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The Intel Arc launch saga continues, with the latest delay murmurs stemming from Igor\u2019s Lab. According to sources which spoke to the German outlet, the release dates for desktop graphics cards of the Intel Arc Alchemist graphics cards lineup could delay into late summer.<\/p>\n

The window is quite wide, noting anywhere \u201cfrom July 1, 2022 to August 31, 2022.\u201d Although still technically in Q2, which Intel noted as the official release quarter for desktop Arc graphics cards, it\u2019s not great news when looking at the bigger picture. This shift would put the launch uncomfortably close to the expected September announcements for next-generation graphics cards from AMD and Nvidia.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

There are a lot of reports and rumors swirling about the ongoing delays for Intel Arc graphics cards. The general consensus by Igor is that the software \u2014 primarily the drivers \u2014 is not ready for primetime. Hardware has never been in question for Arc, as it sounds that Intel has some very good configurations capable of competing with the like of Nvidia\u2019s RTX 3070 Ti at best.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, drivers serve as the critical application layer that translates a good chunk of the hardware performance to game engines. Without efficient drivers, even great hardware can come across as subpar. There\u2019s also the matter of stability, since the last thing any gamer wants to experience is a crash during a critical moment, or when they are simply trying to relax and enjoy playing<\/em> games.<\/p>\n

Known issues<\/h2>\n

The latest reports of delays are nothing new. In fact, YouTube channel Moore\u2019s Law is Dead released a video last month covering practically the same information from Igor\u2019s report, albeit likely from different sources.<\/p>\n

Arc Alchemist graphics cards are frankly long overdue at this point. What could of been an exciting new lineup during the height of the graphics card shortage is now just going to be another option on the market where prices and availability for AMD and Nvidia cards are significantly better.<\/p>\n