Given the past few years have been pretty atrocious for the average PC gamer wanting to buy a graphics card on a budget, it's not surprising that the recently released Intel Arc B580 has been the subject of much excited chatter. And that chatter, it seems, has been converting nicely into actual sales.
Intel's Mark Anthony Ramirez recently told The Verge that "demand for Arc B580 graphics cards is high and many retailers have sold through their initial inventory."
Not to worry, though, because Ramirez continues: "We expect weekly inventory replenishments of the Intel Arc B580 Limited Edition graphics card and are working with partners to ensure a steady availability of choices in the market."
The Intel Arc B580 is a $250 graphics card that can pack quite a punch compared to its Nvidia and AMD competition, but only when it actually works in games. The main problem our Dave James found in testing is that there were some games it just didn't work with at all, such as Cyberpunk 2077 and Homeworld 3.
That's why we didn't score it higher, because at launch its drivers make it pretty inconsistent, at least judging by the games we tested it with. And that's a tale as old as time for Intel GPUs—well, a tale as old as early 2022, at least. We were hoping things would be a little smoother with this new Arc generation, but alas.
Still, such issues are driver issues, meaning there's room for it to grow into a consistent performer. And that might not even take too long. It all depends on how quickly Intel pumps out meaningful driver updates.
Despite this inconsistency at launch, there's been a lot of love for the B580, and for good reason. The next-best option at the current-gen budget end is the $300 Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060, and even though it costs $50 more than the B580, it performs worse on average, though of course this can vary from game to game.
In other words, the B580 is just a great value proposition, provided you're okay waiting for more consistent drivers. If you throw such stellar budget value at gamers after a few years of over-inflated graphics card prices and few genuine budget options, it's little surprise they're lapping it up and retailers are burning through inventory.
We probably shouldn't forget the "Nvidia and AMD alternative" motivation, too. Just the fact that the B580 is adding some new and genuine competition into the mix might be what's nudging at least some gamers towards opting for it.
Of course, we've got the promise of new Nvidia and AMD graphics cards in the new year, but these will almost certainly be high-end options. That means there's little threat of imminent competition against the B580. When stocks are replenished, I wouldn't be surprised if they're emptied again pretty sharpish.
