Intel's 13th Generation Raptor Lake processors are already some of the best CPUs for gaming. The chipmaker's following up with Raptor Lake Refresh, rumored for an October launch. Shortly after seeing the first Raptor Lake Refresh listings, we now have the alleged MSRP for the upcoming trio of K-series processors.
According to momomo_us, a reputable hardware leaker, the 14th Generation Raptor Lake Refresh lineup could cost up to 16% (if rounded up) more than the existing Raptor Lake portfolio. However, the price comparison is strictly for Intel's K-series SKUs, such as the Core i9-14900K, Core i7-14700K, and Core i5-14600K.
Starting from the top, the Core i9-14900K and Core i9-14900KF are reportedly 15.8% and 13.8% more expensive than the Core i9-13900K and Core i9-13900KF, respectively. A nearly 16% price hike is significant and pushes the Core i9-14900K a hairline from entering the $700 category. Pricing-wise, the Core i9-14900K would be on the same level as the special-edition Core i9-13900KS. The price tag makes sense since rumored specifications showed that the Core i9-14900K is fundamentally a slightly overclocked Core i9-13900KS.
Meanwhile, the Core i7-14700K and Core i7-14700KF may have 14.1% and 15.2% higher MSRPs than the Core i7-13700K and Core i7-13700KF, respectively. The price increase is somewhat defensible since the Core i7-14700K has four more E-cores than the Core i7-13700K. It doesn't sound like an insignificant amount, but at least there's an upgrade in the cores and L3 cache, unlike the other SKUs that are essentially higher-binned parts of their predecessors.
Intel 14th Generation Raptor Lake Refresh Pricing*
*Pricing is unconfirmed.
The Core i5-13600K is the best mid-range processor for gaming. However, if the leaked pricing is accurate, Core i5-14600K may lose that appeal. The Core i5-14600K and Core i5-14600KF seemingly have 15.2% and 13.1% higher pricing than the Core i5-13600K and Core i5-13600KF. We'll have to put the Core i5-14600K through our labs to see whether the 15.2% price increase is worth it, considering that preliminary specifications show the Core i5-14600K with just a 200 MHz higher max turbo boost clock.
Gamers with a discrete graphics card can probably forgo the Core i5-14600K and opt for the Core i5-14600KF, which lacks integrated graphics. They'll save 10.1% by buying the Core i5-14600KF instead of the vanilla Core i5-14600K.
According to alleged Intel internal CPU performance projections, Raptor Lake Refresh delivers between 1% and 3% higher performance than Raptor Lake. MSI has a similar 3% estimation as Intel. In the case of the Core i7-14700K, the vendor observed up to 17% higher multi-threading performance thanks to the four extra E-cores.
A 3% performance improvement for a 15% higher cost is hardly justifiable, even if you're a hardware enthusiast who wants the best performance out of your system. If you already own a Raptor Lake chip, you may be better off waiting for Arrow Lake, estimated to be up to 21% faster than Raptor Lake, with over twice the iGPU performance. Even if you're putting together a new system, Raptor Lake could save you a lot of money, but then again, this is probably the last ride for the LGA1700 platform. So that's something to keep in mind, too.
