Intel makes a bid for handheld gaming PCs with new Arc G3 processors

Intel has introduced two new Arc G-series processors designed specifically for handheld gaming PCs, marking the company's first attempt at silicon marketed for that purpose. The chips, which leverage Intel's Arc B-series integrated GPUs and 18A manufacturing process, will power upcoming devices including a new MSI Claw model, Acer's Predator Atlas 8, and a OneXPlayer system, with availability beginning in June 2026. The move positions Intel to compete directly with AMD's Ryzen Z-series chips, which currently dominate the Steam Deck-style handheld market.

Most of the Steam Deck imitators on the market right now use AMD silicon, specifically the Ryzen Z-series chips. These are the same chips AMD makes for regular laptops, but with different power settings better suited to a compact handheld system. There are handhelds based on Intel silicon MSI’s Claw https://www.msi.com/Handheld/Claw-8-AI-Plus-Glacier-Blue-Edition-A2VMX is the main one , but Intel hasn’t yet tried making silicon marketed specifically for that purpose. Today, the company is throwing its hat in the ring with two Intel Arc G-series processors, which will allow gaming handhelds to leverage the company’s genuinely quite good https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/02/intel-panther-lake-core-ultra-review-intels-best-laptop-cpu-in-a-very-long-time/ Arc B-series integrated GPUs. Intel says that several Arc G-series handhelds will arrive “starting in June 2026, with broader availability throughout the year.” These systems will include a new MSI Claw model, a Predator Atlas 8 https://news.acer.com/acer-expands-gaming-portfolio-with-predator-atlas-8-handheld-powered-by-intel from Acer, and a device from OneXPlayer https://onexplayerstore.com/ . Intel normally uses its “Arc” branding for integrated and dedicated GPUs, but in this case, the “Arc” brand encompasses the entire chip, including the CPU, GPU, NPU, and other components. The G-series chips are similar in many ways to the Core Ultra Series 3 chips https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/01/intel-launches-core-ultra-series-3-cpus-made-using-its-long-awaited-18a-process/ codenamed Panther Lake Intel is currently shipping in high-end thin-and-light laptops. They use the same CPU and GPU architectures and make use of Intel’s 18A manufacturing process among others . But they ship with a slightly different combination of CPU and GPU cores that doesn’t quite match up with any of the Core Ultra processors.