Intel recently announced the Core i9-12900KS, its new flagship desktop processor that comes as a deterrent to the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, which the red-team claimed to be matching the current i9-12900K in gaming performance. The new i9-12900KS is built from the highest bins of the "Alder Lake-S" C0 silicon, which are needed to support the chip's 5.50 GHz maximum Turbo Boost frequency on the P-cores, and 3.90 GHz max Turbo on the E-cores. While the E-core max Turbo isn't any different from the i9-12900K, the P-core sees it go up from 5.20 GHz on the older model.

The Core i9-12900KS processor is now beginning to show up on retailers, with Shop BLT listing it at USD $791 for the boxed retail processor, and $780 for the chip-only OEM part. Even at these prices, the premium over the i9-12900K is barely $150. The listing also sheds light on increased power limits. The processor base power value for the i9-12900KS is set at 150 W, compared to 125 W on the i9-12900K. This isn't the same as PL1, as Intel changed the definition of its power definitions with the 12th Gen. The maximum turbo power value (PL2) remains unknown. For the i9-12900K, this is set at 241 W. This isn't the first "KS" SKU by Intel, with the last one, the i9-9900KS, shipping as the first processor with a 5.00 GHz all-core Turbo frequency. It remains to be seen if all Socket LGA1700 motherboards support the i9-12900KS with a firmware update, because not all 300-series chipset motherboards supported the i9-9900KS due to its steep electrical requirements.