Intel’s Arc G3 is the hand-held chip we would have liked, on the worst potential time

It’s been 4 years and alter since Valve shook issues up with the Steam Deck. In all that point, practically each single competitor and various handheld gaming PC has used an AMD chip. MSI is the one exception, and even it has an AMD alternate mannequin. At Computex 2026, Intel is lastly able to play for actual with the Intel Arc G3—it’s only a disgrace that now’s the worst potential time to take action.

AMD’s dominance on this space makes lots of sense. For a very long time, its mixed APU platform provided shockingly good built-in graphics for laptops—not sufficient to unseat a gaming laptop computer with a devoted GPU, however sufficient to play most 3D video games with some compromise. The Zen 2 platform (with just a few customized tweaks) was excellent for Valve’s own-brand handheld, particularly since its effectivity acquired a lift from the Linux-powered SteamOS. A 12 months later, Asus tapped AMD for extra customized chips and the Ryzen Z household debuted, now seen within the ROG Ally, Legion Go, MSI Claw A8, and some different much less notable choices.

The Ryzen Z and Z2 sequence are mainly simply laptop computer chips with a bit of additional tuning. They use built-in graphics—good built-in graphics, however nonetheless nowhere close to a mid-range gaming laptop computer, so there’s nothing stopping a producer from designing a handheld round an Intel laptop computer chip, which is what MSI did with the unique Claw. Just a few smaller producers did too, like this OneXPlayer with a Core Extremely 7 chip. However AMD provided chips designed with handhelds in thoughts first.

Enter the Arc G3, an Intel CPU that dumps the “Core” branding in favor of a reputation beforehand reserved for Intel’s graphics playing cards and iGPUs. This can be a “purpose-built SoC” primarily based on the Extremely Sequence 3 (Panther Lake) that Intel was teasing again at CES in January. Within the Arc G3 Excessive variant, you get a 12-core design (two efficiency, eight effectivity, 4 low-power effectivity) with built-in graphics that allegedly match the Arc B390 graphics seen in different Panther Lake chips, that are fairly dang good. The non-Excessive model of the chip steps all the way down to B370 graphics.

These are nonetheless built-in graphics programs, like these within the Ryzen Z sequence, however preliminary testing is promising. Primarily based on the B390 graphics in an early Asus Panther Lake laptop computer, you may count on an Arc G3 Excessive chip to carry out higher at gaming than earlier Intel built-in Arc graphics and AMD’s Radeon 890M built-in setup, which is roughly what goes into the Ryzen Z2 Excessive seen on probably the most highly effective AMD handhelds. Each are nonetheless overwhelmed by a comparatively modest RTX 5050 laptop computer GPU, however for gaming on the go and breaking via a number of the limitations of the growing older Steam Deck, it’s an admirable step up.

Talking of the Steam Deck, it now begins at nearly $800. You’re not getting a Ryzen Z2 handheld for anyplace close to that value, with the unusual exception of the ROG Xbox Ally.

Yeah, right here’s the place I rain on Intel’s parade. Due to will increase in RAM and storage prices, laptop computer costs are skyrocketing. If the brand new Intel-powered handhelds are primarily based on Core Extremely 3-class processors, you’re not going to seek out one cheaper than about $1,200, no less than at sticker value. (That’s an informed guess from me, by the best way. The brand new Predator Atlas 8 isn’t arriving till October, and Acer is predictably petrified of committing to a retail value proper now.)

Acer

Should you’re already into 4 figures for a gaming handheld, how many individuals will select this over, say, a gaming laptop computer with a much more highly effective discrete graphics card? What you lose in portability, you acquire in wider choices—for each gaming and in any other case as a result of it’s, you recognize, a laptop computer. If I had been a highschool grad, I’d need a handheld however I’d want a laptop computer… and I would be capable of get a comparatively cheap RTX 5050 laptop computer and a Change 2 for the worth of an Arc G3 handheld alone.

There are some who’re prepared to spend an enormous amount of cash on PC gaming handhelds regardless of their limitations, however they’re a a lot rarer breed than the quantity of people that had been charmed by a $400 Steam Deck in 2022. Intel was engaged on these new Arc CPUs final 12 months, and possibly couldn’t have predicted the buyer nightmare we’re residing in proper now. However the actuality is unlucky, nonetheless.

Intel and Qualcomm are attempting to convey laptop computer costs down, however their new finances chips received’t do something for gaming handhelds, which want expensive RAM to share between system and built-in GPU. I suppose it’s technically potential to construct a handheld with a bottom-of-the-barrel Wildcat chip, however it will solely be highly effective sufficient to play 2D video games. At that time you may as properly simply clip a controller to your cellphone.

We’ve actual competitors in handheld PC chips now, simply in time for them to be so unaffordable that they’re flirting with complete irrelevancy. Hooray.