Core ultra 225H speed throttle

[TPCoreUltra225h]

Hi,

  I bought Lenovo E16 Gen 3 Intel 225H laptop, Its just a 2 month old laptop (Vents are clean , no dust accumulated). I ran some ffmpeg encoding in parallel and the speeds get dropped and capped at 2.6 Ghz. Temperature  also stays around 80 c. Initially though speeds of performance cores reach around 4.5 Ghz but once they hit TjMax , they stay at 80 c with reduced speeds.

All cores run at 2.6 Ghz , They dont even cross 3 Ghz. Atleast a low end Ryzen 5 5600h which I own has base frequency of 3.3 Ghz.

Once I terminate ffmpeg encoding, Speed cap of 2.6 Ghz goes and cores frequency varies and goes beyond 4 Ghz

I tried this in both Ubuntu and Windows 11, All drivers are updated to latest. Both Operating systems are in performance mode. 

I disabled Intel Step and performance management in BIOS.

How do I fix this? Is this Intel throttling or the Lenovo throttling ?  Its like running 12 cores @ 2.6 Ghz while my Legion laptop with Ryzen 5600H runs 6 cores at 3.3 ghz base

[JohnM_Intel]

Hello TPCoreUltra225h,

Thank you for reaching out and for providing details about your Lenovo E16 Gen 3 laptop. I understand it’s frustrating to see your CPU speed drop under load, and I’d like to help.

To better understand the issue, could you please answer a few questions:

1. Are you running the laptop on battery or plugged in while testing?
2. Does the speed drop happen with programs other than ffmpeg?
3. When the speed drops, what temperature does the CPU reach?
4. Are all your drivers updated from Lenovo or Intel?
5. Does the same thing happen on both Windows and Ubuntu?

Your answers will help us figure out what might be causing the CPU to slow down and what we can do next.

Thank you for your time, and I look forward to your reply.

Regards,

John M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[TPCoreUltra225h]

Hi John,

 Please find my inline answer below in blue

1. Are you running the laptop on battery or plugged in while testing? 

           Yes, Laptop is always plugged in ,i ts never on battery and always on performance mode in Windows 11 and Ubuntu

      2. Does the speed drop happen with programs other than ffmpeg?

          Yes, I checked by running Cinebench and other benchmark tools

      3. When the speed drops, what temperature does the CPU reach?

           CPU reaches within a minute102 C , then drops to around 80 C and stays there so does the speed @ 2.6 Ghz.  This happens till the program is run. Once Cinebench or ffmpeg completes, Temperature drops to around 60 C and CPU speeds goes around 3 to 3.3 Ghz.

      4. Are all your drivers updated from Lenovo or Intel?

           Yes, Intel, Lenovo, Windows all the drivers are updates to latest.

      5.Does the same thing happen on both Windows and Ubuntu?

          Yes, I was able to reproduce this in Ubuntu as well.

I have attached video of CPU temp reaching TJMax and going back to 80C for Cinebench and  Prime95 tool.

[PC1997]

Hi @TPCoreUltra225h,

Nothing is broken and this behavior is normal for modern Intel laptops, especially thin business models like the Lenovo E-series.

What you are seeing is the CPU settling at its sustained all-core frequency once it reaches its long-term power limit (PL1). The processor initially boosts to around 4.0–4.5 GHz using short-term turbo (PL2), but once power and current limits are reached it drops to a sustainable level around 2.6 GHz, while temperature stabilizes around 80 C, which is intentional and indicates power-limit throttling rather than thermal throttling.

Comparing this to a Ryzen 5600H can be misleading because the Ryzen has fewer cores and is allowed a higher sustained power budget, while Intel Core Ultra CPUs have many more cores sharing a single power envelope and are designed to boost aggressively for short periods and then settle lower under continuous workloads. Although 6 cores at 3.3 GHz sounds better than 12 cores at 2.6 GHz, total throughput is often similar or higher on the Intel system, and ffmpeg is a worst-case workload because it keeps all cores loaded continuously.

If this were thermal throttling, temperatures would be near 95–100 C, but Lenovo intentionally sets conservative power limits so the CPU remains around 80 C with reasonable fan noise. Disabling Intel SpeedStep or power management in the BIOS does not override Intel PL1 and PL2 limits, Lenovo firmware restrictions, or embedded controller rules, so those settings will not change sustained performance.

Both Intel and Lenovo are involved, but Lenovo is primarily responsible because it configures the sustained power limits to prioritize stability, battery life, and quiet operation, whereas gaming laptops like the Legion are tuned for higher sustained power. You may be able to gain small improvements through undervolting, ThrottleStop if limits are not locked, Linux power tuning, or improved cooling, but you should not expect sustained 3.5–4 GHz all-core clocks on this class of laptop.

In short, the CPU is power-limited rather than thermally throttled, this behavior is by design, ffmpeg is one of the heaviest possible workloads for a thin laptop, and your Ryzen system feels faster because it is allowed to draw more power over long periods.

Also, if you have not done so, you can set the High Performance power plan in Windows 11 and see if that improves the performance. Otherwise, you are factory firmware limited.

[TPCoreUltra225h]

Hi PC1997,

      Thanks for your reply. If its factory firmware or Intel firmware limited, Then I see no point in paying so much for the chip/laptop that cant be utilized to its full capacity. I rather pay less for a chip whose processing power can be utilized to its capacity.

The only reason I go with 'H' series and not 'U' series processor is for their performance on cost of battery backup, Along with it being a Thinkpad and not an Ideapad. Even after that If I am unable to utilize its full potential then Intel  or Lenovo should put a disclaimer on its limited capacity so that customers can make an Informed decision.

[PC1997]

Yeah, I get where you’re coming from. A lot of it really is just marketing. They’re not technically wrong, but the real value shows up when you compare the laptop’s performance against other chips from the same generation. All things being equal, you’re still benefiting from the overall improvements.

It might be worth checking what options you have in the BIOS, just be careful, once you start tweaking power limits, you’re likely to generate a lot more heat, and that opens up a whole rabbit hole of trade-offs. In some cases, it can even risk your warranty.

And this isn’t just an Intel thing. AMD does it too. Everyone has their own marketing spin. YouTube reviewers don’t always tell the full story either; a lot of tests are done with everything maxed out, which doesn’t always reflect real-world use.

Maybe Intel support will have a better answer for you.

[JohnM_Intel]

Hello TPCoreUltra225h,

Thank you for patiently waiting.

Unfortunately, we do not have sufficient information on this product as it is an OEM unit. For assistance with possible BIOS settings or if an RMA is required, we kindly recommend that you contact Lenovo Support directly. They will be able to provide the guidance and support specific to your system.

We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.

Regards,

John M.

Intel Customer Support Technician