As of now, Intel has only made the Arc A380 available, and that too, exclusively in China. While the specific dates are still unknown, the rest of the Arc series is expected to launch soon.
Intel has published an Arc Quick Start Guide, which lists requirements such as the Resizable BAR for the GPU series on desktop platforms.
According to the guide, only three Intel CPU series are supported as of now, i.e.,
1. Intel 12th Gen Alder Lake CPUs with 600 series motherboards
2. Intel 11th Gen Rocket Lake CPUs with 500 series motherboards
3. Intel 10th Gen Comet Lake CPUs with 400 series motherboards
AMD platforms are unofficially supported as the document lists Smart Access Memory enabled systems as compatible.
The guide emphasized the Resizable BAR as a requirement. Intel says it is necessary for ‘optimal performance in all applications.’ However, it is not explained how the GPUs would work without it.
A Resizable BAR makes the graphics frame buffer accessible to the CPU at once. While it is becoming a popular feature for recent desktop PCs, several older devices are still not equipped with such. For example, Intel’s 10th Gen Core CPUs might or might not support the technology.
As the launch for the rest of the series comes closer, we can expect the Resizable BAR to be a requirement for other variants. This might as well become the new norm for Intel motherboards.
About Intel
Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, in Silicon Valley. It is the world’s largest semiconductor chip manufacturer on the basis of revenue, and is the developer of the x86 series of microprocessors – the processors found in most personal computers (PCs).
Incorporated in Delaware, Intel ranked No. 46 in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue.
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