Final Score: 84 out of 100
Like most previously released Intel ‘Special Edition’ models, the Intel Core i9 12900KS is a highly controversial CPU. It is a CPU that is not meant for everyone nor ever build. In a marketplace that typically tries to cater to as wide a potential customer base as possible a laser like focus, by its very nature, is guaranteed to engender controversy.
For many that controversy is well deserved. For some the increase in price versus the stock performance improvements over the Intel Core i9 12900K will make it hard to justify. For others the increased stock heat production will make it a non-starter as it would necessitate spending even more of their budget on upgrading their CPU cooling solution. For others, the idea of owning the “World’s Fastest” anything does not appeal to them enough to warrant the extra $150 (USD MSRP) over the already (relative to the Core i7 12700K) high asking price of the Core i9 12900K. For others, they know what the Core i9 12900K can be pushed to. With very little time and effort most can indeed match what the Core i9 12900KS offers “out of the box”; allowing them to save $150 to spend on other critical components of their system build.
These are all perfectly reasonable conclusions. Conclusions that will fan the flames of the Core i9 12900KS’ controversy and further reduce its mass market appeal; however, all those legitimate conclusions miss the point of the Core i9 12900KS and what Intel set out to do when they created the ‘KS. It is called a Special Edition for very good reason: It is meant to further solidify Intel’s return to being the leader of the CPU industry… and take a bit of the wind out of AMD’s V-Cache sails. At this is succeeds wonderfully.
Yes. Buyers are going to have to be willing to spend $150 more than the Core i9 12900K. Yes. In stock vs. stock comparisons the KS will offer only minor to moderate performance improvement over the 12900K. Yes, in those self-same tests the KS will also run slightly hotter, consume slightly more electricity, and generally speaking demand ‘more’ in return for ‘more’. Even yes. Every single Core i9 12900 comes off the fab with the same potential for overclocking. So yes. If overall value is all that matters to you then the Core i9 12900KS is not the CPU for you.
Thankfully, for Intel, none of the above issues should matter much to the intended market demographics of the Core i9 12900KS. This CPU offers something the Core i9 12900K (and all other non-KS models) cannot: increased successful factory testing and binning. Yes. Every. Single. Core i9 12900KS. Is. A. ‘Golden chip’. Guaranteed. They are the cream of the crop. They are as close to the pinnacle of perfection as Intel can make them. So, while yes it is indeed correct to say that they do consume more power and do produce more heat in stock configuration… they do so because they are clocked higher than the Core i9 12900K. Want the power of the 12900K but dislike the heat and noise they require? Undervolt and lower the Core i9 12900KS to Core i9 12900K specifications. It will run cooler, consume less power, create less heat and be quiet(ish) in comparison to typical 12900K. Disable four of the E-cores, undervolt some more and you will get the fastest and/or quietest Core i7 12700K imaginable.
Conversely, want to go as high as you can and get as much performance as you want? The typical Core i9 12900KS will be easier to overclock and hit (slightly) higher frequencies than the typical Core i9 12900K. If that sounds like a good deal at $150, then this HardCore CPU is right for you. Conversely, if that does not sound like that hot a deal… then this Special Edition probably will not seem so special to you. Either way Intel deserves kudos and credit for trying to cater to the needs of the overclocking enthusiast. For that we whole heartedly say Thank You Intel. You may have had to pour gasoline over yourself and then handed the Internet a match to do it, but at least you were willing to take a risk and try to push boundaries. To us that makes the 12900KS special indeed as the marketplace can only advance when boundaries are pushed. We look forward to seeing what boundary Intel decides to push next.
The Review
Intel Core i9-12900KS
Like most previously released Intel ‘Special Edition’ models, the Intel Core i9 12900KS is a highly controversial CPU. It is a CPU that is not meant for everyone nor ever build. In a marketplace that typically tries to cater to as wide a potential customer base as possible a laser like focus, by its very nature, is guaranteed to engender controversy.
