Intel has released a critical microcode patch, “0x129,” for its 13th and 14th generation processors, addressing instability issues and high voltage problems. The update was included in recent BIOS updates from ASUS and MSI. While the patch maintains overall performance, it shows a slight decrease in multi-threaded performance in Cinebench 2024 and a drop in TimeSpy Extreme scores. However, gaming performance remains largely unaffected. Further testing is needed to confirm long-term stability improvements.