Though not explicitly detailed, it feels like Intel’s new Battlemage GPUs are being touted as the way forward for the Alchemist era. These ultimately grew into PCIe footwear, however solely after months of dial-shift driver updates. In the meantime, the flagship B580 guarantees Nvidia’s greatest gaming efficiency from the get-go. Even at this stage of the present graphics era (the GeForce RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 might be introduced actually tonight at CES 2025), there’s one thing interesting about this proposition.
It is clear that the B580 will not be competing with the RTX 5090 or 5080. It is protected to say that an RTX 5090 or 5080 prices about the identical quantity of Faberge eggs you’d have to crack to make a sickeningly sharp marriage ceremony cake. As an alternative, the B580 is extra of a 1080p-plus RTX 4060 rival, regardless of Intel’s suggestion that it is a 1440p machine. Right here within the UK, the value vary is just about on the restrict even for Nvidia’s GPUs, with the most cost effective beginning at Β£270 and Intel’s personal Restricted Version (examined right here) costing Β£300. It is even cheaper within the US, the place the Restricted Version prices simply $260 whereas most RTX 4060 fashions hover round $300.
That minus $40 additionally applies to the B580, which has 4 GB extra VRAM than the 4060, or 12 GB of GDDR6. Whereas it nonetheless requires a Resizeable BAR to work correctly, the Battlemage structure has additionally focused a few of Alchemist’s weaknesses, tweaking its ray tracing core, and it not appears to be like at DirectX 9 video games with such disgust and horror. That every one sounds good, however we primarily know that the world may use pointless, cheaper GPUs like AMD’s Radeon 7600.
Intel Arc B580 overview: 1440p benchmark
Nonetheless, in relation to truly operating video games, getting essentially the most out of the Arc B580 is not as simple as bashing ReBAR. First, at Intel’s advisable 2560×1440 decision, we received solely considerably respectable outcomes when paired with the Core i5-11600K in our RPS take a look at gear. Even with all of the bonus reminiscence, it performs about in addition to an RTX 4060 from nearly two years in the past, apart from a slight single-digit framerate benefit in Metro Exodus and F1 2022.
The issue is, I have been desirous to replace my GPU benchmarking course of for years, however most of those video games have been outdated by sequels or have been round so long as the i5-11600K itself. So I made a decision to cease procrastinating and check out a refreshed system with new video games and a PC based mostly on a Core i9-13900K. It is most likely not a mass market CPU, but it surely ought to be much less vulnerable to bottlenecks than the previous i5.
Utilizing this youthful, quicker processor within the playoffs, the B580 turned the drawing efficiency over the RTX 4060 right into a landslide.
Look, Shadow of the Tomb Raider was shot 12 fps earlier (with completely different anti-aliasing, in fact) the place it was 3 fps slower. And in Metro Exodus, the RTX 4060 did not profit from the CPU improve in any respect, whereas the Arc B580 gained a further 5 fps.
In contrast to the Radeon 7600, or most AMD GPUs for that matter, the B580 may additionally give Nvidia a bonus in ray tracing. Operating Cyberpunk 2077 on an upgraded rig with psycho-level RT results and top-quality upscaling, the Arc B580 averaged 39 fps in XeSS. Even the RTX 4060 with DLSS sucked. With Extremely High quality Ray Tracing turned on in Metro Exodus, the Arc B850 maintained its lead, posting 52fps versus the RTX 4060’s 43fps. And it was finished with out the assistance of upscaling in any respect.
Intel Arc B580 overview: 1080p benchmark
It stays to be seen if the Arc B580 is the 1440p cut price Intel says it’s, but it surely’s clear Competent At that decision, new video games solely hit 60fps, so for round Β£70 extra you may get a quicker RTX 4060 Ti. At 1080p, alternatively, it is all easy crusing, regardless that the RTX 4060 is commonly quicker on older take a look at gear.
Nonetheless, with the Core i9-13900K, Battlemage took one other win, pulling a number of double-digit leads over the RTX 4060 and solely falling barely behind in Murderer’s Creed Mirage.
Once more, in our ray-traced Cyberpunk 2077 exams, there wasn’t a lot daylight between the 2. The Arc B580 was 58fps and the RTX 4060 was 59fps. With Extremely RT enabled in Metro Exodus, Intel’s GPU was nonetheless quicker, averaging 149fps versus GeForce’s 142fps. F1 2024’s Extremely Excessive preset additionally has ray tracing enabled by default, which implies the Arc B580 can stand up to further distortion with out buckling.
There’s a number of great things right here, even when you’re not actively components buying and simply wish to see one thing that breaks the one-party dictatorship that’s trendy graphics playing cards. Nvidia is not the one producer that may do ray tracing effectively. In any case, in native Rez, we will not arguably declare to provide the quickest sub-300-pound card of the present era. Even the RTX 4060’s spectacular energy effectivity is not with out query. The Arc B580 appears to be shedding out right here, as its 190W energy consumption ranking and 600W PSU requirement are effectively under the 4060’s 115W ranking and 550W requirement. However in actuality, the utmost energy I recorded with the B580 was solely 118W, which was greater than the 126W I noticed with the 4060. This restricted version mannequin runs cooler, usually staying round 63Β°c beneath load. Nvidia’s rivals ranged from 69 to 74 levels Celsius.
Like I say, great things. Nonetheless, the Arc B580’s reliance on CPU energy additionally implies that the private perspective applies far more strictly than a typical bar chart comparability. Does this card do an excellent job leveraging newer CPU know-how to derive efficiency advantages, or is it truly tied to the most recent, costliest chips in a means that makes it ineffective for individuals with older PCs?
To be sincere, I feel it is a bit little bit of each. Maintaining in thoughts that low-cost graphics playing cards are usually built-in naturally into growing older desktops, it is clearly not excellent that the Arc B580’s greatest options are so carefully tied to the improve of one other comparatively costly part. On the similar time, there are not any strict necessities for the most recent Core i9. In line with earlier CPU exams, the i9-13900K is definitely not a lot quicker than the mid-range Core i5-13600K, and is presently solely barely quicker than the Core i5-12600K from three generations in the past. In different phrases, the Arc B580 may lose out on older PC setups, however anybody who’s up to date in the previous couple of years will most likely be effective.
Ray tracing is not the one factor Intel is catching up on. Though presently solely launched and useful in F1 24, XeSS 2, the most recent model of upscaling methods like DLSS, gives one other instrument to extend the body fee of your Arc B580. To date, XeSS 2 seems to be corresponding to DLSS normally visible high quality. Fairly an accomplishment contemplating AMD FSR has been by means of years of trial and error. Additionally, its new body era part does an ideal job of replicating the smoothness enhancements from DLSS 3’s AI era. Even when you beat it. 45fps at 1440p went to 80fps with XeSS 2 turned on, however at 1080p it rose from 56fps to 102fps, which in each instances beat the respective 57fps and 77fps the RTX 4060 produced with DLSS 3.
Once more, AMD tried one thing very related with FSR 3, however XeSS 2 appears to provide better-looking outcomes with out including a lot enter lag. I would like to attempt XeSS 2 with one thing much more thrilling than a gamepad-controlled racer, however what F1 24 has proven thus far is encouraging.
Notice that DLSS 3 has an enormous head begin in sport help, presently out there for over 100 video games, with dozens extra on the way in which. XeSS 2 has by no means been capable of catch up. Which means DLSS 3 remains to be a extra helpful characteristic. That worth then transfers to GPUs that help DLSS 3, together with the RTX 4060.
So Arc B580 does not make RTX 4060 out of date. Nvidia might proceed to make its first effort to take action by itself with the inevitable RTX 5060. GeForce can also be a protected alternative for 1080p rigs which can be nonetheless utilizing CPUs from yesteryear, as the truth that they do not profit a lot from newer chips means you will not lose a lot with older chips both.
Conversely, for a very new construct (or a PC refreshed outdoors of the GPU), the Arc B580 is a legit different. In truth, when you can dwell with out the extra broadly out there body era flavors, you are most likely higher off that means. Along with fixing Alchemist’s ray tracing weaknesses and usually making every part secure (I did not expertise any of the crashes I skilled with the Arc A750), the Battlemage structure has produced a pleasantly peppy and reasonably priced GPU that is greater than enough for easy 1080p. And it does not take 20 driver updates to get there.
This overview is predicated on the retail unit supplied by the producer.