Intel Extends Warranty on 13th & 14th Gen Core Retail CPUs by 2 Years to Address Chip Stability Concerns

Concluding an extensive (and expensive) week for Intel, the company has also revealed that they are implementing additional measures to resolve the ongoing chip stability issues with desktop Raptor Lake chips – the 13^th and 14^th Generation desktop Core processors. To ensure customer satisfaction, Intel will be extending the warranty on retail boxed Raptor Lake chips by two more years, making the total warranty period for these chips five years.

This new announcement comes as Intel is still preparing their significant Raptor Lake microcode update, intended to address the issue (or further damage) by fixing the elevated voltage bug in their existing microcode that initially caused the problem. The microcode update is set for mid-August, approximately a couple of weeks away.

However, until then – and depending on the speed of the update’s rollout, even afterward – there remains the issue of what to do with Raptor Lake desktop chips that are already significantly compromised and therefore unstable. Intel’s retail boxed Raptor Lake chips come with a 3-year warranty, which given the October 2022 launch date, covers the oldest of these chips until October 2025 – a bit over a year from now. While the upcoming fix should provide ample time to identify and replace any affected chips, Intel has chosen to go further by extending the chips’ warranty to five years.

Overall, this is a necessary bit of damage control by Intel to restore confidence in their existing Raptor Lake desktop processor lineup. Despite the planned microcode fix, the long-term consequences of the voltage bug remain uncertain, and it’s unclear how it will affect the lifespan of still-stable chips receiving the fixed microcode. In the best-case scenario, an extended warranty gives Raptor Lake owners additional peace of mind, and in the worst-case scenario, they’re now covered for a few extra years if chip degradation issues persist.

It’s important to note, however, that the extended warranty will only apply to boxed processors, i.e., Intel’s official retail chips. Intel’s loose chips sold by tray to OEMs and certain distributors – commonly referred to as “tray” processors – are not covered by the extended warranty. While Raptor Lake tray processors do technically come with a three-year warranty of their own, Intel does not provide direct, end-user warranty service for these chips. Instead, those warranties are handled by the OEM or distributor that sold the chip.

With the majority of Intel’s chips going to OEMs and other professional system builders, Intel will undoubtedly need to come to terms with those groups as well. However, with OEM dealings typically happening behind closed doors, it’s unlikely we’ll hear precisely what agreements are reached. Regardless of what Intel does (or doesn’t do) to appease OEMs and distributors, those groups will remain responsible for handling warranty claims for tray chips.

Lastly, while today’s announcement outlines the two-year warranty extension, it does not provide complete details on the program. Intel expects to release more details on the extended warranty program “in the coming days.”

Intel’s full statement is below:

Additional Details on Via Oxidation Issue

Separately, Intel’s community team also posted a brief update on the via oxidation issue that, although distinct from the current Raptor Lake instability issues, emerged at around the same time. Intel has previously stated that this issue is unrelated to the ongoing stability problems and was resolved back in 2023. This latest update offers additional details on what that manufacturing issue entailed.