see enough improvement to justify spending extra on a new CPU, motherboard, and memory. 

However, switching from a DDR4-enabled PC that is four or five years old will result in a notable improvement in efficiency and performance.

Final Takeaways

I've had a great first hands-on experience with the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K. Intel's decision to drop Hyper-Threading in favor of higher-IPC P-cores and more efficient E-cores appears justified—there is no real compromise in multi-threaded workloads or gaming performance. 

Pairing the Core Ultra 9 285K with an RTX 4080 Super and fast DDR5 memory delivers an outstanding 4K gaming experience while consuming significantly less power than the previous-generation flagship. 

If you're building a new high-end system from scratch—especially if you prefer a more compact build—the Core Ultra platform is compelling. The combination of lower heat, lower power draw, and very strong single- and multi-threaded performance makes it an excellent choice for both gamers and content creators. 

That said, keep in mind the additional cost of a new motherboard and DDR5 memory. If you already have a 14th-gen Intel setup with DDR5, there may be little incentive to upgrade immediately. However, the Core Ultra 9 285K offers a noticeable performance and efficiency boost that is difficult to overlook for anyone upgrading from older hardware. 

With the Core Ultra series, Intel has produced a fantastic new desktop CPU lineup overall, and I'm excited to see how future BIOS optimizations and next-generation cooling solutions impact the performance.

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