Where Is Intel’s Arc Laptop GPU? The Rollout May Take a While

Intel's Arc laptop gaming GPU had its official launch on March 30, but if you’re hoping to own one, it looks like you'll need to wait. 

On Thursday, Intel's support team on Twitter addressed why Arc-powered laptops have been a mysterious no-show at major retailers, despite last month's launch. Apparently, the GPUs are only up for sale in South Korea, for now. 

“Samsung systems with Intel Arc graphics are available now in Korea and will scale to other regions. Additional OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) in other regions will have systems in the coming weeks,” Intel wrote in a tweet, which was first spotted by VideoCardz. 

Intel’s support team published the tweet after initially causing some confusion about Arc’s availability. A day earlier, the team mistakenly said Arc-powered laptops were slated to arrive to retailers in late Q2, likely meaning June. 

“Apologies for the confusion, we had incorrect information,” Intel's support team later added. The mix-up was likely because the company plans on releasing the desktop-based Arc GPUs during this year’s second quarter.

Tweet

According to Intel, all the major PC vendors—including Acer, Asus, HP, Dell, and Lenovo—are Arc GPU partners. But so far, only Samsung is selling a laptop with an Arc 350M chip through its Samsung Book2 Pro, which is going for over $2,100 in Korea. Acer, meanwhile, has put two models up for pre-order in Europe, but supplies won't arrive until June. 

(Image: Samsung)

Still, the slow rollout isn’t really a surprise. It usually takes time for PC vendors to incorporate new chip components into their product models. Nevertheless, Intel’s Arc GPUs have attracted attention because they represent the company’s early stabs at tackling the dedicated gaming graphics market, which has long been dominated by Nvidia. 

The first Arc laptop GPUs will arrive in the 3-series, which will target the entry-level market. Intel then plans on introducing the more powerful 5- and 7-series in the early summer. Stay tuned for our reviews once the Arc-powered laptops start to arrive at retailers.

(Image: Intel)