The first images of Intel’s upcoming budget Arrow Lake CPUs have leaked, and surprisingly, they feature smaller integrated heat sinks (IHS) than those used by other Core Ultra 200-series chips (via @harukaze5719 on X).
The picture comes from the Chinese e-commerce website Taobao. Before Intel’s official launch, some merchants had already listed the Core Ultra 5 245 and Core Ultra 5 225 for sale. The same merchant also sells Core Ultra 7 265 and Core Ultra 9 285. Intel China branch has opened pre-orders For many non-K Core Ultra 5 and 7 SKUs.
The Taobao listing wouldn’t be particularly interesting if it weren’t for the fact that the IHS for the 245 and 225 is significantly smaller than the IHS for the 285, 265, and the unlocked CPUs Intel launched in October. Specifically, the raised portion of the smaller IHS (the part that contacts the CPU cooler) has been shrunk slightly, especially on top of the die. The bezel below the motherboard’s CPU bracket has been made larger, and it appears that the overall surface area of the smaller IHS is roughly the same as that of the original IHS.
Changing the IHS like this may affect how these CPUs plug into LGA 1851 motherboards. While the 245 and 225 are compatible with LGA 1851 sockets, the mounting brackets around the sockets are also designed to fit the original IHS. For now, we can only speculate whether the smaller IHS will pose any installation issues.
Additionally, the code printed on the 245 and 225 IHS begins with V instead of L, as can be observed on models using the original IHS (including the unreleased 285 and 265). The details are produced during process steps when the CPU chip is manufactured or when the CPU is fully packaged or assembled.
Codes starting with L indicate Ireland as the country of origin, while V indicates Vietnam. The Core Ultra 200 CPUs with the original larger IHS appear to be made in Ireland, while the chips using the smaller variants (currently only 245 and 225 appear to be) are made in Vietnam.
The Taobao listing also comes with CPU-Z screenshots, and assuming they’re accurate, they show that the 245 and 225 have the same series, model, and step designation as the 285.
Intel has traditionally used a mix of larger and smaller die and even architectures in its Core 5 series, while Core 3 uses a smaller die and previous-generation architecture. The smaller IHS could indicate that the company has decided to use smaller heatsinks for models with smaller dies. We’ve reached out to Intel to see if the company is willing to share more details.
We won’t know the official reasons behind the different IHS until these CPUs are officially unveiled, which is expected to be CES 2025 Intel will speak at the conference next week.