3 304 vs Ultra 5 250KF Plus
Contents
Primary details
Comparing processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | not rated | not rated |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Laptop |
| Designer | Intel | Intel |
| Manufacturer | TSMC | Intel |
| Architecture codename | Arrow Lake Refresh (2026) | Wildcat Lake (2026) |
| Release date | 11 March 2026 (less than a year ago) | 16 April 2026 (recently) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $184 | $309 |
Detailed specifications
Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus and Core 3 304 basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.
| Physical cores | 18 (Octadeca-Core) | 5 (Penta-Core) |
| Threads | 18 | 5 |
| Base clock speed | 4.2 GHz | 1.5 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 5.3 GHz | 4.3 GHz |
| L1 cache | 192 KB (per core) | 192 KB |
| L2 cache | 3 MB (per core) | 2.5 MB |
| L3 cache | 30 MB (shared) | 6 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 3 nm | 3 nm |
| Die size | 243 mm2 | no data |
| Number of transistors | 17,800 million | no data |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Unlocked multiplier | + | - |
Compatibility
Information on Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus and Core 3 304 compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.
| Number of CPUs in a configuration | 1 | 1 |
| Socket | 1851 | Intel BGA 1516 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 125 Watt | 15 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus and Core 3 304. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| AES-NI | + | + |
| AVX | + | + |
| vPro | + | no data |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| SIPP | + | - |
Security technologies
Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus and Core 3 304 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus and Core 3 304 are enumerated here.
| VT-d | + | + |
| VT-x | + | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus and Core 3 304. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR5 | DDR5, LPDDR5X |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | N/A | Intel Xe3 Graphics (1 Xe) |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus and Core 3 304.
| PCIe version | 5.0 | 4.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | 24 | 6 |
Pros & cons summary
| Recency | 11 March 2026 | 16 April 2026 |
| Physical cores | 18 | 5 |
| Threads | 18 | 5 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 125 Watt | 15 Watt |
Ultra 5 250KF Plus has 260% more physical cores and 260% more threads.
Core 3 304, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 1 month, and 733% lower power consumption.
We couldn't decide between Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus and Intel Core 3 304. We've got no test results to judge.
Note that Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus is a desktop processor while Core 3 304 is a notebook one.
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