Intel reportedly claims that its newly launched $249 Arc A770M graphics processing unit (GPU) outperforms the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 in certain benchmarks.

Intel reveals full specifications of its latest gaming GPUs, backing up bold performance promises. The company claims that its new $249 B580 Battlemage graphics cards outperform Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 4060 by a margin of 10% when playing at a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440. Intel claims that the B580 actually surpasses the performance of the RTX 4060 when ray tracing is activated.

If rumors prove accurate, Intel may soon possess a graphics card suitable for budget-conscious consumers. Nvidia has largely avoided the sub-$250 graphics card market on the desktop front recently, with the $299 GeForce RTX 4060 marking its lowest entry point in its current generation of offerings. Meanwhile, our comprehensive review of the AMD Radeon RX 7600 confirms that this $269 GPU outperforms the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 in most traditional gaming benchmarks, but trails behind when it comes to ray tracing capabilities. If Intel’s assertions prove accurate, the tech giant may have successfully created a GPU priced below $250 with potentially impressive capabilities.

Intel Arc B580 specs

Intel has concentrated its efforts on ray tracing for Battlemage, the codename for the architecture employed by these GPUs, with novel advancements including three traversal pipelines instead of two in previous Alchemist designs, as well as doubling down on triangle intersection capabilities with two items rather than one in earlier GPU structures.

Meanwhile, the majority of the BMG-G21 GPU, the foundation for the B580 and B570, is partitioned into five rendering slices, a fundamental building block of Intel’s GPU architecture. Each rendering slice features 4 Xe2 cores and 4 ray tracing units, with each Xe2 core further subdivided into eight XMX cores dedicated to AI processing, akin to Nvidia’s Tensor Cores, as well as eight XVE cores focused on shader processing.

Intel asserts that its cutting-edge Xe2 render slices yield a “substantial boost in efficiency per core” relative to its previous GPU architecture, and the company further claims this innovative GPU is optimized for 1440p gaming, unlike the typically budget-focused 1080p resolution.

To that end, this configuration is further enhanced by the inclusion of 12GB of GDDR6 VRAM, an upgrade from the 8GB found on the RTX 4060 and Radeon RX 7600, which is coupled with a 192-bit memory interface, resulting in a total memory bandwidth of 456GB/s. The RTX 4060’s 128-bit interface provides a substantially lower 272GB/s of bandwidth, significantly narrower than that offered by this model.

Unlike Nvidia, Intel appears poised to stick with the conventional 8-pin PCIe power connector, dubbed a single option, for its B580 model, citing a total board power consumption of 190W for mainstream graphics cards. Additionally, Intel unveiled the Arc B570, boasting 10GB of VRAM, a 160-bit memory interface, 18 real-time (RT) cores, 144 XMX cores, and a 2,500MHz GPU clock.

Intel XeSS 2 body technology

The recently unveiled XMX AI cores are poised to see significant usage in certain video games, thanks to the integration of Intel’s innovative XeSS 2 technology. Intel introduces XeSS-FG, a proprietary upscaling technology that employs AI-powered frame generation, inserting new frames between those rendered by the GPU to create a smoother visual experience.

The Xbox Series X/S will debut with a few select video games that take advantage of its innovative XeSS 2 body technology, including Formula 1 2024, Assassin’s Creed: Shadow Heritage, Quidditch World Cup, and RoboCop: Rogue City. Intel has announced that its XeSS upscaling technology is now supported in over 150 video games, a significant milestone for the company’s AI-driven rendering solution. The prospect of XeSS 2.0 body technology being adopted by even more titles in the future adds further momentum to Intel’s efforts to revolutionize game rendering.

Intel Arc B580 efficiency

What lies ahead for the Arc B580’s performance remains a pressing concern, as Intel boldly promises significant results. The corporation claims its new GPU outperforms Intel’s previous Arc A750 Limited Edition by an average of 24%, with this latter model having debuted at a price tag of $289.

Notably, according to Intel’s data, the B580 outperforms both the RTX 4060 and Radeon RX 7600 in video game performance when using rasterization techniques without ray tracing enhancements. According to Intel, in a benchmark of 47 video games at 2,560 x 1,440 resolution with Extreme settings, the Arc B580 typically outperforms the RTX 4060 by around 10%.

Intel claims the B580 can outperform the RTX 4060 in ray tracing, a feat even the Radeon RX 7600 fails to achieve. Intel’s B580 delivers a notable performance boost in Forza Motorsport when running at high settings, with a significant advantage in both the baseline and extreme ray tracing presets. Compared to the Nvidia RTX 4060, the B580 averages 64fps versus 57fps on the preset, while its additional memory allows it to maintain a strong 51fps average on the extreme setting, outpacing the RTX 4060’s 31fps. Intel’s accompanying graphic illustrates the performance-to-price ratio, providing a visual representation of their findings.

If the $299 RTX 4060 serves as the definitive benchmark for ray tracing efficiency, Intel’s data suggests that the $249 Arc B580 delivers a performance boost of 125% compared to nine ray-traced video games. In contrast, the $269 Radeon RX 7600 trails behind with an efficiency rating of merely 88%. While initially appearing complex, the graph’s nuances can be deciphered; however, upon closer inspection, it appears that the Arc B580 may not necessarily boast a 25% speed advantage over the RTX 4060.

While Intel’s numbers are derived from tests conducted at 2,560 x 1,440 resolution, it’s crucial to acknowledge that this is not the 8GB RTX 4060’s optimal performance scenario, and the increased VRAM advantageously tips the scales in favor of the new Intel GPU. It would be fascinating to witness some benchmark results at a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080.

Intel Arc B580 worth

Will the performance justify Intel’s claims of a good value by effectively undercutting the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 and AMD Radeon RX 7600?

Intel Arc B580 launch date

In plenty of time for the vacation season? While the highly anticipated Nvidia RTX 5000 series is expected to make its debut at CES in early January 2025, a launch date has not been officially confirmed by the company.

Ultimately, Intel’s most significant hurdle will be resolving driver issues and compatibility problems, similar to those encountered with their initial desktop Arc GPUs upon release. Despite significant advancements in corporate operations, the sheer volume of work accomplished by drivers over the past few years is noteworthy, including more than 50 new driver releases and over 120 new games supported at their earliest availability. If Intel successfully develops reliable driver-assist technology at an aggressive price point of $249, it could be on the cusp of a major breakthrough.

Meanwhile, we invite you to explore our comprehensive Intel Arc A770 review, detailing our hands-on experience with this pioneering GPU and its performance in various benchmark tests.