Intel Launches Arc B-Series Graphics Cards for Budget Gamers

Intel has announced its next-generation Arc B-series desktop graphics cards, based on its new Xe2 architecture dubbed "Battlemage". Two new graphics cards, the Intel Arc B570 and B580, have been announced for gamers running displays at 1440p resolution, starting at an attractive $219 USD.

Both Intel B-series GPUs are primed for 1440p gaming with ray tracing and include upgraded versions of XeSS, the machine learning-based upscaling technology, and other AI features. Besides XeSS 2, the GPUs include XeSS frame generation and XeLL, a latency-reduction technology not unlike Nvidia's Reflex.

Intel claims that the Arc B580 will be 10% faster than the Nvidia Geforce RTX 4060 on average while being 24% faster than the last-gen Arc A750. While its raw performance seems impressive, what pushes Intel's cards into the recommended tier is their increased VRAM capacity.

While the RTX 4060 and AMD's Radeon RX 7600 max out at 8 GB, Intel's graphics cards include 10 GB and 12 GB of VRAM in the Arc B570 and B580 respectively. This is helpful for many games at 1440p, as we've seen many triple-A games choking on cards with lower amounts of VRAM.

Whether Intel's claims hold remains to be seen, but if external reviews corroborate their metrics, then PC gamers building budget gaming rigs might flock to the Arc B series for the foreseeable future. Intel aims to be the value king in this segment, providing graphics cards that, if true, will bring ray tracing to the masses at an affordable price.

XeSS 2 will be supported in the following games at launch:

• Assassin's Creed Shadows
• Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions
• RoboCop: Rogue City
• Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
• Dying Light 2: Stay Human
• F124
• Ascendant
• Marvel Rivals
• Killing Floor 3
• Citadels

The Arc B-series' AI features go beyond gaming, as Intel is also launching a standalone app called "AI Playground 2.0". The updated app uses Intel Arc's Xe Matrix Extensions (XMX) to generate and enhance images using natural language input while tapping into popular large-language models.

Intel Arc's desktop graphics software is also getting new updates, adding top-requested features like FPS metrics. The low-latency feature will also be available on the driver level accessible from the software, allowing players to toggle it for games that don't natively support XeLL. Of course, users can also overclock their Arc graphics card directly within the software.

The improved ray tracing features of the Arc series are good news for gamers as more triple-A games make RT a baseline requirement, as seen in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. Marvel Rivals, the upcoming free-to-play shooter, runs at 120fps on the PS5, so PC gamers will need every trick they can get, like XeSS frame generation, to keep up with or surpass their console counterparts.

The Intel Arc B580 launches on December 13, 2024, with an MSRP of $249 USD, while the Arc B570 launches on January 16, 2025, priced at $219 USD. Until then, why don't you grab eighteen free games from Prime Gaming to start building a backlog for your next gaming PC upgrade?