Intel Arc Alchemist graphics cards are still a few months away, but we already have an idea of what to expect from the entry-level GPU, including price, per YouTuber Moore's Death Law.
According to your video, the entry-level Intel Xe-HPG Alchemist graphics cards will be based on the 128 EU SKU with an expected clock speed of 2.2-2.5 GHz. We previously reported rumors that this would drain 6GB of memory, and this is something that was mentioned again in Moore's Law Is Dead report.
Furthermore, the YouTuber is confident that since the GPU build is so affordable, its retail price will be around $179 (about $130 / AU$250), even though it's marked as "mostly safe" in his video. and sources. they were not disclosed.
According to WCCFTech, the entry-level ARC graphics card can be expected to compete directly with the GeForce GTX 1650 and GTX 1650 Super, but with several advantages that could ultimately make these older cards disappear from the market.
On the one hand, the entry-level Intel GPU will have much lower power consumption and ray tracing capabilities, but also if this price estimate turns out to be correct, we could finally see the return of GPUs. Intel Arc Alchemist is the first of this generation to hit the market for less than € 200.
Running on the Xe-HPG GPU architecture, the as-yet unnamed card is not expected to receive a full release announcement until Q2022 2022 (likely around CES 2), with laptops expected to be the first. in launching, with an office line to follow. Q2022 XNUMX. Until we get this information confirmed by Intel itself, take everything with a pinch of salt.
Analysis: Is this the budget hero we needed?
If that GPU can hit performance on the order of an Nvidia GTX 1660 Super for less than € 200, we could finally see a return for budget gaming PC versions with new features like ray tracing.
The market has been devastated for over a year due to supply, reseller and cryptocurrency issues, causing prices for the current generation of "affordable" cards to skyrocket. As such, a GPU that should cost around $300 has sold for between $800 and $1,000 ($700 - $900 / AU$1,100 - AU$1,600), forcing many to buy gaming laptops or stick with to your old systems.
Matching the performance of older Nvidia Turing GPUs may seem a bit boring, but they are still the most popular GPUs in use today and are still commonly purchased in budget gaming laptops. Likewise, if the rumors turn out to be false and the card sells for a much higher price, that performance will deter most people from buying one as they can get improved performance from the Ampere and Navi 23 GPUs.
Since most people don't have money to spend on gaming equipment, affordability is king right now. If Intel can pull it off, it is very likely that AMD and Nvidia will have a hard time in the coming years.
- Do you want to upgrade? Check out our list of the best gaming PCs to get started.