{"id":26240,"date":"2026-01-06T15:29:39","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T07:29:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=26240"},"modified":"2026-01-06T15:29:39","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T07:29:39","slug":"exclusive-intel-is-making-its-own-handheld-gaming-pc-chips-at-ces-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=26240","title":{"rendered":"Exclusive: Intel Is Making Its Own Handheld Gaming PC Chips at CES 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Last year, Intel had the best iGPU on the market. This year, it\u2019s broken that record by over 70% with Panther Lake and it&#8217;s a huge win for handhelds.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">\u201cWe\u2019ve overdelivered\u201d is how Intel CEO Lip Bu Tan categorized the Panther Lake launch during the company\u2019s CES 2026 Keynote address, and that really does seem to be the case. But the real highlight of the keynote speech wasn\u2019t the engineering behind Panther Lake, but rather the iGPU and the \u201chandheld ecosystem\u201d Intel is building to capitalize on the iGPU\u2019s performance gains.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Formerly known as the 12 Xe-core variant, the new Intel Arc B390 iGPU offers up to 77% faster gaming performance over Lunar Lake\u2019s Arc 140V graphics chip. Intel\u2019s VP and General Manager of PC Products, Dan Rogers detailed the Arc B390\u2019s performance gains and announced a \u201cwhole ecosystem\u201d of gaming handhelds. That ecosystem includes partnerships with MSI, Acer, Microsoft, CPD, Foxconn, and Pegatron. So we\u2019ll finally see more Intel handhelds hit the market.<\/p>\n<p><output class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\" data-cy=\"article-slideshow\"><button type=\"button\" style=\"display:none\" class=\"jsx-2228525885\"\/><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-view-trigger\">\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-preview\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 slideshow-preview\">\n<h3 class=\"title5 jsx-62124236 jsx-1085005187\" data-cy=\"slideshow-preview-title\">Intel CES 2026<\/h3>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-container\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 images-container\"><button type=\"button\" data-cy=\"hero-image\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 hero-image\"><img alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" decoding=\"async\" role=\"presentation\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2021719738 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"\/><span class=\"button-text jsx-729543028 button button--primary jsx-3381835873 jsx-4266531355 row-pagination-button next contained centered round large\" data-cy=\"paginate next\" title=\"Open Slideshow\"><span class=\"ign-icon right-chevron jsx-2750866048 jsx-2919720488\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"right-chevron\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/RightChevron.272be43c.svg) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"\/><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/output><\/p>\n<h2 data-cy=\"title2\" class=\"title2 jsx-1903782357 jsx-3735650234\">Panther Lake\u2019s iGPU is Truly Absurd<\/h2>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Back when Intel <u>first unveiled Panther Lake in October<\/u>, the chip\u2019s gaming performance was touted as 50% better than Lunar Lake, and 40% better performance per watt over Arrow Lake. However, at CES Intel upped that expectation by a significant margin. Not only is Panther Lake\u2019s Arc B390 up to 77% better than Lunar Lake\u2019s Arc 140V iGPU, it\u2019s also 73% better on average than AMD\u2019s Ryzen AI 9 HX 370\u2019s RDNA 3.5 iGPU.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">And it\u2019s even 10% better than the RTX 4050 mobile. Sure, the RTX 5050 mobile does have a bit of an edge, but the Arc B390 is further proof that iGPU gaming is punching well-above its weight class.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Combined with Intel\u2019s new XeSS 3 software with 4x multi-frame generation, Panther Lake\u2019s iGPU could very well replace your old, out of date desktop.<\/p>\n<p><output class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\"><\/p>\n<figure class=\"jsx-313219616\"><span><img alt=\"null\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"progressive-image article-image article-image-full-size jsx-1809694635 jsx-2338608387\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"\/><\/span><\/figure>\n<p><\/output><\/p>\n<h2 data-cy=\"title2\" class=\"title2 jsx-1903782357 jsx-3735650234\">A Handheld-Exclusive CPU<\/h2>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Since Intel\u2019s Core Ultra 300 Panther Lake chip is built on Intel\u2019s proprietary 18A Foundry process node, it can be cut in a variety of different die slices.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">According to sources at Intel close to the matter, the company is planning a hardware-specific variant or variants of the Panther Lake CPU die. Currently branded as \u201cIntel Core G3\u201d these processors will be custom-built for handhelds. That means Intel can spec the chips to offer better performance on the GPU where you want it, with potential for even better performance than the current Arc B390 expectations.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">This is further indication that Intel plans to lean heavily into the handheld gaming PC segment, which <u>Intel first hinted at last year<\/u>. Combined with the \u201cHandheld Ecosystem\u201d announcement, this is a clear win for gamers.<\/p>\n<h2 data-cy=\"title2\" class=\"title2 jsx-1903782357 jsx-3735650234\">The Real Winner is Gamers<\/h2>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">The Intel Core G3 processors will reap the full benefits of the new Arc B390 iGPU, and Intel handhelds may finally be a real threat to AMD\u2019s handheld leadership.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Intel has had a few handhelds over the last few years, but the first MSI Claw was a notorious flop. The MSI Claw 8 AI+ and MSI Claw 7 AI+ were significant improvements over the previous generation, but they were the only Intel handhelds available on the US market from a major brand. The Tencent Sunday Dragon 3D One was also debuted last year, but it was an experimental design that was never given a full world-wide production launch. A version of that handheld launched as the <u>Abxylute 3D One<\/u> handheld, though it hardly made an impact on the handheld market due to poor reception.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">While Intel had an early lead with the MSI Claw 8 AI+\u2019s Arc 140V iiGPU performance, the <u>Asus ROG Xbox Ally X<\/u> took the lead back for AMD with the new Ryzen Z2 Extreme which was a major win for the <u>Ryzen Z2 series<\/u> as a whole. However, the Intel G3 could change things back in Intel\u2019s favor.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">With Intel handhelds now being made by MSI and Acer with custom CPUs built just for handhelds, AMD will see some real competition in the gaming space. And whenever AMD and Intel have serious competition, the true winner is gamers who get better performance from their hardware as both companies push each other to better and better heights.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Madeline (She\/Her) is a contributing writer at IGN. She\u2019s been writing about comics, tech, and gaming since 2013. Her byline has appeared at sites like Laptop Mag, PCMag, TechRadar, Tom&#8217;s Guide, CGMagazine, and Bleeding Cool.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/exclusive-intel-is-making-its-own-handheld-gaming-pc-chips-at-ces-2026\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article At Source <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last year, Intel had the best iGPU on the market. This year, it\u2019s broken that record by over 70% with Panther Lake and it&#8217;s a&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1864,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[13637,980,4365,705,3575,2554,2245],"class_list":["post-26240","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tech-gadgets-reviews","tag-ces","tag-chips","tag-exclusive","tag-gaming","tag-handheld","tag-intel","tag-making","wpcat-32-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=26240"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26240\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=26240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=26240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=26240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}