Intel is boosting the performance of its Arrow Lake CPUs for free

Intel continues to work on getting better results from its Arrow Lake CPUs, now with a free update that it says will boost gaming performance. The company announced that the update, an overclocking profile called “Intel 200S Boost,” is available for unlocked Intel Core Ultra 200S-series processors “paired with compatible Intel Z890 motherboards and appropriate Intel XMP RAM modules.

The new profile follows previous tweaks, such as a BIOS update from March that The Verge’s Tom Warren found gave the Core Ultra 9 285K CPU inconsistently improved gaming performance. After testing the new update this week in multiple games and configurations, Tom’s Hardware reports “an average improvement of 7.5% over the officially supported memory speeds.”

Intel says that the 200S Boost profile “allows users to achieve higher fabric, die-to-die, and memory frequencies” for better results during “low-latency workloads like gaming.” It adds that applying the new boost profile won’t affect your CPU’s warranty. I should hope not!

Here’s Intel’s list of processors that support the update:

And here is how Intel describes the steps to apply its new overclocking profile:

Intel cautions that certain motherboards and RAM modules may not work with the new overclocking profile; the company has a list of all the compatible motherboards and RAM modules on its page, along with other caveats.