Intel’s next flagship laptop CPU appears to be stepping into view. The Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus, a top-end “Arrow Lake-HX Refresh” chip, has reportedly surfaced inside Acer’s Predator Helios 18 laptop lineup, giving PC enthusiasts an early look at what could power some of the fastest gaming and creator notebooks of 2026.
Interestingly, this leak arrives after a wave of early product listings from hardware makers hinted that refreshed Arrow Lake-S (desktop) and Arrow Lake-HX (high-performance laptop) processors were on the way. Yet, Intel didn’t formally introduce these refresh chips during its CES 2026 spotlight, choosing instead to center attention on Panther Lake, expected to arrive under the Core Ultra Series 3 branding. Intel’s only comment about the missing refresh parts was essentially to “stay tuned,” suggesting a separate announcement or rollout window.
Now, the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus is being discussed as the fastest Arrow Lake-HX Refresh CPU intended for laptops, and it follows earlier chatter around a desktop counterpart called the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus. Together, these names point to a “Core Ultra 200S/HX Plus” refresh family that may launch soon.
Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus specs: what’s reportedly inside
Based on the spotted listing, the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus is said to feature:
– 24 total cores in an 8 P-core + 16 E-core layout
– 24 threads (matching Intel’s typical configuration for this class)
– Around a 3.10 GHz base clock
– A boost clock expected to edge past the current flagship Core Ultra 9 285HX, which tops out slightly above 5.5 GHz
– 36 MB of L3 cache and 12 MB of L2 cache
– An integrated GPU listed as a 4 Xe iGPU
– Power targets that appear unchanged: 55W base and up to 160W maximum turbo power (MTP)
If these details hold, the overall core configuration remains the same as the Core Ultra 9 285HX. That usually signals a refresh focused on clock refinements rather than a major architectural jump, meaning performance gains may be modest but still meaningful in top-tier gaming laptops and workstation-class notebooks.
Early benchmark results look off, and here’s why that matters
The chip was reportedly tested in an Acer Predator Helios 18 Neo configuration with 64GB of memory, but the early performance numbers shouldn’t be treated as final. The CPU appeared to be running at unusually low clock speeds—below 1 GHz—suggesting a very early engineering sample, incomplete BIOS tuning, power limits, or other pre-release conditions that can heavily distort benchmark results.
There was also an apparent packaging mismatch in the listing: it showed an LGA 1851 package, which is commonly associated with desktop platforms, while mobile HX processors typically use an FCBGA socketed design (often referenced as FCBGA2114). That kind of inconsistency is common in early database entries and reinforces that this is likely pre-launch information.
When could Intel announce Arrow Lake-HX Refresh and Arrow Lake-S Refresh?
Given the growing number of sightings and listings, Intel’s Arrow Lake-HX Refresh (Core Ultra 200HX Plus) and Arrow Lake-S Refresh (Core Ultra 200S Plus) processors are widely expected to show up in the near future. If the company truly skipped them at CES to save them for another event or announcement window, that reveal could happen in the coming weeks.
For anyone shopping for a high-end gaming laptop or a desktop upgrade soon, it may be worth keeping an eye on these “Plus” refresh CPUs—especially if Intel uses higher boost clocks and refined tuning to squeeze extra performance out of the same proven core layout.
