Intel goes after Nvidia and AMD again with new graphics cards

The PC graphics card market has long been a lopsided duopoly, with Nvidia being the undisputed king and Advanced Micro Devices remaining in second place. intel (INTC 2.41%) entered the ring with its Arc Alchemist graphics cards in late 2022, giving consumers a much-needed alternative.

Unfortunately, Inter stumbled at the gate. The company’s A750 and A770 graphics cards were capable hardware, but the software drivers were a mess. This product was out of reach for many PC gamers shopping for new graphics cards, as some older games didn’t run at all, had uneven performance, or were buggy. Intel was unable to gain any meaningful market share or disrupt the market in any way.

Try again with Battle Mage

Intel has significantly improved its software over the past few years with continuous updates, putting its graphics card business on a more stable footing. While some might have expected Intel to give up on the graphics card market, especially after a difficult year with the departure of its CEO, the company has announced that it will launch its B-series Arc graphics cards, codenamed Battlemage. I’m back for round 2. .

Intel announced two new graphics cards earlier this month, both aimed squarely at the high-capacity midrange portion of the market. The B570 was released in January and costs just $219, while the more powerful B580 is currently on sale for $249. Intel has made several major architectural changes that promise significant improvements in performance and efficiency.

Initial reviews of the B580 graphics card are promising. Notably, Tom’s Hardware called it the “new $249 GPU champion” in its review of the high-end card. The B580 generally outperforms Nvidia’s RTX 4060 and AMD’s 7600 XT in both rasterization and ray tracing, and costs less than both options.

During Tom’s Hardware testing, software issues remained here and there, but reviewers say the software situation has improved and there were no game-crashing bugs this time around. “The good news is that Battlemage looks more promising than its predecessor,” concludes the mostly positive review.

Becoming a major player in the gaming GPU market would not only create a new revenue stream for Intel, but also potentially allow the company to sell more CPUs in its fight against AMD. Intel is struggling with multiple headwinds, so the company could emerge victorious.

a little late to the party

Intel’s new graphics card looks like a solid product with a good chance of gaining meaningful market share, but the timing is questionable. It took more than two years for Intel to launch a follow-up product. The B580 looks great when compared to the Nvidia and AMD graphics cards currently on the market, but these graphics cards have been around for a while. Both Nvidia and AMD are expected to launch next-generation products in the coming months that could undermine Intel’s value proposition.

Nvidia is rumored to be announcing its RTX 5000 series graphics cards soon, and AMD may also announce its RX 8000 series early next year. If both companies focus on high-end graphics cards first and delay mid-range updates, or are less aggressive on pricing, Intel could break out. But either way, the B570 and B580 will face new competition over the next year.

Intel’s second attempt to enter the graphics card market looks promising, but the company has no intention of abandoning the market and this time it needs to convince consumers that software problems are not a nightmare. Let’s see if the company can pull it off.